Praise The Lord, And DON'T Pass The Ammunition

According to the Associated Press on Thursday past, "[t]he Irish Republican Army [has] announced . . . it will renounce violence and resume disarmament in a declaration designed to revive Northern Ireland's peace process."

Well, Hallelujah!

The IRA has said it will not disband, but will limit its actions (starting at 4 p.m. Irish time on the 28th) to the political process. The IRA further said it would allow both Catholic and Protestant clergy to observe its disarmament work, and that its members must henceforth avoid all violent activities. Indeed, it has promised to use "exclusively peaceful means" from now on.

It's about bloody time!

I know that Protestants in Northern Ireland are skeptical, but I think this is for real. Why? Well, look at the world-wide response to the the Muslim attacks in London. The IRA has finally figured out that even when it warns of bombs and tries to limit/avoid civilian injury, the violence will not get it what it wants. All the violence ever did was harden resistance to the IRA's goals of true power-sharing in Northern Ireland.

I can just imagine a bunch of IRA leaders sitting around in a pub, drinking stout and bemoaning the fact that the Muslim terrorists have given "real freedom fighters" a bad name. But at least the IRA leadership finally got the sense to bow to the inevitable.

The British are taking it seriously, too. A follow-up article said the British Army has already begun closing/demolishing military installations in Northern Ireland. Three BA army positions in South Armagh (near the border with the Irish Republic) are already disappearing. They will keep 7 watchtowers on the border with the Republic, but that is half the number that were in place in 2001.

Of course, the Protestants in Northern Ireland are saying it's too much, too soon. They say until there is proof to back the IRA's words, "it's criminally irresponsible of the [British] government to do this." But the Catholic minority in Armagh is tired of the occupation, knowing that the British Army used the watchtowers to monitor people's movements and high-tech microphones on the towers to eavesdrop on private conversations. The Catholics say any reduction in the "Big Brother is watching you" atmosphere in Armagh can but move the peace process forward.

It's wonderful news. The one thing that irritates me about this is that the Omaha World-Herald did not see fit to publish it earlier than page 7 (Thursday's paper) and the follow-up on page 9 (Friday's). At least the articles were "above the fold," as it were.

Here's hoping that at least one troubled place in this world finally finds lasting peace.