Sir, - I remain unimpressed by renewed attempts to rehabilitate the RUC, of which Kathy Sheridan's article (May 23rd) is the most recent example.
The RUC seems to remain blithely unaware of its own culpability in igniting the conflagration in Northern Ireland in the late 1960s and has never, to my knowledge, expressed any sort of apology or remorse for its crimes, then or since. Yet its role in kick-starting the cycle of violence has been central. Anyone even remotely familiar with the history of the troubles knows full well that there wouldn't have been a Provisional IRA had it not been for RUC violence against the innocent in 1969, and that subsequent republican violence originated largely in response to RUC violence. Yet those such as Les Rodgers continue to deny any responsibility for violence.
I believe there should be a full-scale public enquiry into the roots of violence in Northern Ireland, taking in the period from the Civil Rights movement through 1969 to the emergence of the Provisional IRA and their rise to power. It should be as wide-ranging as possible, examining all factors in depth, apportioning responsibility wherever it lies. I'm confident that such an enquiry would reveal the role of RUC violence as one of the main precipitating factors in pushing this society into violent conflict. - Yours, etc., Michael Morgan,
Belfast.