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Catholics mark N. Ireland's 'Bloody Sunday'
February 2, 1997
Web posted at: 3:05 p.m. EDT (1505 GMT)LONDONDERRY, Northern Ireland (CNN) -- Relatives of 14 Catholic demonstrators killed 25 years ago by British soldiers led thousands of Catholics through Londonderry Sunday to commemorate the event that became known as "Bloody Sunday."
The family members of the dead carried white crosses, each bearing the name of a victim of the January 30, 1972, shootings.
The march wound through the town, through the Catholic Bogside district by the route taken by the original marchers, and stopping at the point where the killings occurred.
The original marchers were protesting the British policy of interning suspected Irish Republican Army members without trial. Thirteen were killed on the street that day; a 14th died several months later from wounds he received. The killings ignited the Northern Ireland conflict.
Irish nationalists and the Irish Republic's government have long pushed the British to thoroughly investigate the incident. A probe into the shooting at the time concluded that the soldiers fired only after they were fired upon. The chief justice at the time, Lord Widgery, exonerated them.
The Irish government and many of Northern Ireland's Catholics, both supporters and opponents of the IRA, dispute those findings.
Martin McGuinness, a leader of the IRA's political wing Sinn Fein, called for an independent investigation of the tragedy.
"On Bloody Sunday British troops came into this city, murdered 14 people and were decorated by the queen and got away with it," said McGuinness, who survived the tragedy.
Related story:
- Catholics mark 'Bloody Sunday' anniversary, demand new probe - January 30, 1997
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