Northern Ireland's Dead

From January 1 to December 13 of 1981 one hundred and twelve people lost their lives in Northern Ireland because of the political conflict.  Paddy Agnew and Vincent Browne

It was another year of crisis in Nortthern Ireland, dominated by the hunger strike by republican prisoners in H B19Cks. That strike crystallised and intensified the alienation of the Catholic community from the Nortthern state in a manner not previously witnessed in the 12 years of troubles. It also polarised the two communities still further, obliterating any prospect of an agreed political settlement 'for the forseeable future.

The IRA and INLA were responsible for the deaths of 63 people. This total comprises 48 security force members, 4 prominent Unionists,S alleged inforrmers and 6 civilians. Three of the civiilians were killed in mistake for UDR members, one was shot at a Provo road block, and the other two were Joanne Mathers, the Derry Census collector and Ken Campbell, the caretaker shot alongside the Rev. Bradford.

The security forces killed 18 people, the loyalist paramilitary forces killed 13 civilians, of which 12 were innoocent Catholics and one was an alleged informer. Ten hunger strikers died, two INLA members blew themselves up and three deaths were unexplained but had the hallmarks of political assassinations.

The 112 people killed was only a marginally higher figure than that for any year since 1976 (113 in 1979 exxcepted), - and was well below the figuures for the period 1971 to 1976. Yet the effect of the IRA/INLA killings Àparticularly of the 38 members of the local security forces - was to provoke a major political crisis.

The significance of this crisis must be viewed in the context of the hunndreds of innocent Catholics killed by the security forces and the loyalist paramilitary organisations in the middseventies.

It remains a fact of political life in Northern Ireland that Loyalist lives count for much more than Catholic lives. It is also significant to note, in view of the allegations made by the Taoiseach, Garret FitzGerald, and others, that not a single Protestant was killed in Northern Ireland during 1981 because they were Protestant. This is not to deny, however, the deeply sectarian effect of the killings of the 38 local security force members andof the three prominent Unionists -the two Stronges and Rev. Robert Braddford.

Killed in 1981.     
Security forces killed by IRA/INLA   48   
Civilians killed by security forces   18   
Civilians killed by Loyalists   13   
Civilians killed by IRA/INLA   6   
Civilians killed in West Belfast riot (Guineys)   2   
Prominent Loyalists killed by IRA/INLA   4   
Alleged informers killed by IRA/INLA   5   
Civilians caught in crossfire   1   
NLA members who blew themselves up   2   
Hunger strikers who died   10   
Unexplained   3   
  Total 112   

Killers in 1981 (Jan. 1)- Dec. 13).     
The IRA/INLA killed   63   
Security forces killed   18   
Loyalist para-military organisations killed   13   
Civilians caught in cross-fire   1   
Civilians killed in West Belfast riot (Guineys)   2   
Hunger strikers   10   
INLA members who blew themselves up   2   
Unexplained killings   3   
  Total 112   

If the year is divided into the cateegories of before, during and after the hunger strike, then it is not surrprising to record that almost half the year's deaths occurred during the period May to August, the period of the hunger strike.

ALL DEATHS OVER THE YEAR
January-April 25
May-August 55
September-November 32
Total 112

SECURITY FORCE DEATHS
January-April 13
May-August 19
September-November 16
Total 48

ALL CIVILIAN DEATHS
January-April 12
May-August 36
September - Novem ber 16

Total 64

The large number of civilians killed in the May to August period was caussed not only by the deaths of the hunnger strikers, but also by the numbers of people killed in riots subsequent to the death of one of the strikers.

CIVILIANS KILLED BY THE SECURITY FORCES
January-April 4
May-August 13
September-November 1
Total 18

Plastic bullets fired by the security forces were responsible for seven deaths, while another four people died as a result of being knocked over by Army and RUC vehicles. Two people were shot by the army during riots in West Belfast subsequent to the death of hunger striker, Joe McDonnell. The other four civilians killed by the secuurity forces included two members of the INLA, killed on May 28 in a Derry shoot out with a suspected SAS officer, one member of the INLA shot by the Army in Divis Flats during a riot subbsequent to the death of Francis Hughes "on May 12 and one member of the UDA who failed to stop at an RUC checkpoint on October 18.

Any attempt to analyse loyalist killings of Catholics is fraught with the difficulty that what appear to be killings by loyalist paramilitaries are not always acknowledged by any loyaalist group. However, one trend emerges very clearly from the year and that is that two thirds of the killings done by loyalist groups have been done in the last three months. Such figures testify to the growing unease and anger of the Protestant community:

KILLINGS BY LOYALIST PARAMILITARIES:
January -April 2
May-August 2
September-November 9
Total 13

With the exception of Councillor Lawrence Kennedy, who was clearly a selected target, the hallmark of the majority of the loyalist killings would appear to be their random nature. Thomas McNulty, for instance, was killed on the night of November 14, because he was foolhardy enough to be walking the street in the predomiinantly Catholic Short Strand area late at night, only hours after the killing by the Provisional IRA of the Rev. Robert Bradford. When in a retaliaatory mood, it seems that Loyalist paramilitaries are willing to make a target of any Catholic in a specifically Cathoolic area. Of the two Protestant paraamilitary movements, the UFF and the UVF, the latter seems the more unndisciplined and arbitrary in its metthods of operation.

The UFF are believed to be ressponsible for the deaths of four Cathoolics, while the UVF are thought ressponsible for three Catholic deaths. A further five Catholic deaths would appear to be the work of Protestant paramilitaries, but no specific claim was made in relation to these killings by any group.

Recent weeks have seen the RUC glean much information from alleged "grasses". In an attempt to disscourage such behaviour from any of their activists, the Provisionals have killed four alleged informers, whilst both the INLA and the UDA have acknowledged a killing because they suspected the victim had been leaking information to the RUC.

Some of the civilian deaths are diffficult to classify. The census colllector, Joanne Mathers, who was shot in Derry as she was collecting forms, would appear to have been killed by someone with Republican sympathies. For the purposes of our Tables, we have held either the Provos or the INLA responsible for this killing. Likeewise in cases of mistaken identity, such as Charles Johnston the Belfast businessman believed to have been shot on August II, in mistake for his brother, a member of the UDR, we have held either the Provos or the INLA to be responsible.

The Protestant milkman, Eric Guiiney, and his son, Desmond, who died from injuries received after their milk float had crashed, were obviously victims of the North's political vioolence. The milk float had crashed beecause it was being stoned by a West Belfast crowd during a riot subsequent to Bobby Sands death. The crowd wanted to commandeer the float and its load of empty bottles for the purrpose of making petrol bombs. Their deaths come under a separate heading.

The heading of "prominent loyaalist" refers to the killings of Sir Norrman Stronge , James Stronge and the Rev. Robert Bradford who were all killed by the Provisional IRA. Also recorded in this section is the killing on October 16 of UDA official, Billy McCullough, by the INLA. •

NUMBER OF DEATHS IN NORTH, YEAR BY YEAR

      RUC    RUC reservists  Army     UDR     Civilians       Annual totals   
1969       1                       12           13   
1970       2                       23           25   
1971       11                 43       5       115           174   
1972       14       3           103       26       321          467   
1973       10       3           58       8       171          250   
1974       12       3           28       7       161          216   
1975       7       4           14       6       216          247   
1976       13       10           14       15       245          297   
1977       8       6           15       14       69          112   
1978       4       6           14       7       50           81   
1979       9       5           38       10       51           113   
1980       3       6           8       9       50           76   
1981    13       8           10       13       54           98   
(to Dec. 4, 1981)               
Tot:   107       54           345       120       1,543       2,169   

(RUC Press Office Figures)

* There is a discrepancy between Magill's figures for 1981 and the RUC Press Office figures for 1981.. The RUC Press Office does not consider some killings as 'political' because of inadequate evidence. Also the RUC Press Office interprets the knocking down and killing of a civilian by a security force vehicle, whether in a riot situation or not, as a 'traffic accident'.