Church in message on loyalist weapons

The North’s loyalist communities must be freed from the shadow of the gun through the complete removal of illegal weapons, the Church of Ireland said today.

Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland the Most Revd Alan Harper welcomed news of the beginning of loyalist paramilitary decommissioning.

His comments followed what is believed to be a substantial act of decommissioning by the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) and lesser acts of disarmament by the Ulster Defence Association (UDA) and the Red Hand Commando.

But while Rev Harper praised those loyalists who have worked to deliver complete decommissioning – as carried out by the IRA four years ago – he said that process of disarmament must result in the destruction of all, and not just some, illegal weapons.

“I very much look forward to full confirmation of the complete decommissioning of all armaments held by loyalist paramilitaries,” he said.

“It will represent a further and extremely welcome step towards confidence building and the normalisation of society in Northern Ireland.

“I recognise that on the part of the leadership of the paramilitary groups full decommissioning has been a challenging outcome to deliver, therefore, I commend those within loyalism who have argued consistently for decommissioning over a considerable period.

“Now full energy and commitment can be devoted to community development and the enhancement of the lives of people in loyalist areas free from the dark shadow of the gun.”

The Church leader paraphrased scripture and said the North was closer to replacing swords with ploughshares.

He added: “God willing, we shall soon know the day when weapons are never again lifted by one group against another and come to know what it means to learn war no more.”

In what represents a further milestone for the peace process, the UVF is understood to have decommissioned a major weapons cache, with further disarmament moves by the UDA and Red Hand Commando.

The decommissioning acts are believed to have been overseen by the IICD and independent witnesses.

Republican and nationalist politicians said the reports of decommissioning - expected to be formally confirmed in an IICD report in August – must mark the beginning of the end of all loyalist paramilitary activity.

The British and Irish governments welcomed the destruction of weaponry, but said they would await the IICD report for confirmation of exactly what took place.

The loyalist groups killed hundreds of people, mostly innocent Catholic civilians, during the decades of violence, with the UVF responsible for murders in the mid-1960s which marked the beginning of the Troubles.

Loyalist paramilitaries have also killed security force members – including the first and last Royal Ulster Constabulary members killed in the conflict.

Working class Protestant communities have also been hit by the organisations’ violence, while loyalist paramilitaries are still linked to drugs and extortion rackets.

Northern Ireland Secretary Shaun Woodward said he was reluctant to pre-empt the IICD report, although ministers are believed to have been briefed on developments.

“If these reports were to be confirmed, what we would see would be a seismic transformation within loyalism,” said Mr Woodward.