TUESDAY marked the one year anniversary of the beginning of the inquest into the Springhill/Westrock massacre, in which five civilians were murdered on 9 July 1972.

Families remain hopeful that the inquest will reach its conclusion before the 1 May when the British government's Legacy Bill comes into place, which will effectively end the opportunity for any further or ongoing inquests into deaths during the conflict.

Natasha Butler, whose grandfather Paddy Butler was murdered in the massacre, said the families have felt frustration at not getting closer to the truth of what happened to their loved ones on 9 July 1972.

Natasha said: “At the minute it’s the military who have been giving evidence and so far a lot of them have said they can’t remember anything about the 9 July 1972. So far they have been saying they weren’t there or that they don’t know any of the soldiers who were involved and they had never heard about the deaths until they were contacted by the coroner’s service.

“The inquest is trying to establish at the moment what exactly happened on the 9 July and they are saying they weren’t there and don’t know where they were on that date. So far they have all appeared by video link and none have appeared in person. It’s been frustrating because they are saying they don’t know any of the soldiers who were involved in firing the fatal shots.

“A soldier who was a significant military witness did come forward and express concerns that all five civilians were shot by soldiers and they were innocent and he said all five shouldn’t have died. He was quite distressed during the giving of evidence and said he was based in Belfast with 1 Kings who were on a four month tour of Belfast but was not in Corry’s Timber Yard."

Natasha continued: “So far every soldier who has given evidence has said they don’t have much knowledge of the circumstances of the deaths – it seems to be nobody had heard about the five deaths and they were never talked about and they have said the first time they heard about the deaths was when they were contacted by the coroner’s service.

“It was a very significant day today as it was a year from the inquest opening. We are still waiting to hear from the ballistics, forensics and pathology but we have heard from the engineers and the topography of the area.

“Some days it can be quite frustrating because it feels like we aren’t getting any closer to finding out what happened to our loved ones but at the same time we’re grateful for the opportunity because there are a lot of families who are being denied the opportunity of an inquest because of the Legacy Bill."

Natasha said that despite the frustration felt at finding the truth elusive, the families also feel heartbroken for other families who do not have the opportunity to have inquests due to the incoming legacy legislation.

“Our hearts are broken for so many families who are currently having this denied to them. We’re hopeful we will see the inquest through before 1 May but nothing’s guaranteed in this life so we are going to continue to remain positive and hopeful. So far everything appears to be on track.

“It doesn’t matter how bad the truth is, as long as the truth’s told so everybody can heal and move forward because the first step in reconciliation is getting the full truth of what exactly happened, and that’s all we can hope for.”