Northern Ireland: Breaking point?

Tuesday 21 October 2003 was billed as one of those breakthrough days in Northern Ireland politics. The biggest since the Good Friday Agreement, some said.

Ulster Unionists put 'the sequence on hold'

The morning news bulletins carried the news that the Government had called elections to the mothballed Northern Ireland Assembly for 26 November 2003.

Sinn Fein and Ulster Unionist politicians changed into their best bib and tucker ready for the unrolling of, what we were assured, was to be a carefully choreographed series of events.

Conciliatory speeches were to be made, weapons were to be decommissioned, and warring parties reconciled.

As a finishing touch, the Prime Minister, Tony Blair, and the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, travelled to Hillsborough Castle to set their seal on the deal.

In the event, the hoped for breakthrough crashed and burned.

Those politicians who started the day all bright eyed and bushy tailed ended up looking punch drunk and angry.

Breaking point

General de Chastelain reported on IRA's latest decommissioning

The breaking point came at around four o'clock in the afternoon when General de Chastelain reported back on the IRA's latest act of decommissioning.

The retired Canadian military man confirmed that the quantity of arms put beyond use was 'considerably larger' than the previous amounts decommissioned by the IRA.

He spoke of 'light, medium and heavy ordnance and associated munitions'.

He went on explain that the IRA had exercised its option to restrict the details he could reveal about the decommissioning act.

There was to be no videos, photographs, or detailed lists; as demanded by some unionist politicians.

Sequence put on hold

David Trimble stepped up to the microphones at his party headquarters and announced that the Ulster Unionists were 'putting the sequence on hold'.

Mr Trimble complained of a lack of clarity in the General's report;

We were expecting to have a report from General de Chastelain on transparent acts of decommissioning and there was a clear agreement between us and republicans when we were talking that there should be greater transparency.

Since then arguments have raged about Tony Blair's comment on the Tuesday evening;

I believe that if people knew the information that we have been told, yes they would be satisfied.

Did the Prime Minister have a detailed inventory from the General?

Or did he receive inside information from mysterious intelligence sources?

And did General de Chastelain really consider resigning following Tuesday's events?

The Politics Show

This week Politics Show Northern Ireland picks through the wreckage to discover what went wrong and whether Humpty can be put back together again.

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