A former US congressman has urged the IRA to announce it is standing down as a military force when it makes the much anticipated statemnt expected in the coming weeks.
Bruce Morrison - a long time campaigner on Irish issues - said the IRA must embrace the democratic process when it responds to Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams’s call for the IRA to formally end its campaign.
Congressman Bruce Morrison
"Everybody is asking for a clear statement they will [the IRA] stand down as a military army and pursue their republican ideals through the political process.
"They must also cease from engaging in criminal or anti-social behaviour," Mr Morrison, who was part of a US delegation that met republicans in Belfast before the IRA's 1994 ceasefire, added.
He said that a definitive statement from the terrorist group would encourage unionists to embrace power-sharing with Sinn Féin. "I cannot speak for the unionist community, but if unionist politicians want to become involved in the government of Northern Ireland, they need to find a way to engage in the wider political representation process."
Mr Morrison, who secured 48,000 "Morrison Visas" for Irish illegals in the United States during the 1980s, was speaking in Dublin at an event organised by the Immigration Council of Ireland on the Government's proposals on immigration and residency.
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern said today he hoped the long-awaited IRA statement would come "some time in the second half of July".
He said: "If it goes longer than that, it won't be good for the process. It wouldn't be the end of the world but it would certainly help us if we get the statement."