Sinn Féin Politician’s Libel Case Against Journalist Collapses Amid IRA Allegations
Sinn Fein MLA Gerry Kelly speaking to the media outside the party’s Falls Road office in Belfast in August 2023. (Press Association via AP Images)
Belfast High Court dismissed Sinn Féin MLA Gerry Kelly’s libel lawsuit against journalist Malachi O’Doherty.
This decision, announced on Monday, follows a contentious battle over O’Doherty’s 2019 comments in which he claimed Kelly had shot a prison officer in the head during the Maze prison escape in Northern Ireland by Irish Republican Army (IRA) prisoners in 1983.
The judge slammed the case as “scandalous, frivolous and vexatious” before throwing it out entirely.
Kelly said that O’Doherty tarnished his reputation during two radio interviews over the claims. However, the court found Kelly’s own writings about the escape undermined his case, making it “extremely difficult, if not impossible” for him to deny involvement in Adams’ shooting.
Kelly, adamant that his standing as an MLA had been unjustly damaged, fiercely contested O’Doherty’s assertions but the court found that Kelly’s past – including his imprisonment for the 1973 Old Bailey bombings and public identification as a former IRA member – left his reputation unscathed by O’Doherty’s allegations.
Master Evan Bell, the judge delivering the ruling, declared that Kelly’s own books, which discuss the escape but shroud the identity of the shooter, inadvertently made him “civilly liable, on the balance of probabilities, for the shooting of Mr Adams.”
Bell concluded that Kelly’s defamation proceedings were therefore “completely untenable.”
Sinn Féin, a prominent political party across the island of Ireland and the largest opposition party in Dublin’s parliament, was criticised in November after it appeared to be actively pursuing legal actions against various media outlets and individuals in a coordinated manner, raising concerns about the impact on press freedom. These include lawsuits against authors, media commentators, and even individuals over social media posts.
The increasing number of lawsuits alarmed press freedom organisations, including the National Union of Journalists and Reporters Without Borders, who argue that these actions bear the characteristics of strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), which are typically used to intimidate and silence critics.
Sinn Féin, countering, said that their actions do not contradict robust political debate and point out that legal actions against media outlets are not exclusive to Sinn Féin, although watchdog groups note the scale of Sinn Féin’s actions is notably larger compared to other parties.
