Colombian links hit peace process

By Hasan Suroor

LONDON, AUG. 17. In what could further queer the pitch for the deadlocked Northern Ireland peace process, republicans have come under pressure to clarify their links with the three suspected IRA terrorists arrested in Colombia early this week for allegedly hobnobbing with a Left-wing guerilla group engaged in an armed struggle against the government in Bogota.

The British-Irish plans on police reforms in Northern Ireland, published today, were overshadowed by the row over the IRA's ``Colombian connection'' with Unionists further hardening their opposition to a deal with republicans until they came clean on what is clearly a damage development for Sinn Fein and IRA.

Republican denials that they had anything to do with the `trio' were greeted with scepticism after TV channels ran footage of a 1989 Sinn Fein rally at which of one of the arrested men, Mr. James Monaghan, is seen sharing the dais with other party leaders. It shows Mr. Monaghan listening intently to the Sinn Fein President, Mr. Gerry Adams' speech. The photograph has been widely published in the British media to contradict republican protestations. The other two suspects have also been linked with IRA/Sinn Fein and one of them, the Cuba-based Mr. Niall Connolly, is reported to have been involved in arranging Mr. Adams' coming visit to Cuba.

Mr. Monaghan and Mr. Connolly were arrested along with another suspected IRA terrorist, Mr. Martin McCauley, for unauthorisedly entering a ``demilitarised zone'' and training guerillas in the use of explosives. They were travelling on false passports, and posed as journalists. They were thought to have been in the rebel-held territory for five weeks. They have denied the charge and said they were simply passing through the area after being attracted by its scenic beauty.

A report today said that Mr. Monaghan, who was convicted in 1971 for unlawful activities, was in fact included in the Sinn Fein's list of absconding IRA men during the recent peace negotiations with the Government over granting amnesty to the convicted terrorists-on-the-run. The disclosure that he was on an alleged arms expedition even as republicans were seeking amnesty for him is deeply embarrassing to the republican leadership, and unionists have seized on it to cast doubts on IRA's credibility over decommissioning.

They said that reports alleging that IRA activists were scouting for weapons or engaged in arms training with Colombian rebels raised serious questions about its `commitment' to decommissioning.

Hardline unionists claimed that it confirmed their belief that republicans were speaking with a `forked' tongue and were never serious about giving up weapons. Other pro-peace process parties have also demanded an explanation from Sinn Fein.

The leader of the nationalist SDLP, Mr. John Hume, said that given the speculation about the relationship of the arrested men with republicans ``Sinn Fein should come out and make clear what the facts are''. There has been no official comment either from the British or Irish government but observers said they must be concerned about its implications for the peace process which they have been working so hard to revive after the unionists plunged it into a crisis by walking out of the power- sharing executive over decommissioning.

Republicans have sounded defensive over the Colombian episode describing it as an attempt by their rival and the media to defame them. Meanwhile, the U.S. media is reported to have come out strongly against the IRA with The Washington Post being quoted as saying it was now ``increasingly clear who's to blame for the crisis in Northern Ireland''.

Irish Americans have been a major source of funding for IRA after the former U.S. President, Mr. Bill Clinton, lifted the ban on IRA fund-raising on the condition that it would not engage in terrorism.

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Section  : International
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