IRA agrees to arms in inspections

By Dennis DeMaio

In a bold new proposal designed to move the stalled peace process forward in Northern Ireland, the Irish Republican Army (IRA) offered to open its secret weapons arsenal to international arms inspectors. The May 6 statement by the IRA represents a serious and positive response to the recent request by the British and Irish governments for the IRA to put its weapons "completely and verifiably beyond use."

Coming just twelve hours after British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Irish leader Bertie Ahern issued a public call for reassurance from the IRA on disarmament, the IRA proposal could pave the way for the reconvening of the Northern Ireland Assembly set up under the Good Friday Agreement (GFA). The goal is to reconvene the Assembly on May 22, the two-year anniversary of the GFA and the target date by which paramilitary groups are supposed to disarm under the agreement.

British and Irish negotiators are now proposing that the May 22 goal for disarmament be pushed back to June of 2001. According to the IRA proposal, international inspectors could begin inspection of secret IRA arms dumps by late May or early June of this year.

The Assembly set up under the GFA was abruptly canceled on February 12 by the British Secretary of State, Peter Mandelson. Contrary to the terms of the GFA, Mandelson bowed to pressure from Northern Ireland loyalists to suspend the institutions under the agreement. Loyalists were displeased with progress on IRA decommissioning. Northern Ireland has reverted to direct British rule since the Feb. 12 suspension, but the newly brokered arrangement could kick-start the peace process once again.

In a four paragraph statement issued on May 6, the IRA stated, "The leadership of the IRA is committed to a just and lasting peace ... our arms are silent and secure. There is no threat to the peace process from the IRA."

Going further, the IRA statement noted, "The IRA leadership has agreed to put in place, within weeks, a confidence building measure to confirm that our weapons remain secure. The contents of a number of our arms dumps will be inspected by agreed third parties."

According to the IRA statement, these third parties - who have already been identified by the British and Irish governments - will report their findings to the Decommissioning Commission set up under the GFA.

The IRA announcement goes on to state, "The dumps will be re-inspected regularly to ensure that weapons have remained silent."

While stating that "the maintenance of social and economic inequality in the Six Counties (is) the root cause of conflict," the IRA statement also called for a society "in which Irish Republicans and Unionists as equals pursue our respective political objectives peacefully."

While applauding this "decisive moment" where the British and Irish governments have moved to reestablish the institutions under the GFA, Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams reminded the parties that "the Good Friday Agreement must be implemented in full." Speaking after the two governments announced intentions to restart the institutions, Adams underscored the continuing concerns among nationalists and Republicans that key provisions under the GFA remain to be implemented.

"Nationalists and republicans will particularly welcome the commitments on human rights and equality, and on demilitarization," Adams said.

Adams also stated, "It is essential that we have a new policing service which nationalists and republicans can give their support to and feel comfortable about joining."

To date, many of the social and economic reforms called for under the GFA remain unfulfilled. This has led to a wide degree of frustration and disappointment in the nationalist community in Ireland.

In a recent interview in Belfast, Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness told me, "If we are not working in the context of the full implementation of the GFA, then there is little prospect of getting the armed groups to decommission."

From the loyalist side, there has been a continuing preoccupation with the disarmament (decommissioning) provisions under the GFA.

Hard-line elements within loyalist parties have been arguing for some time now that the institutions under the agreement should not move forward until IRA disarmament takes place. Despite the fact that the agreement was ratified two years ago, the Executive under the agreement was in operation for only 72 days before the institutions were collapsed. The suspension of the institutions was a direct result of pressure from loyalist factions who opposed the agreement from the outset.

David Trimble, the leader of the largest loyalist party in Northern Ireland, issued a guarded statement after the new IRA proposal was announced. While welcoming the IRA statement, the leader of the Ulster Unionist Party stated, "We want to be sure that this is a process, not just a token gesture."

While the loyalists argue for disarmament and the nationalists argue for social and economic progress, the bridge to unite them remains closed to the traffic of discourse.

That bridge, the Northern Ireland Assembly, remains the most viable option to establish trust among the parties and help create a durable peace. The proposed reopening of the Assembly May 22 would greatly enhance the prospects for a just and lasting peace on the island of Ireland.