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Dramatic move as Senator John Kerry steps into Boston College dispute

Says he is concerned release of tapes will impact Irish peace process

BRIAN FITZPATRICK,

IrishCentral Boston Editor

Published Saturday, January 28, 2012, 7:02 AM

Updated Saturday, January 28, 2012, 7:05 AM

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John Kerry

Senator John Kerry has made a dramatic intervention in the Boston College IRA tapes controversy.
In a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Kerry (D-Mass.) urged the State Department to “work with the British authorities” in the hope that they will “reconsider the path they have chosen” with regard to Boston College’s Belfast Project.

Saying the subpoenas had “implications for the confidentiality of other research projects of this nature,” Senator Kerry also said in the letter that he is “obviously concerned about the impact that it may have on the continued success of the Northern Ireland peace process.”

The letter also sees Senator Kerry point out how he spoke with Attorney General Eric Holder on the matter late last year.

In a recent conference call with a number of Irish-American organizations, it is understood Senator Kerry indicated he would speak personally with British Foreign Secretary William Hague on the issue. On the same call, he is said to have not ruled out the possibility of a hearing on the matter in front of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which he chairs.

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Speaking with The Irish Emigrant, Boston-based attorney John Foley, who has been actively lobbying on behalf of the Belfast Project’s directors McIntyre and Moloney, said a lot of hard work had gone into getting Senator Kerry on board, and hoped that “we can finally end this waste of time and effort.”

“Drew O’Brien at Senator Kerry’s office has been instrumental in getting things to this stage,” Foley said. “He’s been a great help in terms of getting on top of the issues at hand, and getting us the political response we need.”

In total the Belfast Project included interviews with around 50 republican and loyalist paramilitaries gathered between 2001 and 2006, under the condition that they would not be released until the interviewees had passed away.At present, sensitive interview tapes relating to former IRA operative Dolours Price lie in the hands of US prosecutors, with a Boston appeal hearing set to decide in March if they should be handed to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).

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SeamusMartin | Feb 03, 2012, 12:03 AM EST

I don't give a sh!te about all the stupid details the preceding commentor have stated. What's done is done. The blood bath is over. Both sides are to be blamed. So accept it. It takes a couragous men and women to stop the hate for the childrens sake. Now go in peace.

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KLennox | Feb 01, 2012, 12:21 AM EST

Thank goodness somebody is doing this. Thank you, Senator Kerry. I hope we protect the confidentiality of these files.

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seanomelbourne | Jan 30, 2012, 10:25 PM EST

Kilsally if the HET have prosecuted loyalists to the tune of 90% they must have committed 90% of the atrocities.Thank you for adding clarity to Slainte's argument and poving him correct.

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Kilsally | Jan 30, 2012, 10:22 AM EST

slainte9 - you are misinformed - this police inquiry is by the HET (Historical Enquiries Team) who look at cold cases related to `The Troubles` over 90% of resultant prosecutions have been of Loyalist paramilitary crimes.

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Kilsally | Jan 30, 2012, 10:19 AM EST

So Senator Kerry is urging the police to stop investigating a murder? BBC Northern Ireland News: Release Boston College IRA tapes says Jean McConville’s daughter …The daughter of Jean McConville who was kidnapped and murdered by the IRA, has called for controversial tapes about her killing to be released. Helen McKendry said interviews given to researchers at Boston College about her mother’s death should be handed to police in Northern Ireland. She was 15 years old in 1972 when her mother was taken from their Divis Street home. Jean McConville was tortured, shot in the back of the head and buried near a County Louth beach. Helen McKendry said not knowing what had happened was “torture” Ms McKendry has written to the US Attorney General asking him to see the family’s side of the story and hand over the interviews to the British authorities…….

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BillyFitz | Jan 30, 2012, 08:32 AM EST

Still don't understand why any Republican or Loyalist for that matter, would volunteer for this "project?" Did they not see this coming? Unfortunately, what's done is done. Not sure what B.C. was trying to accomplish. This entire mess is only going to reopen old wounds.

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IrelandNorth | Jan 30, 2012, 08:05 AM EST

Working class Vietnam Vets. had a right to vent their spleen at the warmongering capitalist apologists on Capitol Hill and Pennsylvania Ave. The PSNI are RUC in sheeps clothing, and questionably partisan in delivering justice. If I had been either of the researchers I'd be hopping mad it my work was passed onto third parties by BC.

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jflanagan | Jan 29, 2012, 08:51 PM EST

If he handles this like he "stood up for" his fellow vietnam veterans, Boston College is going to be sold down the drain for political points. Had he not betrayed his fellow veterans with hearsay and lies, he probably would have been elected 8 years ago and still be president.

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pilib04 | Jan 29, 2012, 07:35 PM EST

John Kerry can be counted on to take care of this mess created by BC.

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seanomelbourne | Jan 29, 2012, 05:52 PM EST

Nice article islenita!! it's as plain as day what is happening here unfortunaely realist and his cohorts cannot see the truth through their pro British rose tinted glasses.As I have stated before 50% of the civilian workers in the PSNI were members of the discredited RUC one wonders who's pushing this tilted barrow.

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durtymurphy | Jan 29, 2012, 04:17 PM EST

The Brits will never quit, or 'Move On' as we like to say nowadays. Too many atrocities by ALL sides, so if you wanna fix one, then fix 'em all. Impossible? Unless an impartial tribunal runs the show, it will never happen, even after the GFA was put in place, the Brits were caught continuing with their subversive tactics, any why not, N.I. is a good practice/training camp for them.

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FallsRNat | Jan 29, 2012, 11:35 AM EST

Kerr is after irish american votes, a small minority that appear to support SF, well, let's see if he holds up the values if documentary evidence stands in the way of a Al Qaeda member being convicted, the simple fact is that the US establishment plays the 'green' card at election time, but the irish are so split on the Ulster question that they cannot show a united front on anything, so we will wait to see what next week will hold, of course, if Kerry is simply saying that no terrorist should be held accountable for their actions or that an Irish terrorist should be allowed to 'get away' with violent actions, but no muslim terrorist organisation will be treated with the same leniency, then why doesn't he say so, oh, slainte9, u obviously arent from NI otherwise you would know that the HET have been dealing with almost exclusively loyalist crimes.

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islenita | Jan 28, 2012, 09:56 PM EST

It's about time this matter received attention as our Justices, US Attorneys and all others seemed to be brain dead. The Judge's first Memorandum allowing an "in camera review" is like reading his "circular thought process". Boy was that one hard read. This murder happened 40 years ago and the British government, under the terms of the Treaty, was to exhaust all remedies as this request is of last resort. They have done nothing. In fact they had the Brendan Hughes tapes for over 9 months and still haven't done anything. How foolish does the US look arguing that there is an urgency to this matter. It is clearly a politically motivated attempt to skew the governing body back to the ways of old-Orange. Hey and how about the matter of the FBI and it's 3k pages of information on Senator Ted Kennedy and Chappaquiddick. We all know he was drunk, drove off the bridge, killing Ms Kopechne. I would venture that rather hang around to render any help, he hightailed it out of there to get "legal help". So why does the Kennedy's get to review the documents prior to disclosure, and if any of them are still alive and implicated or complicit in Teddy's adventure, those portions will not be disclosed until they are deceased. Ahh the DOUBLE STANDARD when it comes to the Republicans in NI. We all know the paras also engaged in murdering as well. Case dismissed.

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slainte9 | Jan 28, 2012, 07:08 PM EST

The British only want to punish the Catholics. Since the British have been completely unwilling to punish either their military or the Protestant militias, their war crimes need to be brought before the war crimes tribunal at The Hague.

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Realist | Jan 28, 2012, 06:06 PM EST

seanmelbourne: I understand your posts just fine my friend and that's precisely what you meant. Thankfully, you will be disappointed as the 'Troubles' will not be making a come back. If you're embarrassed by this, then good, you ought to be - perhaps you've learned a lesson? As I stated earlier, if these tapes hold evidence that can bring killers to justice then let the PSNI have them.

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