IRA 'Haven't Gone Away'
From the collection of
From the collection of
Storm around Gerry Adams' offhand remark.
A report by Ken Reid for UTV Live following the political storm caused by comments made by Gerry Adams at a rally in front of Belfast City Hall the day before. In the middle of a summer of heightened tensions around the Drumcree face-off over marching routes, Adams responded to a remark from the crowd about the IRA by saying, 'They haven't gone away, you know.'
While many see this as a tacit threat of violence, Adams himself tries to brush the storm off, saying that it has been taken out of context from 'the general banter.' DUP leader Ian Paisley is also interviewed, with his contrasting opinion on the matter, while also declaring that there will be no talks with the Irish government, let alone Sinn Fein.
Starting in 1993, UTV Live took over as Ulster Television's local news series, running a flagship programme each evening, with other bulletins throughout the day. In the 1990s it captured the unfolding story of the push towards a peace settlement in Northern Ireland, through all its twist and turns, which ended with the historic Good Friday Agreement in 1998.