IRA withdraws offer to decommission arms

By Hasan Suroor

LONDON, AUG 14. Weeks of efforts to revive the Northern Ireland peace process were in a shambles today after the Irish Republican Army (IRA) withdrew its offer to decommission its arms, accusing the Unionists and the British Government of putting hurdles in the way of peace-keeping which, it said, required a ``collective effort''.

The announcement came amid embarrassment within IRA's own ranks following the arrest on Monday of three suspected IRA terrorists in Colombia on the charge of training a guerilla group allegedly in exchange for arms. Their arrest was seized by Unionists to question the IRA's commitment to the peace process and the credibility of its much-publicised offer to get rid of its weapons in return for concessions on policing and security.

As the news of the arrests came, a senior Unionist leader said the Republican commitment to the Good Friday Agreement would be ``seriously if not fatally undermined'' by the development.

Analysts said the Republicans' capacity to convince the Unionists that it was sincere about destroying its weapons had been seriously compromised by reports that the three IRA terrorists arrested in Colombia were scouting for arms. The IRA's decision to withdraw its offer was seen as a clever tactic to pre-empt attacks on its credibility. ``Before the Unionists could say that we have no trust in your offer after what happened in Colombia, IRA withdrew it on its own'', one commentator said but acknowledged the political impact of having the door formally slammed on the current peace efforts.

Mr. Jeffrey Donaldson, a hardline Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) M.P., termed the IRA's announcement as a ``massive blow to the peace process'' saying the IRA had, in fact, never completely given up violence and only the level of terrorism had come down. He said the arms procurement mission of its men in Colombia was inconsistent with the IRA's talk of decommissioning. Another UUP leader denounced the IRA move as a ``political stunt'' and an attempt to put more pressure on the British Government to concede its demands on policing and security. Mr. Peter Robinson of the anti-agreement Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) demanded that the Government withdraw the ``concessions'' it had made to the Republicans in recent weeks.

Unionists, cutting across party affiliations, believed that the developments in Colombia had raised serious questions about the Republicans' commitment to decommissioning. It seemed that even as one arm of the Republicans was talking about decommissioning, another was busy acquiring arms. The IRA's announcement did not come as a surprise after Republicans had hinted such a move on Monday. The offer, which now stands withdrawn, was made last week and according to it, the IRA was said to be discussing with the independent decommissioning body a method to put its weapons ``completely and verifiably beyond use''.

The head of the decommissioning body, Gen. de Chastelain had expressed support for the move, but the Unionists turned it down saying similar assurances had been given in the past, only to be broken. They insisted that physical destruction of weapons must start before they agree to return to the power-sharing coalition which they quit last month when Mr. David Trimble resigned as its head.

The Republicans were furious, and their fury was compounded when the British Government, despite their opposition, suspended the Provincial Assembly at the weekend to buy time until Sept. 23 to get the two sides to reach an agreement. They said it was an attempt to pressure them and they would not succumb to it.

The IRA, in a statement this morning, said its offer of August 8 was aimed at ``advancing the peace process'' but its ``outright rejection'' by Unionists ``compounded by the setting of preconditions are totally unacceptable''.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : International
Previous : South Asia sanctions policy under review: U.S.
Next     : Mood grim in Skopje despite pact