Infamous Belfast watchtower to be dismantled

Work to dismantle one of the most infamous army watchtowers in Northern Ireland will get under way today.

The Divis Towers, in Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams’ west Belfast constituency, is a residential building and prominent landmark on the city skyline.

But for more than two decades, republicans claim it has been used by the British army, which is based on the 18th and 19th floors, to carry out surveillance on hundreds of Catholic homes.

West Belfast MLA Fra McCann, who lives in its shadow, said that locals would be happy to see it go under British government plans to scale back security in the North over the next two years.

The move, which the British army said is likely to take some time, followed an IRA announcement last week that it is to end its armed campaign.

Mr McCann said: “For 25 years we have lived as a community under surveillance. People will be glad to see the back of it.”

Asked about unionist concerns about the pace of demilitarisation, Mr McCann said: “The ceasefire (IRA) has been in place for 11 years.

“The British government promised then that they would move on demilitarisation across the North. Considering it has been 11 years, then I would not consider it too slow.”

But Democratic Unionist leader the Rev Ian Paisley yesterday warned that rapid demilitarisation and British government moves to disband units of the Royal Irish Regiment could further set back the return of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

The DUP will outline at a meeting with Mr Hain in London tomorrow a series of sanctions it may take in response to the British government’s moves.

Mr Hain revealed that the number of British soldiers in the North would be slashed over the next two years from the current level of around 10,500 to a peacetime garrison of 5,000.

Over a three phase programme, the British government intends to:

:: Dismantle several Army watchtowers and bases in republican heartlands, such as Divis Tower, Derry and South Armagh.

:: Change the way Northern Ireland is policed, with an end to British army backup for police operations, the defortification of police stations, the extension of single beat officers, bicycle patrols and the opening of police shops.

:: Repeal anti-terror legislation relating to the North. The move will depend on the security climate, with the IRA expected to honour its commitments.

But the most controversial aspect was a plan to disband the Northern Ireland-based units of the RIR – a regiment that included Iraq War hero Colonel Tim Collins in its ranks.

More than 3,000 soldiers are in the RIR, many of them serving part-time.

The British army’s General Officer Commanding in Northern Ireland, Sir Redmond Watt, confirmed that the RIR home service battalions would end their support role for the police on August 1, 2007.

The decision was welcomed by Sinn Féin MP Conor Murphy, who yesterday held talks with Mr Hain and Northern Ireland Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde.

Nationalist SDLP Policing Board member Alex Attwood also praised the demilitarisation plan.

But Ulster Unionist leader Sir Reg Empey, the Conservatives’ Northern Ireland spokesman, David Liddington, and cross-community Alliance Party leader David Fiord have queried the wisdom of the move, noting the IRA had still to fulfil its promises.

Sir Reg said the announcement should embarrass the DUP, which had vowed to stop concessions to republicans.

Meanwhile, the British and Irish governments, unionists and nationalists were last night still waiting for an announcement that the IRA has resumed decommissioning its weapons.

In the wake of the Provisionals’ statement on Thursday, General John de Chastelain’s Independent International Commission on Decommissioning confirmed that re-engagement with the IRA had taken place.

The commission said: “The IICD takes note of the IRA statement and has engaged with its representative with a view to completing its mandate to decommission IRA arms.”