A new book that lists almost 170 people linked to the GAA killed during the Troubles has been described as ‘significant’ by the association’s president Jarlath Burns.
‘Lost Gael: Remembering the Members of the GAA Killed During the Conflict in Ireland’ lists the names of 168 people.
Dozens of GAA members were killed by loyalist and state forces, often in collusion with each other, during the the Troubles.
Republicans were also responsible for killing people linked to the national sporting body.
Those who died ranged from uninvolved civilians to members of the republican movement, including IRA hunger strikers Kieran Doherty and his INLA counterpart Kevin Lynch.
Police officers listed include RUC sergeant Joe Campbell, who was shot dead by loyalists in north Antrim in 1977 and PSNI officer Ronan Kerr, who was killed by dissident republicans in Co Tyrone 2011.
All-Ireland winning hurler Seamus Quaid, a member of An Garda Siochana, is also featured. A Limerick native who won an All-Ireland hurling medal with Wexford in 1960, he was shot dead by the IRA in 1980
Deeply personal portraits of some of those whose lives were cut short have been provided by loved ones.
While the obvious heartbreak and hurt continues for grieving relatives, Lost Gaels is also a celebration of those who died, recounting human stories often buried under the burden of grief for decades.
In the foreword Armagh native and GAA president Jarlath Burns praised the work.
“Every now and then a project of significance and importance crosses our bow and makes us sit up and take notice,” he writes.
“It piques our curiosity, demands our attention and focuses our minds in a way that so much else of what essentially constitutes white noise in modern society does not.
“This body of work is one such example.”
Relatives of many of those listed in the book were devastated earlier this year when the British government’s Legacy Act ended all inquests and civil cases, denying them the opportunity to access truth and justice.
Mr Burns said those families are entitled to know what happened to their loved ones.
“The Troubles represent a dark and challenging period for us to process – citizens and historians alike – and their proximity in relative terms means they continue to loom large for many,” he wrote.
“They continue to cast a long shadow across our imperfect peace and few things symbolise this better than the debate around the controversial Legacy Bill.
“The least that bereaved families deserve is truth and justice.
“They also deserve to be remembered.”
Mark Thompson, of Relatives for Justice, said that it has become apparent to him that many “Gaels living through the conflict in the north came to live with the expectation of being treated differently, and often violently, because they chose to enjoy the sport they loved”.
“It should concern us all that some of those same attitudes towards the GAA persist within some elements of society today and, whilst no longer mainstream, those attitudes can have deleterious effects on the association,” he said.
Relatives for Justice will be hosting the launch of the book in St Mary’s University College, Falls Road Belfast on Saturday, November 16, at 11am.
Lost Gaels: Remembering the Members of the GAA Killed During the Conflict in Ireland by Peadar Thompson is published by Merrion Press.
