THE visit by the PSNI Chief Constable to Fermanagh on Tuesday has been welcomed by families of those who lost their lives during The Troubles.

Chief Constable Simon Bryne was in South East Fermanagh Foundation (SEFF) offices in Lisnaskea on Tuesday morning, where he met with a number of victims’ families from across Northern Ireland.

Prior to his meeting with the families, this newspaper asked the Chief Constable if he would be able to provide the families with new information on their loved one’s death.

Mr. Byrne said: “We’ve got other senior officers from the Legacy Investigation Branch with us here today who will be closer to the pace of some of these investigations.

"If matters come up and we can give people answers we will be happy to; if we need to take questions away and do a bit more digging, we will do so as well.”

When asked for the purpose of his visit to Fermanagh, the Chief Constable said: “The purpose is to honour a commitment, because I think it is important that if you make a promise, you keep it.

"But for me, [today] is to listen and to learn from the people that are giving up their time to share their experience, some awful experiences, with me today so I can be the best possible leader of the PSNI.”

Mr. Byrne spoke on the highly controversial proposal by Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his government to have an amnesty on all Troubles-related incidents.

He said: “We are in a vacuum at the moment, as we know that the proposals have been made and they are in the public domain. They’re finalised, so we just carry on with business as usual.”

Among those who met with the Chief Constable, along with SEFF Chairman Eric Brown, were Pam Morrison (née Graham), Lisnaskea, who lost her three brothers in separate IRA attacks over a six-year period.

Pam’s brothers were part-time UDR men Ronnie, Cecil and Jimmy Graham, who were all killed in County Fermanagh attacks in the 1980s.

All three were off duty when they were attacked, and no one has ever been convicted of the killings.

A sister – Hilary, who was also in the UDR – died in 1979, aged 27, 18 months after being hit by a car while she manned a checkpoint.

Pam is now the only surviving member of her family. She spoke to The Impartial Reporter prior to her meeting with the Chief Constable.

She spoke on the importance of having a visit from the Chief Constable to the area. She said: “It really means quite a lot to have this visit, in order to see if there is justice done for the families, and it is not just me alone – there are other families who have been through the same thing, and it would be nice if justice was done for it.”

Mrs. Morrison reflected on the amnesty proposals from the British Government. She said: “It is very disappointing; after all, it [Troubles-related enquiries and prosecutions] has been going on for a long time, and I don’t see why Boris Johnson should really put an end to it.

"After all, there are other people who have got justice, and why shouldn’t the likes of us not get it?”

Another person who met with the Chief Constable was Rosalind McVitty, whose father, John (46), was shot and killed in July, 1986, in Drumady, near Rosslea, while driving a tractor. His 12-year-old son, Gary, was a witness to his killing.

Mr. McVitty was a serving member of the RUC at the time of his death; Rosalind was 14 at the time.

She spoke to The Impartial Reporter following her meeting with the Chief Constable. She said: “I felt he did listen to people, and he did take notes, and he did really listen to us and gave us a lot of time.”

Welcoming the visit by the Chief Constable, she said: “None of the previous people in his position have come down to us in Fermanagh. It lets us feel as we have been listened to."

There was no new information available to the families. Ms. McVitty said: "They [the PSNI] didn’t go into any specifics, but they did say they will look into things a bit more.”

Ms. McVitty reflected on her late father, and speaking on his memories, she said: “Talking about it always brings back memories, but it is what he missed out on and what he should been here to see [that I also think about].”

Also attending from Fermanagh was Margaret Veitch, who lost both of her parents, William (73) and Agnes (74) Mullan, in the Enniskillen Bombing in 1987.

The Chief Constable then went with the families on a Border bus trail to continue hearing the stories of those who lost their lives along the Border area, calling at or near places where some of the families who met with him had lost their loved one.

PRIOR to the Chief Constable's visit, Kenny Donaldson, Director of Services for South East Fermanagh Foundation (SEFF), said: “It is essential that the Chief Constable comes to the Border and engages with those who have endured 30-plus years of a terrorist assault with the objective being their removal”.

Highlighting the impact of The Troubles on the area, Mr. Donaldson continued: “42 lives were lost in south east Fermanagh in an area with five small villages; 37 were murders by the Provisional IRA; there was one murder by the Official IRA; two members of the Provisional IRA lost their lives in the midst of their own actions; and two Roman Catholic civilians were stabbed and murdered by soldiers of the Argyll and Sutherland.

"Less than five per cent of the Official IRA-/Provisional IRA-perpetrated murders have resulted in convictions.

“The experiences of those living in south Fermanagh and the wider county, Castlederg, east Tyrone and south Armagh were very different than [those living in] many of our urban conurbations.

"Over the years of the terrorist campaign the minority Protestant community of county Fermanagh offered their loyalty and trust to the police force, with many paying the supreme sacrifice through their service.”

Mr. Donaldson added: “Despite a litany of controversies, we have stopped short in calling for the Chief Constable to resign, but we are stating very clearly that the Chief Constable has a significant trust and confidence deficit to bridge.

“We are encouraged that he is spending the day in our back yard and we will make use of this time to educate him of the ethnic nature of the Provisional IRA’s terrorist campaign in these areas, as well as explaining to him the continued security issues within this remote part of Northern Ireland.

“Our constituency of victims and survivors desire peace, more than anything, but won’t be party to a phoney peace which is built on sand and which adopts a hands-off approach with certain elements in our community.

"The law must be applied equitably and fairly and without favour.

“As part of his visit, the Chief Constable will meet with victims and survivors who have had loved ones murdered along the Fermanagh, Tyrone and Armagh borderlands.

"He will be educated as to the continued injustice such families and individuals live with every day, and he will be challenged to adopt a new 'business-like approach' when dealing with and engaging those who have been involved in terrorism, or who are their political voices.

"The days of cosy relationships must come to an end,” insisted Mr. Donaldson.