MANDELSON'S MAD SHOWDOWN WITH IRA

Over a decade of peace efforts could be undone next week in a bloody-minded game of brinkmanship by Ulster Unionists and British securocrats.

Although the Good Friday Agreement contains no provision for the British government to suspend the Agreement, the Secretary of State Peter Mandelson yesterday published -- against the expressed wishes of the Irish government and the nationalist parties -- detailed legislation to dissolve the new political institutions by Friday.

It was a high-risk bid by Mandelson to 'take on' the IRA over the issue of its disused weapons, currently buried in arms dumps across Ireland.

In a departure from his prepared speech to announce the legislation, Peter Mandelson antagonised Republicans by accusing the IRA of "betrayal" before a packed House of Commons.

Mandelson's remarks were all the more extraordinary in that the Secretary of State was engaged in an action which is prohibited by the Northern Ireland Act of 1998, the original legislation used to implement the Good Friday Agreement and which Mandelson is now seeking to rewrite.

Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams accused the Northern Secretary of undermining his discussions with the IRA to try to resolve the arms issue. He said Mr Mandelson's remarks in the House of Commons had been "disgraceful" and amounted to spin-doctoring for the Ulster Unionists.

"Myself and others in the leadership have been in intensive discussions with the Irish government and the British government and in regular contact with both other parties and with the IRA," Mr Adams said.

"That is far beyond my responsibility, far beyond my obligations and at a time when we were actually talking to the IRA what does Peter Mandelson do? He accused them of betraying the process."

It was confirmed today that Mr Adams is holding crunch talks with Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble, at a secret location, to try prevent the suspension or collapse of the power-sharing Executive.

But there are few hopes the talks can prevent the rapid downward spiral of events from reaching a disastrous climax next week. The rapid pace of the past week's developments have led at least one Sinn Fein Assembly member to suggest that a joint British/Unionist "understanding" is in place to push the peace process to the brink -- or worse.

Gerry Kelly yesterday accused the British government of planning to suspend the Stormont Assembly and other new power-sharing institutions well in advance of Tuesday's move by David Trimble to withdraw his party from the new institutions. Kelly's remarks come after the publication by of the legislation which is to be used to suspend the Good Friday Agreement in London on Friday.

The legislation is twelve pages long, contains nine clauses and one schedule which has thirteen paragraphs.

Said Mr Kelly: "It is clear from the length and detail of this legislation that the British government has been working for a number of weeks on its preparation. From this we can see that suspension of the political institutions has been the intention of the British government for some time.

Mr Kelly said the peace process would have been better served "if the British government had spent as much energy in trying to avert the crisis rather then give succour to those who created it.

"It appears that the understanding which unionist leaders have talked about all week was between themselves and the British government over suspending the political institutions."

Into a volatile mix today came threatening comments from former British Prime Minister John Major.

Major said the situation was "deeply worrying" and admitted the IRA are "highly unlikely" to respond to the new arms demands. He ominously added that there could be "a little more violence", but a return to what "existed before" could be avoided -- with luck.

"Even if there was a settlement I think that some people might move across to more extreme groups and there may be a little more violence," he said. But unless we are very maladroit or very unlucky I doubt we will go back to precisely the circumstances that existed before."

The former premier was condemned by Sinn Fein for his "negative contribution".

Assembly member Francie Molloy said Mr Major would long be remembered as the man who squandered the opportunity for peace presented by the IRA's 1994 ceasefire.

"It was Major's government which sought to wreck the process on a self-imposed precondition for decommissioning before negotiations even began.

"Given the history of his involvement, this latest negative contribution will surprise nobody," he said.

The escalating tension will come to a climax next weekend. Mandelson has set Friday as the deadline for the suspension of the new institutions, while the Ulster Unionist Party's ruling council meets the next day to consider a final decision on the institutions and David Trimble's near-mythical post-dated letter of resignation, which may yet be withdrawn.

Nationalists meanwhile are mounting impromptu protests outside the Ulster Unionists' Glengall Street headquarters and elsewhere to plead for peace. Despite miserable conditions, protestors today chanted held banners with one message: "make politics work - don't collapse the institutions".

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
                            RM Distribution
                Irish Republican News and Information
                     http://irlnet.com/rmlist/

PO Box 160, Galway, Ireland Phone/Fax: (353)1-6335113
PO Box 8630, Austin TX 78713, USA mailto:rmlist-reply@irlnet.com

=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=