The most recent search for the remains of Columba McVeigh, who was 'disappeared' by the IRA in 1975, has "ended without success," the Independent Commission for the Location of Victims’ Remains (ICLVR) announced this week.
Columba McVeigh, from Donaghmore, Co Tyrone, was 19 years old when he was abducted, murdered, and secretly buried by the IRA in October 1975, according to the ICLVR.
The seventh and most recent search for McVeigh's remains commenced in August but has now concluded. The McVeigh family has been notified, the ICLVR noted.
ICLVR "will not rest"
“This is devastating news for the McVeigh family coming as it does so close to the 50th anniversary of Columba’s disappearance just over a month ago," Lead Investigator for the ICLVR Eamonn Henry said on December 16.
"Our hearts go out to them.
"Everyone involved in the search, including the ICLVR investigators, the forensic archaeologists, and the contractors who operate the machinery, are bitterly disappointed and share the frustration of the McVeigh family that yet another search of the bog has ended in this way.
"Over 26 acres of Bragan Bog have now been searched, and while we continue to believe that the information we are working on has been given in good faith, clearly there is still something missing.
"I can assure the McVeigh family and the other families of the Disappeared who give them invaluable support that the Commission remains fully committed to finding Columba, and we will not rest until his remains are returned and he receives the Christian burial that he has been denied for far too long."
Ireland and UK governments remain committed to ICLVR
Both Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Hilary Benn and Ireland's Minister for Justice, Home Affairs & Migration Jim O’Callaghan expressed their disappointment, but acknowledged the work of all of those involved in the searches.
Both noted that the UK and Irish governments remain committed to the work of the ICLVR.
"We will not be silent"
The latest update in the search for Columba McVeigh's remains comes just over a month since the 19th annual All Souls Silent Walk for the Disappeared, organized by the WAVE Trauma Centre, took place at Stormont in Northern Ireland.
For the Silent Walk on November 2, members of the Families of the Disappeared walked from Carson’s Statue to the steps of Parliament Buildings, where they laid the black wreath with five white lilies representing those who have yet to be found: Joe Lynskey, Columba McVeigh, Robert Nairac, Seamus Maguire, and Lisa Dorrian.
This year's Walk coincided with the 50th anniversary of Columba McVeigh's disappearance.
Speaking ahead of the Walk, Columba's sister Dympna Kerr said: “Columba will always be my big, wee brother.
"There is not a day passes that I don’t think of him, and not a day passes that I don’t pray for him.
"For years, I couldn’t bring myself to go to Bragan Bog.
"I force myself to go now, but it is never anything but an awful nightmare.
"Anyone who knows me knows that I’m a talker.
"But when I get to the track that goes up to the bog I can’t speak.
"When I say my blood runs cold, that is not a figure of speech.
"I can vividly imagine Columba being taken up the same track on that cold, dark night.
"I can see him shaking with terror and hear him crying for his Mum.
"And then he was left in that desolate place in an unmarked grave as if he never existed.
"That is the reality of what I and the other families of the Disappeared have to live with.
"And yet even on Bragan Bog I have hope.
"I meet the ICLVR team, the forensic archaeologists, and the contractors who have worked on the Disappeared cases from the beginning, and their commitment gives me hope.
"If Columba is there, they will find him.
"But it is more than that.
"Their dedication and compassion gives me strength."
After paying tribute to the other members of the Families of the Disappeared and Dr. Sandra Peake, CEO of the WAVE Trauma Centre, Kerr added: "The silence and fear of the past is gone.
"Now we speak out.
"We will not be silent.
"We will not rest until the terrible wrong of denying our loved ones a Christian burial is put right and all the Disappeared are returned home."
Appeal for information
The ICLVR is urging anyone with information about the four outstanding Disappeared cases —Columba McVeigh, Joe Lynskey, Robert Nairac, and Seamus Maguire— to make contact.
"All information is treated in the strictest confidence," the ICLVR said.
The ICLVR can be contacted by telephone: +353 1 602 8655. E-mail information to: [email protected]. By post to: ICLVR PO Box 10827. CrimeStoppers can be contacted on 0800 555 111, and the untraceable anonymous online form is at Crimestoppers-uk.org.
Who are 'The Disappeared'?
According to the ICLVR, The Disappeared are victims of paramilitary violence who were murdered and buried in secret arising from the conflict in Northern Ireland up to the signing of the Good Friday Agreement on April 10, 1998.
17 people were 'disappeared' over the course of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. (The Wave Trauma Centre in Northern Ireland puts this figure at 19, including two additional people who were disappeared in 2003 and 2005, falling out of the remit for the ICLVR, which can only work on the cases of those who disappeared up to the Good Friday Agreement.)
The ICLVR says it is believed the 17 'disappeared' were killed by republican paramilitaries, though the republican movement did not admit responsibility for all of them.
To date, the remains of 13 of the Disappeared have been recovered, 11 of whom have been recovered through the ICLVR’s efforts. They are Seamus Ruddy, Seamus Wright, Kevin McKee, Brendan Megraw, Peter Wilson, Gerard 'Gerry Evans, Charlie Armstrong, Danny McIlhone, Jean McConville, Eamon Molloy, John McClory, Brian McKinney, and Eugene Simmons.
The remains of Joe Lynskey, Columba McVeigh, Robert Nairac, and Seamus Maguire have not yet been located.
Comments