The Ancient Order of Hibernians has issued what it calls a "sharp challenge" to Congressman Pat Harrigan regarding a proposed congressional resolution that would condemn the pursuit of legal accountability for British special operators involved in Northern Ireland’s Troubles.
In a formal letter to the North Carolina Republican, AOH Political Education Chair Neil F. Cosgrove warned that the resolution relies on a "false history" and attempts to grant retroactive combatant immunity to forces that the British government itself insisted were engaged in a policing function, not a foreign war.
The AOH said it was taking particular issue with the congressman’s reported comments regarding legal scrutiny and the role of human rights advocates.
"By condemning the pursuit of legal accountability, Congressman Harrigan has inverted the roles of victim and aggressor," said Cosgrove.
"Congressman Harrigan speaks of a veteran getting a hypothetical 'knock on the door' from a human rights lawyer as a threat.
"In reality, the most infamous 'knock on the door' in Northern Ireland was delivered by a state-colluded hit squad to the home of human rights lawyer Pat Finucane, who was executed in front of his family and whose survivors are still fighting decades later for the truth, a pursuit that some are trying to shut down."
Cosgrove continued: "To frame the legal search for truth as a 'menace' while ignoring the state-sponsored murder of a legal professional is a profound distortion of the facts."
The AOH letter highlights that for decades, the UK government avoided the international legal obligations and scrutiny of war by defining its role in Northern Ireland as "aid to the civil power."
Added the letter: "The United Kingdom cannot have it both ways. The British government chose to operate under a framework of civilian law and police primacy to avoid the international protocols of armed conflict.
"They cannot now retreat into the 'fog of war' to shield personnel from the very civilian justice system they claimed they were upholding. In a democracy, accountability is not optional."
The AOH said that it notes that the congressman’s resolution aligns him with the widely condemned British Legacy Act 2023, "a law that has achieved the rare feat of uniting every political party in Northern Ireland—Republican, Loyalist, Catholic, and Protestant—in total opposition."
Neil Cosgrove concluded: "This is not a matter of 'Irish grievance politics' versus British veterans. This is a shared demand for truth supported by victims' families and the British-based Centre for Military Justice alike.
"We urge Congress to reject any resolution designed to marginalize victims and bury the truth for the sake of political expediency. No relationship is 'so special' that it justifies closing our eyes to the subversion of justice and the rule of law."
Congressman Harrigan represents North Carolina's 10th congressional district and is himself a military veteran. His service included a tour in Afghanistan.
