IRA rejects ceasefire 'audit' proposal

The IRA has rejected a proposal that an auditor should be appointed to monitor paramilitary ceasefires in Northern Ireland.

In an interview published in the republican An Phoblacht newspaper today, an IRA spokesman stated the terror group’s opposition to the proposal which is being considered by the British government to stave off a crisis in the peace process.

The spokesman told the newspaper that the proposal would only be used “to serve the interests of those opposed to change”.

Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble, who will meet Tony Blair in London today, has been promoting the idea of an auditor in a bid to restore Unionist confidence in the peace process.

The Northern Ireland First Minister faces a crunch meeting of his party’s ruling council on September 21 over the future of power sharing with Sinn Fein because of concerns within the UUP about the Provisionals’ cease-fire.

Unionists have accused the IRA of orchestrating the sectarian street disturbances which have dogged Northern Ireland all summer.

However this has been denied by Sinn Fein and the IRA who have accused loyalist paramilitaries of initiating the street disturbances in Belfast and of engaging in a pogrom of Catholics throughout Northern Ireland over the past year.

Unionists have also been alarmed at allegations of ongoing IRA activity in Northern Ireland and abroad.

In particular, they have expressed concern about the arrests of three IRA suspects in Colombia in August 2001 on suspicion of training Marxist FARC rebels. They have also queried the republican movement’s commitment to the peace process following allegations that the IRA was behind the theft of sensitive security documents from a Special Branch office at Castlereagh Police Station in March.

The IRA has denied it sanctioned any operation in Colombia and also has accused elements within British military intelligence of arresting and subsequently releasing senior republicans for the Castlereagh break-in in an attempt to create a smokescreen for their own activities.

Northern Ireland Secretary John Reid, earlier this week after lengthy talks with Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams at Stormont, said the Government was looking at ways of clarifying to the public which paramilitary organisations were breaking their ceasefire.

Ulster Unionist hardliner, the South Antrim MP David Burnside, accused Dr Reid of issuing “a pathetic, weak statement”, demanding harsh penalties for breaches of the ceasefire.

In the An Phoblacht interview the IRA has accused “British intelligence agencies” of also “indulging in disinformation” to discredit the republicans’ role in the peace process.

The terror group reaffirmed its commitment to the peace process.

The Ulster Unionist Party was critical of the IRA position.

A party source said it was indicative of the fact that the Provisional movement “must have something to hide”.

“They claim they have nothing to do with street violence and disturbances over the summer but this rejection of the independent assessor seems to suggest otherwise,” the source said.

Alban Maginness, a Nationalist SDLP MLA was also critical.

“The IRA reaction is unnecessarily premature when this idea has not even been fully or definitively fleshed out,” he said.

“We would be anxious to find out more details about the idea and its operation before coming to any conclusions.

“However we are still considering it and believe it is at least worth exploring.”