In a shocking case that has haunted Northern Ireland for over three decades, the family of murdered Belfast lawyer Pat Finucane may finally be on the verge of uncovering the truth about his death. With the recent announcement of a public inquiry, long-held suspicions of British state collusion in the 1989 killing could soon be exposed, potentially implicating those at the highest levels of government.
A Heinous Crime and a Tainted Investigation
Pat Finucane, a prominent defense lawyer who represented Irish Republican Army (IRA) members, was brutally gunned down in front of his family on February 12, 1989. The Ulster Defense Association (UDA), a loyalist paramilitary group, claimed responsibility for the murder, alleging Finucane was an IRA officer – a claim that has never been substantiated.
From the outset, the investigation into Finucane’s murder was marred by irregularities and a seeming lack of commitment to uncovering the truth. Spent bullet cartridges were overlooked at the crime scene, and one of the murder weapons, a 9mm Browning pistol stolen from a British Army barracks, was eventually returned to the military for reuse rather than being preserved as evidence.
Mounting Evidence of Collusion
Over the years, a disturbing picture of state involvement in the murder has emerged. Investigations have revealed that Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) officers likely encouraged the UDA to target Finucane, while a British government minister publicly disparaged the lawyer as being “unduly sympathetic” to the IRA just weeks before his death.
Perhaps most damningly, it has come to light that both the UDA intelligence chief who provided information on Finucane to the killers and the quartermaster who supplied the murder weapon were British agents. On three separate occasions, including just six weeks before the shooting, security services were aware of threats against Finucane’s life but failed to act.
“I was furious, like absolutely furious. I just intervened, and I said, ‘Excuse me. I said I can’t take any more of this. I’m calling this meeting to an end’.”
– Geraldine Finucane, on a disappointing 2012 meeting with then-PM David Cameron
A Family’s Tireless Fight for Justice
For Pat Finucane’s widow, Geraldine, and their three children, the struggle to uncover the full extent of state collusion has been a long and often frustrating one. Despite government reviews confirming shocking levels of collusion, the family has faced a series of setbacks and delays in their quest for a public inquiry.
In 2004, Tony Blair’s government promised an inquiry, only to backtrack on the commitment when the Finucanes wouldn’t accept caveats on access to evidence and witnesses. In 2012, David Cameron commissioned a mere barrister-led review rather than a full inquiry, leaving Geraldine Finucane fuming. And as recently as 2020, Boris Johnson’s administration attempted to delay an inquiry until separate police reviews were completed – a decision overturned by the High Court in 2022.
A Glimmer of Hope
With the announcement of a public inquiry by the new Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn, the Finucanes are cautiously optimistic that they may finally get the answers they’ve sought for so long. However, concerns remain about the inquiry’s terms of reference and the selection of its chair.
For Geraldine Finucane, the inquiry represents an opportunity to expose not just the actions of individual gunmen, but the systemic collusion that enabled and covered up her husband’s murder. She believes the trail of corruption leads all the way to the top, with then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher herself being “hands on” and aware of the sinister machinations.
“I was never particularly interested in the gunman, per se. It was all the people behind the gunman. Gunmen at that time in Belfast were ten a penny. It was who briefed them, who sent them, why they did it, and where it all came from. That’s what I was always interested in. Still am.”
– Geraldine Finucane
As the Finucane family prepares to address a US Congressional hearing on November 19th, they hope that sustained international pressure will ensure the inquiry is as thorough and far-reaching as possible. Only then, they believe, will the full, shocking extent of British state collusion in Pat Finucane’s murder finally be laid bare.
