THE heartbreaking account of the killing of a West Belfast schoolgirl during the Troubles features in a new book on trauma, as told by her brother.
13-year-old Martha Campbell was shot dead on May 14 1972 when she was walking with a friend in Springhill Crescent. Her family always maintained that the St Louise’s schoolgirl was shot dead by British Army.
A 2009 HET report concluded that “it is not known whether Martha was deliberately shot or an unintended victim of crossfire”.
However, in 2021 research charity Paper Trail unearthed evidence that established that 5 Platoon, B Company, 1 Kings Regiment of the British Army fired shots into the area where Martha was killed. There were no reports of firing by other combatants at the time. This information was not made available at the original inquest.
In 2023, the Attorney General granted a new inquest into Martha's killing but that inquest has yet to take place, due to the controversial Legacy Act.
Martha's brother, Tony Campbell, was just 14-years-old when his sister was killed. Tony is part of the Fitzone HIM (Health in Minds) Group, a group of men from the wider Craigavon area who meet up every Monday.
Together, they have penned their own personal unique life stories in a new book: 'It Happened to Us – A Testament of Truth, Trauma, and Triumph', which was launched this week.
13-year-old Martha Campbell 
Guided by Martelle McPartland, the men journeyed deep into the shadows of their pasts, bringing to light stories long buried and emotions long silenced.
Speaking to the Andersonstown News, Tony explained more about how the book came about.
"The Fitzone HIM Group is a group of men, we get together every Monday from 10am-1pm. We play board games, darts, bowls, get people in for talks and go on trips together," he said.
"I came up with the idea of putting a book together with ten other men from the group. Each of us had a very personal and difficult story to tell. Guided by Martelle McPartland, a creative writer, we got the stories down on paper.
"For myself, sitting down with the other men and talking about our own stories was like a form of counselling.
"It was very difficult for me to talk about Martha's story. She was 13-years-old when she was killed and I was 14-years-old. I have very vivid memories of it all and I am relieved that her story is out there now.
"We are hoping that reading the personal stories from each of us, that it can help others too."
The book is available from the Fitzone Foundation offices in Craigavon or through its Facebook page here. It will also be available to purchase in the coming weeks from An Fhuiseog/The Lark bookshop on the Falls Road.
