Statement by Minister Jim O’Callaghan on the conclusion of the search at Bragan Bog for the remains of Columba McVeigh
- Foilsithe:
- An t-eolas is déanaí:
Minister for Justice, Home Affairs & Migration Jim O’Callaghan has today expressed his regret that the recent search by the Independent Commission for the Location of Victims’ Remains (ICLVR) at Bragan Bog, Co Monaghan for the remains of Columba McVeigh has concluded without success.
Minister O’Callaghan said:
“When the Commission began this search in August, I hoped that Columba McVeigh’s family would finally have the solace of being able to lay him to rest. I am disappointed that, in spite of the continued efforts of the Commission, Columba’s remains have not been located at Bragan Bog, Co Monaghan.
“I want to acknowledge the unwavering determination of the Commission to locate Columba since the first search at Bragan Bog was conducted in 1999. I would also like to thank the National Parks and Wildlife Service for its assistance in the preparation of this search.
“Today, my sympathies are with Columba’s family who have lived with this uncertainty for so many years but have done so much to keep Columba in our collective thoughts.”
The Minister added:
“The role of the Commission is a critical, humanitarian one: to support the families who have suffered the devastating loss of their loved ones. The Government remains fully committed to supporting the work of the Commission into the future.
“I know that the Commission will continue its vital work and I appeal again to anyone with any information that could help the families of Columba McVeigh, Joseph Lynskey, Seamus Maguire and Robert Nairac to share this information with the Commission now.”
ENDS
Note for Editors
Columba McVeigh was a single man from Donaghmore, Co. Tyrone. He disappeared on 31 October 1975 and is believed to have been secretly buried at Bragan bog in Co. Monaghan. Seven searches of the area have not succeeded in locating his remains.
The Independent Commission for the Location of Victims’ Remains (ICLVR) was established by an Agreement between the Government of the Ireland and the Government of the United Kingdom signed on 27 April 1999, and by legislation enacted in both jurisdictions. The ICLVR is responsible for facilitating the location of the remains of victims of paramilitary violence who were murdered and secretly buried arising from the conflict in Northern Ireland. Further information is available at www.iclvr.ie
Its two Commissioners are Mr Tim Dalton and Mrs Rosalie Flanagan. The Department of Justice, Home Affairs & Migration, in conjunction with the Northern Ireland Office, provides financial and administrative support for the Commission.
Information about the missing victims is fundamental to the ICLVR’s work. The ICLVR needs further information to be able to progress its investigations into the remaining disappeared victims – Columba McVeigh, Joe Lynskey, Seamus Maguire and Robert Nairac.
All information provided to the Commission is legally privileged. It can be used only to try to locate the remains of the Disappeared and cannot be passed on to other agencies or used in courts.
The ICLVR can be contacted in confidence by:
- telephone: +353 1 602 8655
- email: Secretary@iclvr.ie
- post: ICLVR PO Box 10827