Diplock Courts - Brigadier Frank Kitson

Brigadier Frank Kitson

The transition from Internment to Diplock Courts was the culmination of a series of proposals put forth by Brigadier Frank Kitson. Kitson’s work appeared to be a blend of sociological ‘normalisation’, political policy and legal plasticity. In Kitson’s book on counter-insurgency published in 1970, he advocated for the Courts to be used as another part of the Army’s arsenal in the fight against insurgents. He argued:

…the Law should be used as just another weapon in the government’s arsenal, and in this case it becomes little more than a propaganda cover for the disposal of unwanted members of the public. For this to happen efficiently, the activities of the legal services have to be tied into the war effort in as discreet a way as possible...

On the other hand, the establishment of the Diplock Courts can be seen as an early, and successful, example of PIRA's long-term aim of making 'the Six Counties... ungovernable except by colonial military rule'. This was one of the central pillars of the 'Long War' strategy set out in the 1977 'Green Book' : while PIRA claimed its armed struggle sought to end British 'colonial' rule, its leadership realised that Catholic perception of British 'colonialism', and the subsequent disillusionment caused by this, was of great value in persuading the Catholic community to embrace the Republican cause. In the case of the Diplock courts, it can be argued that Republican paramilitaries purposefully intimidated Northern Irish juries so as to force the British authorities to resort to a harsher, more 'colonial' alternative; in this way British rule in Northern Ireland deligitimised itself further in the eyes of the Nationalist community. As a means of achieving its ultimate aim of ending British rule in Ireland, it can be said that PIRA in fact colluded with the British to bring about the very conditions PIRA claimed to be fighting against.