Ferris warns of need for vigilance after bomb attack on civil servant

Sinn Fein councillor for North Kerry Mr Martin Ferris has called on the Catholic and nationalist communities to be "very vigilant" following a bomb attack on Saturday on a Catholic civil servant in Castlewellan, Co Down.

The man suffered leg injuries after the bomb exploded under his car which was parked outside his home.

Cllr Ferris was speaking at the 24th annual Volunteer Patrick Cannon Commemoration at Balgriffin Cemetery, north Dublin, on Saturday.

Mr Cannon was a member of the IRA's Dublin brigade who was killed in 1976, along with fellow IRA man Mr Peter McElcar, when an explosive device they were transporting across the Border to Tyrone exploded prematurely.

About 150 supporters assembled at the Darndale roundabout on the Malahide Road shortly before 3 p.m. The marchers, led by some in military uniform and the Smith Harford Doherty Republican Pipe Band, paraded up the Malahide Road to Ballgriffin Cemetery.

The cemetery commemoration began with the reading of the IRA Dublin brigade roll of honour by Mr David Browne of Dublin North-East Sinn Fein. Wreaths were laid on Mr Cannon's grave by representatives of Dublin Sinn Fein and Dublin Ogra Sinn Fein.

Cllr Ferris thanked the members of the Cannon family for attending the commemoration. He said its purpose was to "acknowledge the tremendous contribution given by the families of dead IRA volunteers, Sinn Fein activists and by the volunteers and activists themselves". Without them, he said, "we would not be where we are today - on the threshold of moving towards a lasting peace with equality and justice for all our people."

He criticised the new Police Bill for the North, saying it was a further attempt by the British government to "compromise the Patten Report to appease rejectionists". He also accused Mr David Trimble of deviating from the Good Friday agreement.

When asked if the commemoration of a violent act was appropriate in the current political climate, Cllr Ferris said while he did not want to see any person die, "the nature of the six-county state has perpetuated violence and made violence necessary to achieve justice and equality".

He added that the march was not celebrating violence but commemorating a "sacrifice", the purpose of which was to bring about a society "free from violence, free from inequality and free from injustice".