Washington–Representative Eliot L. Engel, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, today released the following statement on the British Government’s refusal to open a public inquiry into the 1989 murder of lawyer Patrick Finucane in Belfast, Northern Ireland:

“I am shocked and dismayed by the British Government’s decision not to open a public inquiry into the murder of Patrick Finucane, who was brutally assassinated in his own home in 1989 by loyalist forces. The British Government has time and time again promised transparency and a pursuit of the truth, which would provide closure to the Finucane family and demonstrate a real commitment to peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland. Yet today’s decision, despite numerous admissions by the British government of collusion in the attack, is a harsh blow to human rights and to a delicate, but hard-earned peace that the Irish, British, and American people worked together to build. The United Kingdom remains one of the United States’ most important allies, and I implore the government to live up to the commitments to peace and human rights that have long-defined our special relationship. My thoughts are with the Finucane family and I will continue to stand with them in pursuit of the truth.”

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