February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
Described as informal talks, the third meeting between Bertie Ahern and Tony Blair has encouraged speculation that moves could be afoot that may result, early next year, in significant moves to restore devolution.
The power sharing Executive and Assembly were suspended by the British government for a fourth time in October. With elections due in May, London and Dublin have set an informal deadline of February for progress.
However, reports on Saturday that the IRA is about to lay down its weapons for good were dismissed by Sinn Fein sources.
Three London newspapers, whose political correspondents had been briefed during the taoiseach’s visit, claimed the IRA is close to announcing an end to all military operations. The reports claimed the IRA would also end all surveillance operations and punishment beatings, as well as the decommissioning of its weapons arsenal. They said the IRA would not, however, disband.
Republican sources immediately played down the rumors, claiming they were a ploy to increase pressure on Sinn Fein during the negotiations aimed at restoring the Executive at Stormont.
Sinn Fein chief negotiator Martin McGuinness also emphatically dismissed the speculation. The newspaper reports claimed he was spearheading attempts to persuade the IRA to make the historic declaration over disbandment. He described the reports as “totally unfounded and misleading.”
“I think people need to be very aware that there are people out there and unnamed sources — their stories I think are very unhelpful,” he said. “They basically amount to totally unfounded speculation and I think they are quite mischievous.”
McGuinness’s rejection brought a bitter response from his political opponents, who insisted that Sinn Fein could not return to government if the IRA was not going to “meet its obligations to disarm.”
A senior source close to UUP leader David Trimble said: “If they are not going to do any of this, then Sinn Fein’s re-involvement in government and their involvement in policing arrangements can’t be considered an option either.”
Senior UUP talks negotiator, Sir Reg Empey, warned the British government against making more concessions to Sinn Fein. Action by the IRA toward disbandment was “going to have to be a lonely decision for republicans,” he said.
“They are going to have to take it because it is the right one to take, and the government should not allow them to lever out more concessions,” he said.
The IRA broke off contact with the Decommissioning Body under former Canadian Gen. John de Chastelain in October. De Chastelain is understood to have had no indication the IRA is ready to reengage.
Meanwhile, a second round-table session among the pro-Agreement parties at Stormont last Thursday saw another airing of the differences between the positions of the Ulster Unionists and Sinn Fein.
The absence from the talks at Stormont of Trimble for a second week was a source of irritation to many participants. Adams said it might be an attempt “to make some sort of political point,” but he was not aware what that was.
“We had a useful meeting,” Adams said after the meeting. “One thing for sure, everyone now knows this is not a single-item agenda. The British government has to knuckle down to the job of not just identifying the issues, because any child in a political science class could do that. We need them to actually come forward with a time frame, plans and programs to bring that about.”
The UUP said the British and Irish governments need a “reality check” to get them to focus on where the threat came from, the IRA. “There is a great game of semantics being played out. The UUP are the only ones not in denial,” Empey said. “Reckless republican actions have brought us to this point, yet most of those people sitting at the talks table seemed blissfully unwilling to challenge Sinn Fein/IRA.”
At a press conference following the talks, Britain’s Northern Ireland secretary, Paul Murphy, said, “You will not be surprised to hear that the issue of paramilitarism was extremely important, but there were other issues too: the institutions, policing, human rights and equality.”