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Local MLA Justin McNulty has praised the calm and quiet dignity of the families of The Disappeared.
Speaking after a remembrance event at Stormont last week, the Newry and Armagh representative said "I have just attended a gut wrenching event, where the families of The Disappeared walked in silence to the steps of Stormont and laid a wreath in memory of their loved ones. I spoke with Oliver McVeigh, the brother of Columba McVeigh, who was abducted and murdered by the IRA in 1975, aged just 17. Columba’s remains have never been found and that leaves the family experiencing continuing torturous torment.
"I also spoke with Anne Morgan, sister of Seamus Ruddy, a Newry man who was abducted, tortured, and murdered in 1985. Seamus was found in 2017 and his sister, Anne, told me of how she still pinches herself every day in order to remember that his remains have been found.
"The trauma that the families of The Disappeared have had to endure and are enduring is been beyond comprehension. Even in the face of that trauma, these families have conducted themselves with such an extraordinary levels of dignity and strength.
McNulty added "On behalf of the families of the Disappeared, I have called on Justice Minister Naomi Long to ensure that the full weight of her Department is thrown behind locating those of The Disappeared who have never been found, as well as pursuing those responsible for their murder and ensuring that they face justice.
"Shamefully, there are some who would prefer to brush these atrocities under the carpet, which is exactly what the British Government’s legacy proposals would do. My SDLP colleagues have been fighting in Westminster to ensure that those legacy proposals are dropped – there is an onus on every single elected representative and political party in the North to do the same."
