Speaking on behalf of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and its more than 800,000 members across the island of Ireland, ICTU General Secretary Patricia King said;
'this weekend we mourn and we remember the example of this fine young woman who was murdered for performing her duty as a journalist. We stand with her NUJ colleagues and her loved ones at this time, as we do so with any worker threatened or assaulted by these masked delinquents who sully the noble term 'dissident'.
ICTU Assistant General Secretary Owen Reidy added:
"We are all dissidents to their totalitarian view of life, their mindset that they feel allows them the privilege to intimidate working class communities and threaten workers and PSNI officers, and even murder journalists. They have nothing to contribute and deserve to be shamed and shunned.
"Lyra was a brave and principled reporter of the world around her and her own life. Her writings on growing up as a gay woman in a homophobic society were honest and are essential reading.
"We will all miss her presence, but her example as a life well lived should be emulated".
Credit :Brendan Gallagher Photography Belfast