Legislation and Mandate
1. The Agreement to establish the Commission was made between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Government of Ireland on 26 August 1997. The Agreement tasked the Commission with the following mandate:
a. To consult with the participants in political negotiations in Northern Ireland, including both Governments, and others whom it deems relevant on the type of scheme or schemes for decommissioning including the role it might play in respect of each scheme;
b. To present to the two Governments the proposals for schemes for decommissioning having due regard to the views expressed by those it has consulted;
c. To undertake, in accordance with any regulations or arrangements made under the Decommissioning Act, 1997, and any decommissioning schemes within the meaning of section 1, and in accordance with section 3, of the Northern Ireland Arms Decommissioning Act 1997, such tasks that may be required of it to facilitate the decommissioning of arms, including observing, monitoring and verifying decommissioning and receiving and auditing arms; and
d. To report periodically to both Governments and, through whatever mechanism they may establish for that purpose, the other participants in political negotiations in Northern Ireland.
2. Legislation enacting terms of the Agreement is found in the two Acts referred to in paragraph 1.c. above - The Northern Ireland Decommissioning Act 1997 (UK) and The Decommissioning Act 1997 (Ireland) - and the attention of the Commission was drawn to the Report of the International Body of 22 January 1996.
3. In both Acts it was specified that methods and manners (schemes) to be used for decommissioning require the destruction of the arms being decommissioned.
4. On 24 September the two Governments jointly appointed three Commissioners from Canada, Finland and the United States of America as members of the Commission, one of whom was designated as Chairman.
Resources
5. The Commission comprises the three Commissioners and three assistants drawn from the same three countries. Four secretaries, also drawn from Canada, Finland and the United States, are divided between the Commission's offices in each of Belfast and Dublin. At the request of the two Governments, the Canadian Armed Forces and the US Army have made available to the Commission, on an as-required basis, two officers who are experts on arms, ammunition and explosives ordnance disposal. These officers have taken part in refresher training with the defence forces in both jurisdictions, and they are called to join the Commission when needed.
6. The moneys, premises, facilities and services necessary for the proper functioning of the Commission have been provided by the two Governments in accordance with the legislation and on a basis determined by the Governments.
Consultations in 1997
7. The role of the Commission is to facilitate the voluntary decommissioning of firearms, ammunition, explosives and explosive substances (hereinafter referred to as "arms"), held by paramilitary groups. At the outset, the Commission consulted with participants in the talks process, and with the security forces in both jurisdictions, to clarify issues relating to the possible implementation of the decommissioning methods identified by the International Body. The purpose was to see which of these, if any, might be acceptable to paramilitary groups on ceasefire, once the decommissioning process had begun.
8. On 21 November 1997 the Commission submitted an Initial Report to the Liaison Sub-Committee on Decommissioning. This report addressed key issues related to the first two tasks of the Commission's mandate and outlined a basic scenario for decommissioning.
9. After further consultation, the Commission concentrated on developing a decommissioning scheme which included two possible methods:
a. Arms collected by the Commission, or by the designated representatives of either Government, as the result of information provided by paramilitary groups; and
b. Arms destroyed by paramilitary groups themselves with verification by the Commission.
10. Practical arrangements in relation to decommissioning were to be set out in a scheme and in regulations to be made by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, in accordance with legislation passed earlier in the year. Based on this requirement the Commission drafted a proposal for a decommissioning scheme including the two aforementioned methods, which it believed would represent a workable basis for achieving the decommissioning of paramilitary arms. The proposal was submitted to the Talks participants on 15 December 1997 for their consideration.
The Mechanics of Decommissioning
11. In a meeting on 14 January 1998, the Liaison Sub-Committee on Decommissioning discussed the Commission's proposals for methods of decommissioning. The following day the Commission formally submitted its recommendations for a decommissioning scheme to the two Governments, completing the first and second tasks of its mandate. On 25 February both Governments presented to the Liaison Sub-Committee on Decommissioning their proposals on how they intended to give effect to the Commission's recommendations.
12. During the spring of 1998, to get acquainted with all aspects of their mandate, the Commissioners and assistants travelled frequently in both jurisdictions and consulted experts on forensic science, ammunition and explosives, destruction techniques and disposal of residue. The acquisition of commercial sources for vehicles and equipment was also explored.
13. Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) were developed to guide the conduct of the Commission's involvement in decommissioning events. It is anticipated that specific arrangements and measures during each individual decommissioning event will vary, depending on the method used and the nature of the operational circumstances existing at the time.
14. Operations centres to be activated during decommissioning events, were established in Belfast and Dublin.
15. The possibility remains that State agencies in either jurisdiction will be involved in the conduct of decommissioning operations, either acting as representatives of the Government ("designated representatives"), or as agents of the Commission in accordance with the agreed method used. To that end the Commission established permanent liaison with the Royal Ulster Constabulary, the Garda Siochana, the British Army and the Irish Defence Forces.
The Good Friday Agreement
16. The Good Friday Agreement of 10 April 1998 was the culmination of a process of negotiation that began on 10 June 1996 in Belfast. Parties to the Agreement confirmed their intention to work constructively and in good faith with the Commission, and to use any influence they may have, to achieve the decommissioning of all paramilitary arms within two years following the referendums held on 22 May 1998 and in the context of the implementation of the overall settlement.
17. Both Governments committed to take the necessary steps to facilitate the decommissioning process, to include bringing the relevant scheme or regulations into force by the end of June 1998. A decommissioning scheme in Northern Ireland and Regulations in Ireland came into effect on 30 June 1998. They provide a workable basis for achieving the decommissioning of paramilitary arms.
Contact Persons
18. The Commission is tasked to facilitate the decommissioning of arms held by paramilitary groups. To assist in that task the Commission asked that paramilitary groups nominate a representative or point of contact with the Commission through whom it could communicate.
19. In October 1997 the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) and Red Hand Commando (RHQ nominated Mr Billy Hutchinson from the Progressive Unionist Party (PUP) to be their point of contact with the Commission. In June 1998 the Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF) nominated Pastor Kenny McClinton as their point of contact, though in June 1999 he resigned from this post. In September 1998 Sinn Fein named Mr Martin McGuinness as the party's point of contact with the Commission. While the UDA/UFF have not named a point of contact, the leader of the Ulster Democratic Party (UDP), Mr Gary McMichael, and his colleagues, have met several times with the Commission. All of these individuals have been helpful in providing the Commission with a better understanding of attitudes within the wider loyalist and republican communities regarding decommissioning.
Decommissioning
20. Contact with the LVF through their intermediary led to a decommissioning event on 18 December 1998. That paramilitary group decommissioned four sub-machine guns, two rifles, two pistols, a sawn-off shotgun, 348 rounds of ball ammunition, 31 shotgun shells, five electrical detonators, two pipe bombs, two weapons stocks and five assorted magazines. The items described were destroyed in accordance with Commission procedures the day they were received and the residue was disposed of the same day also. At the LVFs request the event was covered by the media. A report on this event was provided to both governments in accordance with the Commission's SOP.
Public Profile
21. With the exception of the press conference on 18 December 1998 to answer media queries about the LVF decommissioning, and the intervention made following the Prime Ministers' announcement of the Hillsborough Declaration on 1 April 1999, the Commission has made no public statements since September 1998. The Commission has taken this course of action in the belief that avoiding publicity would give the Commission a greater chance to work with paramilitary groups or their representatives, to win their confidence, and to advance the prospects for decommissioning.
22. The Commission's silence should not be interpreted as inactivity. Over the course of the last 10 months the Commission has had numerous meetings with political parties in Northern Ireland, with the two governments, with the security forces in both jurisdictions, with the churches, and with local special interest organisations.
Reporting
23. Throughout this process, the Commission has kept both governments informed in detail about its efforts and its assessment of prospects for success. A number of these meetings have taken place at the highest governmental level. The two governments have likewise shared with the Commission their views on their own efforts, and this has been helpful to the Commission.