DUP MP Carla Lockhart tables motion to prohibit glorification of terrorists after Sinn Fein's Mary Lou McDondald lauds Brendan 'Bik' McFarlane
Upper Bann MP Carla Lockhart has tabled a motion in Parliament condemning remarks made by Sinn Féin President Mary Lou McDonald and calling for urgent legislation to prohibit the glorification of convicted terrorists.
The move comes after the Sinn Fein leader eulogised convicted IRA man Brendan 'Bik' McFarlane on social media as a man who dedicated his life to peace.
Writing on social media platform X at the weekend, she said: “One year ago, we lost our comrade, Bik McFarlane. He dedicated his life to the pursuit of freedom, unity, peace and equality. It was a life well lived, a life that shaped a legacy that will inspire generations to come.”
In 1976, McFarlane was jailed for a gun and bomb attack on the Bayardo Bar on Belfast's Shankill Road, which killed five people and injured 60 others.
He also led a mass escape of 38 IRA prisoners from the Maze prison in 1983 which saw one prison officer die of a heart attack and six other stabbed or shot.
He was later linked to the kidnapping of Dublin supermarket executive Don Tidey in 1983, which saw the IRA murder Garda Gary Sheehan and Pte Patrick Kelly.
Ms Lockhart said she has tabled a motion in Parliament because the recent comments describing McFarlane as having lived "a life well lived" are "not only offensive, they are morally indefensible".
She has therefore called on the Government to amend the Terrorism Act 2006 to explicitly prohibit the glorification of convicted terrorists, she added.
“I am asking MPs from across the House to stand with victims and join me in supporting this campaign,” she added.