Hospice charity criticised for promoting fundraising event in memory of IRA man on its website

In a statement to the News Letter the organisation said many events are organised “in aid of” the hospice but they take no role in the planning or management of the events.

IRA man Fergal Caraher was shot dead by the Army in Cullyhanna on the 30th December 1990.

In the republican newspaper An Phoblacht, Mr Caraher was described by former Sinn Fein councillor Brendan Curran as "an active member of the local unit of the Irish Republican Army – playing a full and active part in the struggle in this area".

The Southern Area Hospice provides specialist palliative care to patients with terminal illnesses including cancer, motor neurone disease and multiple sclerosis, and helps people from all sections of the community across the Southern Trust area.

While most of its funding comes from fundraising, it does receive public funding as well – including from the Department of Health. A spokesperson for the department said it would not comment on the issue.

The charity’s website states: “Beginning at 11am on Saturday 30th December, there will be a memorial run with 10k and 5k routes available and a medal for all finishers. Entries will cost £10/€10, with hot food served afterwards and all proceeds being donated to the Southern Area Hospice Services”. The text is accompanied by a promotional poster.

DUP MP Carla Lockhart said: “Fergal Caraher was a terrorist who deliberately set out to bring death and destruction to our streets. He is not someone who should be associated with the care and compassion offered by a hospice. Christmas is a time when the loss of a loved one is felt most keenly by families. The Southern Area Hospice need to consider what message this event sends out to those who suffered at the hands of Fergal Caraher and the IRA in South Armagh. Fundraising is vital lifeline for local charities, but this event does not send out a positive message from an organisation that is deserving of support from right across the community.”

The TUV say the promotion of the event on the site shows “an atrocious lack of judgement”. Party chairman, Cusher councillor Keith Ratcliffe, added: “This is a particularly stark example of how the evil campaign of terror carried out by the Provisionals is being sanitised by Republicanism. I trust that the decision of the Southern Area Hospice to promote the event on its own platforms was the result of an oversight which will now be rectified”.

Kenny Donaldson, director of victims group SEFF, said many victims and survivors of terrorism and wider Troubles related violence will question the appropriateness and wisdom of Southern Area Hospice Services publicly advertising the event.

He added: “Whether it is this event or a band parade named after a loyalist with proceeds going to another charity is by the by. There has existed a policy in recent years of normalisation of those who were involved in the violence, an attempt to recalibrate their legacy.”

“For those who were not perpetrators of violence but were instead subjected to premeditated acts of violence, these efforts to normalise those involved in violence and the organisation to which they were members is deeply hurtful. Public bodies who seek support from the broader community should and must be aware of these sensitivities.

In a statement Southern Area Hospice Services said it “provides palliative and end of life care for more than 600 patients and families in the Southern Trust area every year. Individuals from all sections of the community use our services and supporters from all backgrounds raise funds for the hospice to ensure we can continue to provide vital palliative care services. Many fundraising events are organised ‘in aid of’ SAH and the hospice is not involved in the planning or management of those events. The Fergal Caraher Memorial Run is an example of one of those events.”

The fundraising event coincides with the 30th anniversary of the last shooting of a British soldier by the IRA in the South Armagh village of Crossmaglen. Grenadier Guardsman Danny Blinco was murdered by the IRA on 30th December 1993, three years to the day after the killing of Fergal Caraher.