The Hillsborough disaster happened 23 years ago. A recent enquiry revealed (a) failure by the police then and (b) cover up. It takes courage to admit failure. It's good to see democracy working and core values upheld.
The Hillsborough Disaster happened on 15 April 1989. Liverpool and Nottingham Forrest football fans crushed to each other in a game at the Hillsborough Stadium, Sheffield, UK. People were unable to disperse due to security arrangements. The crush resulted in 96 football fans dead and 766 injured.
An enquiry in 1990 concluded that "the main reason for the disaster was the failure of police control". On the twentieth anniversary of the disaster, the Government set up a Hillsborough Independent Panel to review the unreleased documents in the 1990 enquiry. It was revealed that there was an attempt by the authority to cover up their failure by concealing what had happened. The report suggested that up to 41 of those who died could have been saved, had they been treated sooner. Following this report, the Prime Minister, Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police apologised to the public. The Prime Minister admitted 'double injustice': first for failing to handle the situation properly by the police at the time, then by covering up.
The disaster happened 23 years ago. The Government could have swept it under the carpet. But they conducted a fresh enquiry, because people demanded the truth. It took a lot of courage for the Prime Minister to apologize to the public. Common sense and social responsibility prevail in this country, which is encouraging.
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