Government will bring in law to invalidate ‘on-the-run’ letters: SEFF

The South East Fermanagh Foundation (SEFF), which advocates for victims and survivors of terrorism, now believes the Cabinet will back their demand that the amnesty letters to almost 200 IRA members wanted for Troubles-related crimes are rendered legally invalid and cannot be used in any court by the republicans’ defence teams.

‘On-the-run’ letters were authorised by Tony Blair in a secret deal with the Sinn Fein leadership starting in 2000. Sinn Fein gave a list of IRA suspects and Mr Blair agreed to issue them letters of assurance they would not be prosecuted.

Kenny Donaldson, the chair of SEFF, said he was confident legislation will be drafted to “make watertight in law” the announcements by ministers and the judiciary that the letters have no proper legal standing and cannot be used in future court cases to defend IRA suspects.

“We have argued that there needs to be legislation to confirm in law that those letters are not valid. Speaking with the British government lately I am convinced they get the necessity of this and in the next few months legislation will go through parliament to fully invalidate these so-called comfort letters,” he said.

Mr Donaldson continued: “For 25 years victims were asked to do the heavy lifting in the name of peace. They were asked to accept the early release of terrorist prisoners in the 1998 Belfast Agreement, which it has to be said was voted for in the referendum. However, they were not asked their opinion about the ‘on-the-run’ amnesties because these were kept secret.

“Ministers and judges can say these letters are not worth the paper they are written on but for victims to be sure and certain of this we need this enshrined in law enacted in parliament. And it does seem to me on this issue this government appears to be listening.”

The Irish government and the Northern Ireland Prison Service were aware about the ‘on-the-run’ letters but it was concealed from other political parties. The UK’s attorney general warned the Blair government the scheme could not be an amnesty.

Details about the existence of ‘on-the-run’ letters only emerged at the Old Bailey in 2014 when Donegal republican Downey stood trial for the 1982 IRA bomb attack in London’s Hyde Park that killed four soldiers.

The trial judge freed Mr Downey after his defence revealed he had received one of the Blair government’s ‘comfort letters’ concluding that he should never have been charged with the murders as he had been given that guarantee.

Mr Downey was extradited from the Republic in 2019 and charged with the 1972 IRA double murder of UDR men Alfred Johnston and James Eames in an explosion in Enniskillen.