I believe the Birmingham 6 were guilty of knowing people, as indeed most of us do. That didn't make them - or us - guilty of any crimes. It also didn't make it right to arrest innocent men. If they knew they were guilty, they should have followed the correct protocols to charge them and find them guilty. Justice is more than throwing a random behind bars. The victims deserve to know the right people have met justice. Not that innocent people have met miscarriages of justice in their name. I'm not an expert in the case but if the Birmingham 6 denied knowing the IRA, who'd blame them? Either they didn't and they're being honest or they did and they knew it would incriminate.
Their clearing by the justice system and compensation is good enough for me to declare their innocence in the crime that killed the 21. The whispers about the rest just muddy the water. An open public inquiry would help.
[joysandsorrows.co.uk]
[/quote] All the people involved especially the victims families want the truth, if the police or the higher powers to be are witholding this information then its a bloody scandal, Look i cant prove anyones innocence or guilt just like anybody else , whether i think they are guilty or innocent is not going to change anything, when these guys went to the high court just like the guidford four, their cases were quashed because of the brutality of the police and the fabricated statements, they were not quashed on innocence alone. WMP serious crime squad were the worst in the country for brutality, I dont think we will ever know 100% who bombed Birmingham, just like we will never know who Jack the Ripper was, someone out there knows the 100% facts but unfortunately we will never find out [/quote]
Their convictions were quashed, therefore they are innocent. Everything else is just hearsay and your opinion, to which of course you are fully entitled.
There won't be any further inquiries or convictions of any Troubles era killings because of the Legacy Bill the Tories have recently pushed through.
It's more important for the British Government to cover up the truth of their involvement in the mass murder of civilians in NI than it is for the victims of Republican, Loyalist, or British state violence to ever see justice.
Got to agree with that.
My understanding was that the names of the bombers had been given to the British authorities by the IRA - but not followed up.
Runaway TrainGot to agree with that.
My understanding was that the names of the bombers had been given to the British authorities by the IRA - but not followed up.
Indeed. Either those responsible were dead, indemnified from further prosecution (whistleblowers) or else insiders from the British establishment that would incriminate the UK government, should their names be revealed. Otherwise, why not an inquiry? It would only bring the truth to light, those names speculated would be revealed as innocent or guilty or simply unproven, and the victims' families would feel the establishment felt the crime was worthy of finding the truth behind it. As it stands, the releasing of the Birmingham 6 means the criminal justice system KNOWS the perpetrators went free. Even if they don't believe the families when they say it's their belief they know who the actual bombers were... you'd think they'd want to re-open the case to find out who they were. It's not like a "double jeopardy" thing.
gerry1875Greebo joeGerry doesnt know different, Gerry has based his opinions on actual facts, accounts of when we lived in the same area as the Birmingham 6, and people who were around a lot longer than i was back in the 1970s, I was 13 when the bombings took place. I did not know the 6 personally but i have friends and family who did, who still to this day will never believe anything elsenewblueIt’s known who the actual bombers are. Framing people who didn’t do it is not justice.
Exactly, Gerry knows different though.
Probably base there opinions on nothing more than they were Irish and had sympathetic views towards what was happenning in Ireland, in exactly the same way somebody else might have pro loyalist views. There is a reason it’s been covered up and I don’t suppose we will ever find out.
I take it you don’t know who I was referring too in my earlier post, no problem I assumed wrongly that you were claiming living locally and knowing people in the area gave you some sort of extended knowledge. Clearly not.
gerry1875Joys and SorrowsFate is a funny thing, what's meant to be is meant to be. Birmingham 6 I have my own opinions on them, growing up in Kingstanding/Perry common where they all came from, let's just say even today their names are not a very welcoming topic.I wrote a post last week relating to the 49th anniversary of the Birmingham pub bombings. Thank you for the feedback I have received directly and through social media. It also prompted two stories to come forward from two people closely associated with the site. They have given me permission Read Mo
[joysandsorrows.co.uk]
Same with me Fella. I lived in Kingstanding and a few of the 6 were very well known in the likes of the Kingstanding pub. Like you, I have my own opinions on them.....
Russell LeondAn open public inquiry would help.
Can never happen now as it would open up too many old wounds unfortunately.
It’s appalling lack of justice but I tend to agree. It’s not just a case of opening old wounds, but so much would have to be revealed about how a campaign was conducted against what was in effect a guerilla army by undercover services. One of the main reasons Sinn Fein made peace was that the organisation had been penetrated so deeply by the security services. This is known to have involved being complicit in some pretty awful events and probably a lot more that we don’t (including in the Loyalist side). It’s hard to see that being allowed to be seen, however necessary it might be argued it was.
Thank god those shootings and bombings have (more or less) stopped though. I think we almost forget how pervasive and damaging they were.
Bang on mate, 33 killed in Dublin bombs only weeks before Brum bombs which it is strongly believed involved British involvement, MI6 and English agents involved in bank robberies and bombings, one of which just happened to be staying at a flat in north Birmingham which belonged to the chief prosecution witness in the case of the Birmingham 6.
Greebo joeBang on mate, 33 killed in Dublin bombs only weeks before Brum bombs which it is strongly believed involved British involvement, MI6 and English agents involved in bank robberies and bombings, one of which just happened to be staying at a flat in north Birmingham which belonged to the chief prosecution witness? In the Birmingham 6 case on the actual night of the bombings.
Rumour I heard was that was because doing so would force into public significant intelligence failings. Such as monitoring one of the bombers but losing him.