Vol. 468 No. 4
50 Dr. O'Hanlon asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the concern of many people at the lack of impartiality of the RUC in dealing with the two communities in Northern Ireland during the week of 12 July 1996; if so, the action, if any, he has taken in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15498/96]
I can confirm to the Deputy that I have received a very large number of representations from concerned people, North and South, following the events surrounding the recent forced parades on the Garvaghy Road and Lower Ormeau Road. It was clear from these representations that the contrast between the methods employed by the RUC in nationalist areas in the aftermath of those parades and their approach during the standoff with Orangemen at Drumcree in preceding days has caused widespread and understandable concern. There are also serious questions arising from the very widespread use of plastic bullets in nationalist areas, frequently in apparent contravention of the regulations governing their use.
I raised this concern about the recent behaviour of the RUC, and its profound impact on nationalist opinion, at the special meeting of the Anglo-Irish Intergovernmental Conference on 18 July 1996. I made clear that the confidence of the entire nationalist community in the RUC had suffered a most serious reverse.
In the Joint Statement issued after the conference meeting, both Governments recognised the urgent need to rebuild confidence in the wake of these developments and reaffirmed the primacy of the political process as the means of achieving this. It remains the position of the Government that the issue of policing should be addressed as an essential part of all-party political negotiations.
