The Independent Commission for the Location of Victims' Remains (ICLVR) was established by

treaty A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between sovereign states and/or international organizations that is governed by international law. A treaty may also be known as an international agreement, protocol, covenant, convention ...

between the

United Kingdom Government His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

and the

Government of Ireland The Government of Ireland () is the executive (government), executive authority of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, headed by the , the head of government. The government – also known as the cabinet (government), cabinet – is composed of Mini ...

, made on 27 April 1999 in connection with the affairs of

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, in order to locate 16 missing Irish and British people presumed murdered during

The Troubles The Troubles () were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted for about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it began in the late 1960s and is usually deemed t ...

.Joint Statement by the British and Irish governments announcing the next steps on location of 'The Disappeared', (3 August 2006)
Cain Web Service The 16, referred to colloquially as " The Disappeared", were separately abducted, killed and buried in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

over the last 35 years, mainly in the 1970s. It is believed that they were abducted and killed by Irish Republican paramilitaries, mostly the

Provisional Irish Republican Army The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), officially known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA; ) and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland ...

, which denied involvement for years. All 16 individuals were Catholics and most were suspected of collaborating with the British or betraying the paramilitaries in some way. The Commission was established to locate the remains of these people. , the remains of 13 of the 16 disappeared have been located.

Powers and functions

Its functions include receiving information as to the whereabouts of the remains of a victim of violence and disclosing such information for the purpose of facilitating the location of the remains to which the information relates. * The remit and powers of the Commission are defined by the Northern Ireland (Location of Victims' Remains) Act 1999, which came into force on 26 May 1999; the Republic of Ireland has passed similar legislation: the Criminal Justice (Location of Victims' Remains) Act, 1999. * A "victim of violence" is defined as a person killed before 10 April 1998 (the date of the

Belfast Agreement The Good Friday Agreement (GFA) or Belfast Agreement ( or ; or ) is a pair of agreements signed on 10 April (Good Friday) 1998 that ended most of the violence of the Troubles, an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland since the la ...

) as a result of an unlawful act of violence committed on behalf of, or in connection with, a proscribed organisation. These organisations are those proscribed by the Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1996. * Any evidence obtained (directly or indirectly) by the Commission is inadmissible in evidence in any

criminal In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...

proceedings. * Any remains discovered by the work of the commission are not allowed to undergo

forensic Forensic science combines principles of law and science to investigate criminal activity. Through crime scene investigations and laboratory analysis, forensic scientists are able to link suspects to evidence. An example is determining the time and ...

testing other than for the purposes of an

inquest An inquest is a judicial inquiry in common law jurisdictions, particularly one held to determine the cause of a person's death. Conducted by a judge, jury, or government official, an inquest may or may not require an autopsy carried out by a cor ...

to establish the identity of a deceased person or how, when, and where they died. * All information provided to the commission will remain secret with only the family being informed that information has been received and the place where, according to the information, the victim's remains may be found. * The commission has the power of entry enforcable by warrant to search anywhere in Northern Ireland.

Victims

The people named by the ICLVR as having been killed and buried in undisclosed locations are:The Disappeared
ICLVR websiteWho were the 'Disappeared'?
/ref> * Seamus Wright (a member of the IRA accused of being a British Army agent) (1972) (remains found summer 2015) * Kevin McKee (a member of the IRA accused of being a British Army agent) (1972) (corpse recovered 2015) *

Jean McConville Jean McConville (''née'' Murray; 7 May 1934 – 1 December 1972) was a woman from Belfast, Northern Ireland, who was kidnapped and murdered by the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) and secretly buried in County Louth in the Republic of Ire ...

(civilian accused of being a British spy) (1972) (corpse recovered August 2003) * Joseph Lynskey (a member of the IRA accused of breaching IRA orders) (1972) * Peter Wilson (no reason given) (1973) (corpse recovered November 2010) * Eamon Molloy (a member of the IRA accused of being a British Army agent) (1975) (corpse recovered 1999) *

Columba McVeigh Columba McVeigh (1956 – 1 November 1975) was a youth from Northern Ireland who was abducted and most likely murdered by the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA). He was listed as one of the " Disappeared" by the Independent Commission for th ...

(civilian accused of being a British spy) (1975) *

Robert Nairac Captain Robert Laurence Nairac (31 August 1948 – 15 May 1977) was a British Army officer in the Grenadier Guards. He was abducted by republicans from a pub in South Armagh, during an undercover operation he was undertaking, and killed by th ...

GC (British Army Officer and alleged member of the SAS) (1977) *

Brendan Megraw Brendan Megraw (1955 – disappeared 8 April 1978, aged 23) was a man who was abducted and killed by the Irish Republican Army (IRA) during the Troubles. He was one of the " Disappeared," individuals secretly buried by republicans during the c ...

(civilian accused of being a British spy) (1978) (Corpse recovered 2014) * John McClory (accused of stealing IRA weapons to use in

robberies Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take anything of value by force, threat of force, or use of fear. According to common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the person o ...

) (1978) (corpse recovered June 1999) * Brian McKinney (accused of stealing IRA weapons to use in robberies) (1978) (corpse recovered June 1999) * Danny McIlhone (accused of stealing IRA weapons) (1978) (corpse recovered November 2008) *

Gerard Evans Gerard Evans (1955–1979) was one of the "Disappeared" of the Troubles. Having gone missing in March 1979, his body was recovered 31 years later in October 2010. Early life Gerard Evans, known as "Gerry", was a 24-year-old painter and decorat ...

(civilian accused of being a British Informant, IRA never officially admitted to have killed him) (1979) (corpse recovered October 2010) * Charlie Armstrong (civilian, IRA never officially admitted to have killed him) (1981) (corpse recovered July 2010) * Eugene Simons/Simmons (New Year's Day 1981) (corpse recovered May 1984 prior to the establishment of the Commission) *

Seamus Ruddy The Disappeared refers to 17 people from Northern Ireland believed to have been abducted, murdered and secretly buried during the Troubles. The Independent Commission for the Location of Victims' Remains (ICLVR) is in charge of locating the rema ...

(ex-member of IRSP/ INLA, killed over arms supplies, by INLA) (1985)Extract from ''Irish Echo'' 14 November 2008 in ''Belfast Telegraph''. Retrieved IPLO website 3 May 2014
/ref>

Remains recovered

As part of the

peace process A peace process is the set of political sociology, sociopolitical negotiations, agreements and actions that aim to solve a specific armed conflict. Definitions Prior to an armed conflict occurring, peace processes can include the prevention of ...

, the IRA passed information on the location of six graves containing eight bodies to the Commission. Using this information the bodies of John McClory and Brian McKinney were recovered on 29 June 1999 in

County Monaghan County Monaghan ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of Border Region, Border strategic planning area of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town ...

. The body of Eamon Molloy had been left in a graveyard in Dundalk the previous month.

was discovered by accident on Shelling Hill beach near Carlingford in

County Louth County Louth ( ; ) is a coastal Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Louth is bordered by the counties of County Meath, Meath to the ...

in August 2003. The IRA had previously said that Templeton beach, a short distance away, was the place of burial. The remains of Danny McIlhone were discovered near Ballynultagh in the

Wicklow Mountains The Wicklow Mountains (, archaic: '' Cualu'') form the largest continuous upland area in Ireland. They occupy the whole centre of County Wicklow and stretch outside its borders into the counties of Dublin, Wexford and Carlow. Where the mountai ...

in November 2008 and formally identified using

DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...

analysis the following month. There had been previous unsuccessful attempts to find McIlhone's remains in 1999 and 2000. In 2010, the remains of Peter Wilson, Gerry Evans and Charlie Armstrong were exhumed, meaning that nine of the 16 disappeared had been recovered.

Commissioners

The current commissioners are Sir Kenneth Bloomfield, former head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service and former Northern Ireland Victims Commissioner, and Mr Frank Murray, former Secretary to the Government (Cabinet Secretary) and former Chairman of the Irish Public Appointments Service, who took over from John Wilson. The appointment of Rosalie Flanagan as the new Commissioner was announced on 13 January 2021.Secretary of State announces appointment of new Commissioner for The Independent Commission for the Location of Victims Remains
GOV.UK

References

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External links