IRA must stop 'illegal activities', warns Durkan

The IRA should not be allowed to “privatise” criminality in the wake of yesterday’s statement to end its armed struggle, it was claimed today.

SDLP leader Mark Durkan warned that the republican movement must end all illegal activities and sign up to policing in the North.

Speaking after an 80-minute meeting with Taoiseach Bertie Ahern in Dublin, Mr Durkan also called on the British government to publish a timetable for security normalisation.

“It’s important that we don’t have a notion of privatisation out there, that we don’t have a private army for political purposes any more but we’re allowed a privatised army for criminal or pseudo-commercial purposes.

“It’s also important that we don’t have a notion that people are licensed to do what they want as long as it is on a personal basis, not on a corporate basis,” said Mr Durkan, who lead a six member party delegation.

The IRA yesterday declared an end to its 36-year armed campaign and ordered volunteers to dump their weapons and bombs. It also warned its members not to engage in any “activities”.

Mr Durkan said people in the unionist and nationalist communities will be keeping an eye on what the IRA are up to in coming weeks.

“There are many people in communities who will be keeping their eyes and ears open. I hope that the Provisional movement know that it will not be just people in unionism that will be sensitive to the dangers, but it will be also people in the nationalist community who will have their critical faculties alert as well.”

“We can’t have some neutrality between crime and law – some sort of halfway house twilight zone. The Provisional movement is saying we’re not in favour of criminality anymore but we’re not in favour of the law yet either.”

The SDLP leader also called on the British government to publish its programme of security normalisation.

He added: “That will have to be scrutinised by the Independent Monitoring Commission as well because that body also has a role in looking at what the governments are doing.”

Mr Durkan called for a speedy resumption of political talks to set about implementing the Good Friday Agreement and restoring devolution.

He warned that there had been a lot of foot-dragging in the past and a new momentum needed to be created now.

The SDLP delegation, which also met Irish government Chief Whip Tom Kitt, included MPs Dr Alastair McDonnell and Eddie McGrady.