38 years ago a civil rights march was held in Derry. A few thousand people were taking part, to highlight the injustice of the sysem there, where protestant loyalists held power and basic democratic human rights were being withheld from the nationalist catholic population. This power was allowed with the cooperation of the British government. The march was fired on by a crack parachute regiment, live rounds fired at unarmed demonstrators, 14 killed. The lies and cover ups, by the said government, that followed were remarkable. Also it served to swell the ranks of the IRA who were calling for armed resistance. In the 30 years that followed one atrocity led to another, blood was spilled on both sides. The downward spiral into violence was appalling.
Now, 38 years later, in a climate where peace has been restored, a report comes out which reveals the truth of what happened on that fateful day and the prime minister of the British Government stands in the house of commons and says sorry to the relatives of the dead who were killed by “an unjustfied and unjustifiable act”. A victory for truth.