Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams has urged Taoiseach Bertie Ahern to seek the removal from British legislation of the proposed "amnesty" for members of the British security forces for offences committed during the Troubles.
Speaking after a meeting with Mr Ahern at Government Buildings yesterday, Mr Adams said the Taoiseach had told him he had no advance notice of the British putting an amnesty for security forces into the legislation. Mr Adams said it had been agreed at talks in Weston Park in 2001 that the "on-the-runs" issue would be dealt with, but there had been no agreement to give an amnesty to British security force members.
He said he had called on the Government to urge the British to remove that element from the legislation. "It is in breach of the joint communique at Weston Park and it is certainly in breach of any understanding we had with the two governments."
He rejected the suggestion that supporting an effective amnesty for IRA members but not for British security forces was a double standard.
He said some of the people who may avail of the legislation "have never been before due process and some of them may be innocent. The fact is that hundreds of people have been killed by the British crown forces and there is an attempt just to further cover up on this issue, and I think people understand that.
Martin McGuinness said: It's quite clear what is going on here. The Taoiseach has explained to everyone that this is a big surprise to him."
Mr Adams said he agreed with Mr Ahern that there needed to be a focus on trying to put the political institutions back in place as early as possible in the new year.
Mr McGuinness said there was "a reasonable expectation that come the beginning of next year, that the two governments actually have a plan which they put before not just ourselves but the DUP, the same DUP who told them in the course of nine months of negotiation last year that the only issue that was concerning him was the issue of arms.
"So that issue has now been resolved. The big question is whether or not Ian Paisley, who tells us he is a man of God, is also a man of his word."