Victims of 1987 Enniskillen bomb commended for “quiet dignity” and “tenacity” after a memorial those killed in IRA atrocity given permanent home

The memorial had been in storage for five years having been unveiled on the 30th anniversary of the Poppy Day Bomb in 2017.

It was removed after the service when concerns were raised about the memorial causing an obstruction and due to issues over consultation.

Five years on the memorial was unveiled on a wall at the Clinton Centre – a community centre built on the site of the bomb and named after former US president Bill Clinton.

The memorial had previously been on a plinth but has now been fixed to a wall of the building on Belmore Street.

Lee McDowell from the Ely Centre said the board was delighted to see the memorial in place and commended the Enniskillen Memorial Remembrance for undertaking the work.

He said: “The board trust that the memorial to the victims of Enniskillen will be respected for what it is and for what it stands for, for years to come.”

SEFF’s Kenny Donaldson said: "We are delighted that the memorial has finally been positioned at the site.

"Finally the truth of what occurred on November 8, 1987 will be made known for locals and visitors alike. The integrity of the past is being preserved.”

Former DUP leader Arlene Foster, who is from Enniskillen, said: “Well done to the victims who achieved this. It should not have taken so long and there were many hurdles to cross, but with quiet dignity you persisted. Proud to know you.”

Ulster Unionist Party leader Doug Beattie commented: “More memorials for victims, less memorials for perpetrators. I’m glad this has now found a permanent home.”

The inscription on the memorial reads: “This memorial is erected in loving memory of the 12 innocent civilians murdered by the IRA and in recognition of the scores of innocent civilians injured on Remembrance Sunday 8th November 1987”

It carries the names of Wesley Armstrong, Bertha Armstrong, Edward (Ted) Armstrong, Samuel Gault, Ronnie Hill, Richard K Johnston, Jessie Johnston, Johnny Megaw, William J Mullan, Agnes G Mullan, Alberta Quinton and Marie Wilson.

Eleven of those people died on the day while Ronnie Hill died after spending 13 years in a coma.

TUV leader Jim Allister said: “I warmly welcome the fact that the memorial to those murdered in the Poppy Day Massacre has finally been erected on the site of the IRA bombing.

“The families are to be commended for their tenacity and determination that their loved ones were commemorated in a suitable fashion. It is a sad reflection on the current state of Northern Ireland that those who suffered so much were left to do the work to ensure the memorial was in place. I am pleased that TUV was able to provide some small assistance to them.”

He was critical of Sinn Fein deputy leader Michelle O’Neill’s “shameful" comments in light of the 12 people who died and 68 people who were injured on November 8, 1987: “What happened in Enniskillen was a particularly appalling example of IRA terrorism which even by the depraved standards of the Republican movement stands out in its barbarity. Yet, she who aspires to be First Minister shamefully says there was ‘No alternative’.

“Those brutally murdered deserve to be remembered by all those who pass the site of the bombing. The families are to be congratulated in finally ensuring that this is possible. Well done.”

The families of the victims are expected to attend a vigil at the memorial on the 35th anniversary of the attack next month.