The Catholic Bishop of Derry has rejected claims that survivors of the 1972 Claudy bombing were paid "conscience money" by the Church.
Dr Seamus Hegarty described the claims, made by the town's Ulster Unionist deputy mayor Mary Hamilton as "offensive".
Mrs Hamilton made her allegation in a newspaper interview last week. She claimed that in the days after the bombing then bishop of Derry, Dr Neil Farren gave her and her husband Ernie – also an Ulster Unionist councillor and former deputy mayor – £400 each. Mrs Hamilton said she initially accepted the money as a kind gesture but now believed it was "conscience money".
She said she had changed her opinion because of police claims that there was evidence that a Catholic priest was involved in the bombing which claimed nine lives on July 31 1972.
Assistant Chief Constable Sam Kinkaid claimed before Christmas that a Catholic priest – believed to be Fr Jim Chesney – was involved in the bombing. But he said police discovered no evidence that Dr Farren was involved in "matters relating to the priest".
The current bishop, Dr Hegarty, has denied Mrs Hamilton's claim. The Derry bishop said there was no basis for her allegation that Dr Farren paid "conscience money".
He said Mrs Hamilton's view was not shared by the Claudy families whether Protestant or Catholic, unionist or nationalist at the time or at present.
"The diocesan archives contain letters of acknowledgement from the beneficiaries who accepted with great gratitude the generosity of Bishop Farren's financial outreach.
"In her comments Mrs Hamilton does less than justice to good judgement by attributing an ulterior motive, "conscience money," to Bishop Farren, which I find offensive and totally reject," Dr Hegarty said.
The Catholic bishop said that the Derry diocese established a fund to assist victims of violence in 1969, a full three years before the Claudy bombing.
The fund was resourced by unsolicited donations locally and abroad. It was used to help people throughout the Derry diocese – irrespective of their religious or political affiliation.
"A disbursement of funds was made to victims in Claudy and in other places during the 1970s and beyond. The Claudy Disaster Fund was but one of the many beneficiaries of the fund initiated by Bishop Farren. Laity and clergy were responsible for the disbursement of these funds," Dr Hegarty said.
When told of Dr Hegarty's response to her comments, Mrs Hamilton told the Irish News she was "standing over" her claim of "conscience money". She claimed Dr Farren must have known of Fr Chesney's involvement.
In his pre-Christmas press conference, Mr Kinkaid said records showed Fr Chesney provided an alibi for a person suspected of involvement in the Claudy bombing.
Mr Kinkaid's claim followed an interim report to families of the Claudy bomb victims detailing progress so far in a new investigation into the atrocity.
