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Revised: 12 March 2005 09:48:41
In Memory of
Jack Rooney and Hugh Watters
Murdered and Forgotten.
Twenty-nine years is too long to wait for justice.
"We just waited and we just hoped for justice. But it didn't come. It felt as if they weren't trying. It felt that after the bombing and the funerals, we just didn't exist."
- Maura McKeever, daughter of murder victim Jack Rooney.
Links to latest reports can be found at the bottom of this page.
Pictured above is the cruel aftermath of a Loyalist no-warning car bomb explosion outside Kay's Tavern public house, Crowe Street, Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland, at 6.22 pm on Friday, 19 December 1975.
Two local men, Jack Rooney (60) and Hughie Watters (51), were killed and many others were injured by this murderous attack on the people of Dundalk. To this day, the Loyalist perpetrators have never been brought to justice.
The evil killers are known to have been Loyalists from Portadown, County Armagh, north of Irish border, and it is widely suspected that they acted in collusion with elements of the British Army and the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) in the North of Ireland.
The families of the innocent dead and injured of the Dundalk bombing demand justice. They demand inquiries to uncover the full truth behind the bombing at Kay's Tavern and the Gardai's role in protecting the killers ever since. They have been waiting for justice now for more than 28 years - they must be denied no longer!
Jack Rooney and Hugh Watters died just a few hours before another deadly attack on Donnelly's Bar, at nearby Silverbridge, County Armagh, in which the same Loyalist gang murdered Michael Donnelly (14), Patrick Donnelly (24), and Trevor Bracknell (32).
A former member of the RUC, John Oliver Weir, has revealed much of the truth about these and several other Loyalist crimes in the border area, detailing the extent of RUC and British Army Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) involvement at every level in the planning and commission of these atrocities.
A typical British response to the Nationalist clamour of complaint against these long discredited forces has been the adoption of new names for the RUC and UDR, without the root and branch reform and investigation of wrong-doing that has been demanded. The same people are now in uniforms of the Police Service for Northern Ireland (PSNI) and the Royal Irish Regiment (RIR) respectively, and to all intents and purposes the RUC and the UDR remain.
John Weir's statement names many of those now known to have been involved in these crimes, yet no legal action has been taken by the RUC (PSNI) or the Gardai. Nobody has ever been arrested for these crimes, and nobody has been brought to justice!
A special memorial Plaque dedicated to the memory of Jack Rooney and Hugh Watters was unveiled at Dundalk's Town Hall, just yards from the scene of the devastation, on the night of 19th. December 2000, the 25th anniversary of their cruel murder.
The Rooney and Watters families are still waiting for justice. At present the Dundalk bombing of 19 December 1975 is the subject of a private inquiry under Mr Justice Henry Barron who has been appointed by the Irish government to head inquiries into the Dublin, Monaghan and Dundalk bombings, as well as the murder of Seamus Ludlow.
The families of Jack Rooney and Hugh Watters await Mr Justice Barron's Report, hoping that at last they will get answers to the many questions that remain.
Recent reports in Magill, a leading Dublin news magazine, appeared to indicate that the Rooney and Watters families may not be disappointed. The current Barron Inquiry into the Dundalk and Dublin/Monaghan bombings was expected to recommend a full public inquiry into the atrocities, Magill suggested. However, this report was too optimistic. No such inquiry has been ordered for the Dublin and Monaghan atrocities.
The publication in December 2003 of the private Barron Inquiry Report into the 17 May 1974 Dublin and Monaghan bombings, does not instill great confidence that the continuing Barron Inquiry will answer all the questions raised by the Dundalk bombing or the Seamus Ludlow murder.
Mr Justice Barron has failed to find conclusive evidence for high-level collusion between loyalist death squads and British forces in the Dublin and Monaghan bombings, but his investigation was severely weakened by the lack of the British government cooperation in handing over relevant files and, equally shocking, the disappearance of vital files from the Irish Department of Justice! He found no evidence of collusion because he was not allowed to find it!
Nevertheless, Mr Justice Barron has seen enough to be scathing of the fruitless Garda investigation and of the the Fine Gael/Labour Party coalition government's lack of concern for the original inquiry into this atrocity.
The relatives of Jack Rooney, Hugh Watters and Seamus Ludlow now wait for Justice Barron's reports on the Dundalk cases with little confidence that he will have uncovered the real truth behind the failure to bring their killers to justice.
For local press comment on this development, see 20 December 2003, The Dundalk Democrat, Editorial: No cause for optimism following Barron Report
This web site is the Dundalk victims' relatives cry for support for truth and justice. They ask you to support them in their campaign for justice.
See also (Most recent at bottom):
Magill Magazine, September 2002: The Truth Trickles Out Mystery has always surrounded the 1974 Dublin and Monaghan bombings. An independent inquiry has been set up to look at the events surrounding the attacks, and the bombing of Dundalk the following year. Donall O Maolfabhail reports on its likely findings.
The Sunday Times, January 12, 2003: Army 'link' to Dublin bombings
MATERIAL for bombs that killed 33 people in
Dublin and Monaghan may have come from the British Army, according to an
official inquiry into the atrocities.
The inquiry has been given evidence that army members supplied
loyalist terrorists with explosives that had been confiscated by the army
from the IRA and that these were used in the three bombs which exploded in
Dublin during rush-hour traffic. . . Use this link to read the full story that may link
the Dundalk and other bombs to the British Army.
>>>
The
Irish Examiner online, 27 February 2003: Group
calls for new Dublin-Monaghan bombings inquiry
There has been another call for a public inquiry
into the Dublin and Monaghan car bombings in 1974, and the explosion in
Dundalk in December 1975.
The Justice for the Forgotten group says it is furious with the British government over its failure to properly co-operate with the Barron Inquiry, which is investigating the bombings.
Use this link to read the full story. >>>
BBC News online report, 28 February 2003: Troubles victims fund set up
A £2m fund for relatives of victims of the Troubles has been set up by the Irish Government.
The money will be allocated to people in the Irish Republic.
The fund is one of the Irish Government's obligations under the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.
Among those expected to benefit are relatives of the 1974 Dublin and Monaghan bombings and the Dundalk bombing in 1975. . .
Use this link to read the full story. >>>
Dundalk Democrat, 28 June 2003: Dundalk families concerned over Barron report delay
The Taoiseach admitted this week that nearly €4000,000 has been spent on the commission into the Dublin, Monaghan and Dundalk bombings, but the report has not been completed.
This has angered the Dundalk families. Maura McKeever, whose father, Jack Rooney died along with Hugh Watters in the bombing at Kay's Tavern on 19th December 1975, is concerned over the delay.
Use this link to read the full story. >>>
Dundalk
Democrat, 8 November 2003: Dundalk bombing and Ludlow
murder ignored
The families of Seamus Ludlow and the two men murdered in the Dundalk bombing have said they are disappointed that the draft Barron report failed to mention the County Louth atrocities.
The Barron Inquiry, which was commissioned by Taoiseach Bertie Ahern in 1999, investigated the circumstances surrounding the Dublin and Monaghan bombings, as well as the 1975 Dundalk bombing and the murder of Mountpleasant man, Seamus Ludlow.
But the draft report only referred to the 1974 Dublin and Monaghan bombings, in which 33 people died. The Taoiseach said he hoped a report into other cases under Justice Barron’s remit would be completed by the New Year.
Margaret Watters, whose father Hugh, was one of two men killed when a car bomb exploded in Crowe Street on December 19 1975, said she was “saddened” by the way the families found out about the case’s exclusion from the report.
Use this link to read the full story. >>>
The Dundalk Democrat, 20 December 2003: Bombing families fear truth will never be known
By Anne Campbell
The families of the two men killed in the Dundalk bombing of 1975 now fear the truth behind the murders may never be known.
Maura McKeever, whose father, Jack Rooney, died with tailor, Hugh Watters, in the car bomb attack in Crowe Street, was speaking following the publication of the Barron Report into the Dublin and Monaghan bombings.
Two months before Justice Barron published the report into the 1974 bombings in which 34 people died, the Dundalk bereaved families and the relatives of murdered forestry worker, Seamus Ludlow, were informed that the part of the report relating to them would not be made public before the New Year.
Use this link to read the full story. >>>
30 May 2004: A Press Release issued by the Derry-based Pat Finucane Centre, following the recent broadcast on BBC 1 Northern Ireland of a Spotlight investigation of the gang, made up of RUC, UDR and UVF killers, responsible for the Dundalk bombing and many other murderous Loyalist attacks on both sides of the Irish border during the 1970s.:
International Human Rights Delegation to Probe Collusion Allegations
An international delegation arrived in the North this weekend to probe allegations of collusion highlighted earlier this week in a BBC Spotlight Programme. The allegations concern the activities of the so-called Glenanne group who have been linked to the Dublin and Monaghan bombings and a series of murders in Armagh, Tyrone and the border counties in the 1970s. The delegation will meet privately with families who have lost relatives and meetings have been requested with the authorities North and South of the border.
Among the cases featured in the Spotlight programme which the delegation will scrutinise are the multiple murders of members of the O’Dowd and Reavey families, the bomb and gun attacks on Donnelly’s Bar, Silverbridge, the Rock Bar, Granemore, the murders of two GAA supporters at Altnamackin and the bomb attack on Kay’s Tavern, Dundalk. . .
Use this link to read the full statement. >>>
The Argus, 13 August 2004:
The families of Dundalk bomb victims stay positive about enquiry
The family of Jack Rooney, who was killed in the Dundalk bombing of 1975, said this week they were remaining positive about the outcome of the enquiry being conducted by Justice Henry Barron.
The families of both Jack Rooney and Hugh Watters, who died as a result of the car bomb attack on Crowe Street on 19th December 1975 met with Justice Barron on his visit to Dundalk last week.
Use this link to read the full Argus report of the meeting with Justice Barron. >>>
The Dundalk Democrat, 14 August 2004: See the following pair of Dundalk Democrat reports of the Dundalk bombing campaign's recent meeting with Justice Henry Barron in Dundalk:
Families of those who died and were injured in the 1975 Dundalk bombing and relatives of the murdered Seamus Ludlow have met with Justice Henry Barron for a second time.
Justice Barron is compiling reports into the 1975 bombing and the May 1976 murder of Mr Ludlow.
Maura McKeever, whose father Jack Rooney was one of the two bomb victims, was joined by Margaret Watters, daughter of Hugh Watters, for the meeting which lasted for over an hour.
The meeting was described by the families as "polite but frank".
Maura McKeever said: "Justice Barron was very polite but he said he couldn't answer some of our questions because he didn't want parts of his report getting into the public domain before it is published.
"He said he expected the report into our fathers' deaths to be ready at the end of this year. I really hope that happens." . . .
Use this link to read the full Dundalk Democrat report of the meeting with Justice Barron. >>>
I Top I
Bomb victims families meet Judge Barron
Families of those who died or were injured in the 1975 Dundalk Bombing met with Justice Henry Barron this week to discuss his ongoing investigations into the tragedy.
The bombing at Kay's Tavern on Crowe Street on December 19 of that year, claimed the lives of Jack Rooney and Hugh Watters.
Mr Watters died instantly and Mr Rooney died a few days later from his injuries.
This week Maura McKeever a daughter of Jack Rooney said she was "cautiously pleased" with the meeting with Judge Barron.
The meeting which lasted over an hour and included Maura, along with Margaret English, a daughter of Hugh Watters, and Peter O'Connor, who was injured in the blast. . . .
Use this link to read the full Dundalk Democrat report of the meeting with Justice Barron. >>>
I Top I
The Irish News, 17 August 2004:
'Christmas' bombing secrets may be told
Campaigners hope that a report due to be published by Justice Henry Barron early next year will pave the way for a public inquiry into the 1975 Dundalk bombing, Southern Correspondent Valerie Robinson reports.
Use this link to read the full Irish News report >>>
I Top I
The Irish News, 6 October 2004, reports the Rooney and Watters families' latest meeting in Dundalk with Mr Justice Henry Barron, revealing that his private inquiry into the Dundalk bombing will not conclude until early 2005:
Bombing report 'in new year'
A judge has told two families that a report on the murders of their relatives in the 1975 Dundalk bombing will be published in the new year.
Justice Henry Barron, the lone member of a private inquiry into the bombing, met relatives of Hugh Watters and Jack Rooney in Dundalk yesterday (Monday).
The full text of this latest Irish News latest report can be found here: >>>
I Top I
Daily Ireland, 4 February 2005, reports on evidence of cointinuing British government duplicity towards the victims of the Dublin/Monaghan and Dundalk bombings and other loyalist atrocities in the border counties. This emerged on the last day of public hearings of the joint oireachtas committee on the second Barron Inquiry report into the Dublin bombings of 1972/73 and other murderous attacks in Counties Donegal and Cavan in which several innocent people lost their lives:
Outrage at Blair
A lawyer for the families of the Dublin and Monaghan bomb victims has slammed Tony Blair for his treatment of Justice Hemnry Barron's inquiry into the atrocities.
Cormac O Dualacháin SC, at yesterday's Dublin hearing of the Oireachtas joint committee dealing with the Barron report into the bombings in the early 1970s, outlined his outrage at the way two letters from Tony Blair show ambiguity in his treatment of the victims' families.
The first letter originated when Martin Douglas, whose brother Tomas was killed in a bomb in Dublin on January 20, 1973, lobbied Preston MP Nigel Evans to contact Mr Blair about an inquiry. In the last few days it has come to light that Mr Blair's reply to Mr Douglas' call for an inquiry gave a different message to a letter he sent to Bertie Ahern on the same date. . . .
The full text of this Daily Ireland report can be found here: >>>
I Top I
Daily Ireland, 4 February 2005:
Dundalk angry at PM
Relatives of the 1975 Dundalk bomb victims are outraged at Tony Blair for ruling out an inquiry into alleged British security force collusion with loyalists at the time of the pub blast.
In a letter to Bertie Ahern, Mr Blair ruled out an inquiry into the 1970s bombings in Dundalk, Dublin and Monaghan.
Maura McKeever, whose father Jack Rooney was killed in the dundalk blast, said, "I am really disappointed that Tony Blair has not made a better effort to accommodate us." . . .
The full text of this Daily Ireland report can be found here: >>>
Produced in association with the Ludlow Family.
Last edited: 12 March 2005 09:48:41
Visit the Ludlow family's website. Visit Justice for the Forgotten Statement by John Oliver Weir
Download the Barron Inquiry Report into the 17 May 1974 Dublin and Monaghan bombings, (pdf file)
Barron
Report: on the Dublin Bombings of 1972 and 1973, can also be downloaded in
pdf form
Copyright © 2005 the Rooney, Watters and Ludlow families. All rights reserved. Revised: March 12, 2005 .