BRITAIN ACCUSED OF 'WALL OF SILENCE'

Sinn Fein's Gerry Kelly has accused the British government of erecting
a wall of silence around the whole issue of collusion between unionist
death squads and the British state in the course of the past 35 years
of conflict.

Kelly was speaking at a press conference in Belfast on Tuesday 27 May
when Sinn Fein launched a dossier entitled: "Who Sanctioned Britain's
Death Squads? Time for the Truth".

And the dossier which was presented to Bertie Ahern in Dublin by Sinn
Fein President Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness on Saturday, 24 May,
details the involvement of the British government through it's agencies
MI5, British Military Intelligence and Special Branch in the
assassination of citizens across Ireland.

"These agencies continue to operate and are intent on destabilising the
peace process", Kelly told the press conference.

"Sinn Fein has been highlighting these activities for years. These
activities involve manipulation, control and direction of unionist
death squads in the killing of civilians", he said.

Added Kelly, "in the past number of weeks these concerns have been
highlighted by the partial publication of the Stevens Report, the
spying incident involving leaked transcripts of Martin McGuinness and
Downing Street, the British Intelligence briefings and unsubstantiated
allegations concerning an alleged British agent in the IRA and the
reports of UVF collusion with military and RUC personnel in the killing
of citizens".

The Sinn Fein representative went on to accuse the British of giving a,
"predictable", response to the allegations. Said Kelly "the British
government is maintaining a wall of silence, is obstructing inquiries,
is failing to disclose information and has been found to have destroyed
evidence. So far the British government has refused to fully
investigate the serious allegations against it.

"The lid needs to be lifted and we need full disclosure. The people of
Ireland are demanding the truth and the people of Britain have a right
to know what was done in their name".

Among those attending the press conference was Sinn Fein Mayor of
Belfast Alex Maskey who was himself targeted by British agent Brain
Nelson.

Maskey escaped at least three assassination attempts organised by
British forces while his close friend Alan Lundy was shot dead in
Maskey's home in 1994.

Dara O'Hagan from Lurgan was also there. O'Hagan said that some of the
worst allegations of collusion centred on the activities of the UVF in
the Lurgan Portadown area, "Sinn Fein's Sam Marshall and Rosemary
Nelson were killed by loyalists in collusion with crown forces. These
deaths and the killings of other nationalists have yet be fully
investigated. It is time for disclosure".

Meanwhile Donegal councillor Padraig MacLochlainn has called on the
Dublin government to demand that the British government, "gives
answers", in any inquiry into the killing of Sinn Fein's Eddie
Fullerton who was shot dead in Buncrana,County Donegal by the UDA in
May 1991.

"The circumstances surrounding Eddie's assassination have yet to be
fully examined and I am calling on the Dublin government, in light of
the evidence they have received, to back a full open inquiry into this
political killing".