I DON'T know if they took in a show while they were there, but Gavin Robinson and Gregory Campbell made something of a show of themselves in London. They were there in connection with Gerry Adams’ civil trial for being a leader of the IRA. It would be "seismic", Gavin Robinson told reporters, if Gerry were convicted.
In a way Gavin was doing the Charlie Haughey thing. You remember how in 1987 Charlie hurried to be by the side of the triumphant Stephen Roche when he won the Tour de France. There was one vital difference: Charlie only went abroad when Stephen had safely passed the finishing line; Gavin reached a state of premature ecstasy only to find himself undone when the case collapsed.
As a seasoned politician – and a barrister – Gavin should have been able to see that the case against the former Sinn Féin leader had one big weakness: It was based on claims by people who really, really didn’t like him. The RUC Special Branch were in there, MI5, the usual security suspects. But in addition, Brendan Hughes, Dolours Price and other former republican comrades were quoted, showing how eager they were to put the boot into Gerry. Dolours is dead now, and so is another Adams enemy, Ed Moloney. But it does raise the question: How to treat claims against someone they have publicly been denouncing for years?
With considerable care, I’d suggest.
And of course Adams’s defence raised a second core question: How was it that the three people taking the case were doing it now, decades after they’d suffered attack? Why not bring their charges decades ago, when their wounds were fresh? Would you wait thirty or fifty years before pressing charges? No, me neither.
In the end it all came down to money. Barristers don’t come cheap, and those involved on both sides were racking up bills in the region of £100,000. Or £200,000, Vincent Kearney suggested on TV yesterday. So suddenly those keen to have Gerry convicted became alarmed – or more likely, their legal team grew alarmed on their behalf – that they’d be saddled with their own legal costs AND those of Gerry if they proceeded. A classic case of stick or twist. The decision of the accusers quickly became stick. They’d originally been seeking a mere £1– it was the principle of the thing.Now they faced a financial mountain.
In many ways, as Gerry observed in a press conference later, it was a show trial. The fearless accusers did so from behind a screen. The main focus was “Get Gerry!” The money was an afterthought. But the prospect of coughing up £100k or £200k for the trial expenses of Gerry Adams brought the money worry to the forefront of their brains.
Was this a seismic judgement? Well, you’d have to ask Gavin and Gregory about that. But from where I stand the seismic thing did a boomerang manoeuvre and smacked the claimants between the eyes.
All of which left the claimants’ legal team seething as they abandoned their claim. Plus, I’ve a suspicion that Gavin and Gregory felt the absurdity of their London jaunt. If Stephen Roche had come last in the Tour de France, do you think Charlie would have hurried to be by his side?
Success has many fathers, failure is an orphan. Gerry Adams exuded coolness under pressure throughout the proceedings. Maybe he could give a few free lessons to Gavin and Gregory on how it’s done.
