That there have been many atrocities committed during the Troubles goes without saying. Does that mean we do nothing about any of them?

The Omagh bomb was placed less than 3 months after the public in both parts of Ireland had voted for the Good Friday Agreement, including 95% in the south, and around 90% of nationalists and republicans in the north. The larger paramilitary organisations were already on ceasefire at the time and the smaller ones that were not were shamed into announcing one in the immediate aftermath of the bomb.

The bomb was indiscriminate. Those killed and maimed were civilians, of all ages and backgrounds. Those who placed it had no mandate from anybody except themselves. They did so in deliberate defiance of all sections of society in Northern Ireland and in the south.

Criminal charges are unlikely because of an apparently botched police investigation. A civil case is the only means by which the perpetrators can be confronted with their deed. A group of victims has taken the courageous step of following this option.

I like the idea of the victims directly confronting those thought to have planted the bomb. There is something democratic about it. They bombers chose a course of action and now must answer directly to those affected.

The appeal to the public to participate in funding this action is also democratic. If the public responds, the case can go ahead. I hope the response is generous.