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Disarmament – 1999

The decommissioning did not begin in 1999. After the Hillsborough Declaration of 1 April 1999, efforts to break the stalemate and propose a date for the removal of paramilitary weapons failed. As the process stalled, the government asked Senator George Mitchell to review the peace process. In his report, Mitchell concluded that “devolution should take effect, then the Executive should meet, and then the paramilitary groups should appoint their authorised representatives, all on the same day, in that order”.¹ Power was devolved in Northern Ireland, the executive was set up, and authorized representatives were appointed on 2 December 1999. In December, the commission had separate talks with representatives of the IRA, the Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF), the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF), and the Red Hand Commando (RHC).²

1. “Mitchell bows out leaving basis for peace,” The Guardian, November 18, 1999.
2. “Northern Ireland paramilitaries will disarm, says De Chastelain,” Agence France Presse, December 10, 1999.