Politics Northern Ireland: Assassinated Constable mourned: Mass peace march in Omagh to protest assassinations by IRA splinter groups

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refWrite editorial comment:  The people of Northern Ireland 
need peace, and they have rejected yesterday the recurrence 
of the politics of assassination.  We express our condolences 
to the family of the Constable who was shot down by an IRA 
splinter group.  We express our solidarity with the people of 
Northern Ireland who are peacefully resisting this step 
backward and the forces which woud spin the country back
into darkness, pervasive violence and more Troubles.


-- Politicarp

10 April 2011 Last updated at 12:16 ET

Ronan Kerr murder: 

Omagh rally 

a 'message for peace'

Thousands of people have gathered in Omagh to mark the death of Northern Ireland police officer Ronan Kerr.

The organisers have said they want to send a message to those who want to return NI to a violent past.

Those attending, including family and friends of Constable Kerr, held a minute's silence in his memory.

The 25-year-old Catholic officer died when a booby-trap car bomb exploded outside his home in the town last Saturday.

Sinead O'Kane, Ronan Kerr's cousin, attended the rally. She said she wanted dissident republicans to end their campaign.

She added: "It has to stop now, and let his death not have been in vain. And hopefully the people who are out there will be listening and it will strike a chord with someone and they'll come forward and help in the murder investigation."

'Major setbacks'

Organiser Gareth McElduff used Facebook to gain support for the rally.

He said: "Everybody seems happy to come out today to show their support, first of all for the Kerr family and to show overall their support for the peace process.

"And although these are major, major setbacks in the peace process, hopefully the amount of people that is going to come out today is going to show everybody that we want peace in Ireland again and we don't want to go back to the Troubles."

Recent bombings and attempted attacks have been widely condemned in Northern Ireland.

The discovery of a 500lb bomb in Newry on Thursday has reinforced police claims that the condemnations have had no effect on the dissidents responsible.


-- BBC materials posted by Politicarp