[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 33 (Wednesday, February 22, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2959-S2964]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


           PEACE IN NORTHERN IRELAND--THE FRAMEWORK DOCUMENT

  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, today the Irish and British Governments 
released their much-anticipated Framework Document, which offers a fair 
and balanced approach to moving the Northern Ireland peace process 
forward.
  The document imposes nothing on anyone. It reaffirms the solemn 
guarantee that the consent of the people of Northern Ireland is the 
indispensable condition for any future settlement.
  The great virtue of the document is that it provides exactly what was 
promised--a thoughtful and comprehensive analysis of the fundamental 
issues. Above all, it offers a solid basis for moving to the next 
step--which is talks among all the parties, and which I hope will begin 
soon.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that today's statements by 
Irish Prime Minister John Bruton and British Prime Minister John Major 
and the text of the framework document may be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

 Introductory Remarks by the Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Mr. John 
Bruton, TD, at Belfast Launching of Joint Framework Document, February 
                                22, 1995

       Today's new framework for agreement is a landmark event in 
     the affairs of this island.
       The two Governments are presenting to the political parties 
     in Northern Ireland, and to the Irish and British people, a 
     document which is the most detailed expression to date of our 
     views on the subject of Northern Ireland.
       The Prime Minister and I hope that the Framework Document 
     will receive calm and measured consideration over the days 
     and weeks ahead.
       It is an important and serious text, offered as an aid to 
     discussion and negotiation. It presents our best judgement of 
     what might be an agreed outcome from future talks involving 
     the two Governments and the political parties.
       We commend it to the parties for their careful 
     consideration and we look forward to discussing it in detail 
     with them at the earliest opportunity.
       May at this point pay a special tribute to my colleague the 
     Tanaiste and his officials and to the Northern Ireland 
     Secretary of State Patrick Mayhew and his team. Their 
     determined efforts over many months have brought us to 
     today's new framework for agreement.
       The proposals which it contains are, we believe, balanced 
     and fair and threaten nobody. No party need fear this 
     document.
       To the nationalist and republican people, the document:
       Reaffirms that the British Government have no selfish, 
     strategic or economic interest in Northern Ireland and that 
     they will uphold the democratic wish of a greater number of 
     the people of Northern Ireland on the issue of whether they 
     prefer to support the Union or a sovereign united Ireland.
       Says that the British Government will enshrine in its 
     constitutional legislation the principles embodied in this 
     new framework for agreement by the amendment of the 
     Government of Ireland Act of 1920 or by its replacement by 
     appropriate new legislation.
       It will also be important to nationalists that both 
     Governments consider that new institutions should be created 
     to cater for present and future political, social and 
     economic inter-connections within the island of Ireland. 
     These institutions will enable representatives of the main 
     traditions, North and South, to enter agreed relationships. 
     This is the purpose of the North/South body proposed in this 
     document.
       To the unionist and loyalist people, I would point out that 
     the document commits the Irish Government to ask the 
     electorate to change the Irish Constitution. The change 
     proposed will address Articles 2 and 3 in the following ways:
       It would remove any jurisdictional or territorial claim of 
     legal right over the territory of Northern Ireland contrary 
     to the will of its people.
       It would provide that the creation of a sovereign united 
     Ireland could therefore only occur in circumstances where a 
     majority of the people of Northern Ireland formally chose to 
     be part of a united Ireland.
       It is also important to unionists that the document also 
     contains a recognition by both Governments of the legitimacy 
     of whatever choice is freely exercised by a majority of the 
     people of Northern Ireland with regard to its constitutional 
     status, whether they prefer to continue to support the Union 
     or a sovereign united Ireland.
       [[Page S2960]] The proposals will challenge the two 
     traditions on this island but it will do so in an even-handed 
     way. Neither tradition need fear its contents. As I have 
     emphasized at every appropriate opportunity, it is a 
     framework for discussion and not a blueprint to be imposed 
     over the heads of anyone. Its purpose is to facilitate, not 
     pre-empt, dialogue. At the end of the day, the people of both 
     North and South respectively will have the final say.
       The document is our carefully considered response to many 
     suggestions, from the parties and others, that it would be 
     helpful to have the view of the two Governments as to what 
     might be an agreed outcome from future talks.
       We are asking the parties to come and talk to us, openly 
     and candidly, about these proposals. We believe that, taken 
     in the round, they offer a basis for structured discussions 
     leading to a new agreement.
       We believe that they do. It is our hope that the political 
     parties, having given them the attention they deserve, will 
     take a similar view.
       There can be no doubt about the enormous desire on the part 
     of the ordinary pubilc--here, in the rest of Ireland and in 
     Britain--for the earliest possible resumption of political 
     dialogue.
       The ending of all campaigns of paramilitary violence last 
     autumn has created an unrivalled opportunity for such 
     dialogue to take place with a reasonable prospect of a 
     successful conclusion.
       I join the Prime Minister in appealing to all the parties 
     concerned to grasp this opportunity.
       The Framework Document is our judgment of how things can 
     best be taken forward. We have, in our view, the best 
     opportunity in a generation for a lasting political 
     settlement. We owe it to the peoples of both of these islands 
     to put that opportunity to the test.
                                                                    ____


  Opening Statement by the Prime Minister, Mr. John Major, at a Joint 
  Press Conference With the Taoiseach, Mr. John Bruton, to Launch the 
    Joint Framework Document, Belfast, Wednesday, February 22, 1995


                        joint framework document

       There is one reason, above all, why the Taoiseach and I 
     have come to Belfast today.
       We wish to offer our proposals here in Northern Ireland--to 
     Northern Ireland's people and their representatives.
       We seek to help peace, but only the people of Northern 
     Ireland can deliver it.
       So let me say to them:
       These are our ideas, but the future is up to you;
       You have an opportunity now which has not been there for 
     many years;
       An opportunity to work together to build a better future 
     and a lasting peace.
       Our proposals stem from the talks process launched four 
     years ago, in March 1991.
       It was agreed then by the two governments and the four 
     participating parties that the process would have three 
     strands. It would seek a new beginning for:
       Relationships within Northern Ireland;
       Relationships between the North and South of the island of 
     Ireland;
       And relations between the United Kingdom and the Republic.
       We agreed that it was only by addressing all these 
     relationships together that agreement would be found across 
     the community in Northern Ireland.
       At this press conference, the Taoiseach and I are 
     publishing the document `A New Framework for Agreement' which 
     deals with the second and third of these strands. A little 
     later this morning I shall put forward a separate document 
     proposing new arrangements within Northern Ireland--which is 
     of course a matter for the British Government and the 
     Northern Ireland parties alone.
       Our proposals are based on several principles: self-
     determination, consent, democratic and peaceful methods, and 
     respect for the identities of both traditions.
       Consent is and will remain paramount in our policy.
       It is the democratic right and the safeguard of the people 
     of Northern Ireland.
       No proposals for the future would be workable, let alone 
     successful, without the consent and active support of all 
     Northern Ireland's people. For they are the people who would 
     carry them out and whose lives would be affected.
       That is why any eventual settlement must be agreed by the 
     parties; supported by the people of Northern Ireland in a 
     referendum; and approved by Parliament--a triple consent 
     procedure.
       Our constitutional matters, each Government has offered 
     crucial new commitments in this Framework Document:
       As part of a balanced agreement the British Government 
     would enshrine its willingness to accept the will of a 
     majority of the people of Northern Ireland in British 
     Constitutional legislation. We shall embody the commitments 
     we made in the Downing Street Declaration.
       The Irish government would introduce and support proposals 
     to change its Constitution, so that ``no territorial claim of 
     right to jurisdiction over Northern Ireland contrary to the 
     will of a majority of its people is asserted''. This is a 
     very important proposal that I welcome unreservedly.
       These changes would offer Northern Ireland a constitutional 
     stability which it has not hitherto enjoyed. Its future 
     status, by agreement between the two governments, would be 
     irrevocably vested in the wishes of a majority of its people.
       In line with the three-stranded approach, we propose new 
     institutions for North/South cooperation.
       The North/South body which we outline would comprise 
     elected representatives chosen from a new Northern Ireland 
     Assembly and from the Irish Parliament. It would draw its 
     authority from these two bodies. It would operate by 
     agreement, and only by agreement.
       On the UK side, the North/South body would initially be set 
     up by legislation at Westminster, as part of a balanced 
     agreement. It would come into operation following the 
     establishment of the new Assembly. Thereafter, it would be 
     for the Assembly and the Irish Parliament both to operate the 
     body and to decide whether its functions should be extended.
       Like all of our proposals, the new North/South institutions 
     will be a matter for negotiation. But the way should now be 
     open for beneficial co-operation between North and South 
     without the constitutional tensions which have been such 
     impediments in the past. We have made suggestions about areas 
     which might be covered in this co-operation, to the advantage 
     of both sides. Like all aspects of the document, they will be 
     for discussion and agreement
      between all concerned.
       The European Union, already operates cross-border 
     programmes between Northern Ireland the Republic, as it does 
     elsewhere. We propose that North and South could usefully 
     work together in specific areas, to take advantage of what 
     the EU has to offer. But the making of United Kingdom policy 
     and the responsibility for representing Northern Ireland in 
     the European Union will remain solely in the hands of the UK 
     Government.
       In the third of our Strands, we outline a new broader-based 
     agreement to take the place of the 1985 Anglo-Irish 
     Agreement.
       The 1985 Agreement was criticised because the Northern 
     Ireland parties has not contributed to it. Our new proposals 
     are offered for discussion in the Talks process. We want to 
     hear the views of the parties; and we envisage that their 
     representatives would be formally associated with the future 
     work of the Intergovernmental Conference.
       The Intergovernmental Conference would allow concerns to be 
     expressed about any problems or breaches of the Agreement. 
     But there would be no mechanism for the two Governments 
     jointly to supervise or override either the Northern Ireland 
     Assembly or the North/South body. It would be for each 
     Government to deal on its own with any problems within its 
     own jurisdiction. This would not be a question for joint 
     decision, still less joint action. It is important to be 
     clear about this, as there have been concerns on this score.
       Our two Governments have worked with patient determination 
     to agree on this Framework, and I am grateful to the 
     Taoiseach, his predecessor, and the Tanaiste for their 
     efforts and their spirit of accommodation.
       Our proposals seek to stimulate constructive and open 
     discussion and give a fresh impetus to the political 
     negotiations. The outcome of these negotiations will depend, 
     not on us, but on the consent of the parties, people, and 
     Parliament.
       It is not for us to impose. But what we propose is an end 
     to the uncertainty, instability and internal divisions which 
     have bedevilled Northern Ireland.
       For over four years as Prime Minister, I have listened 
     intently to the people of Northern Ireland. I have visited 
     them, consulted them, travelled more widely than any 
     predecessor throughout the Province, and held meetings with 
     political leaders, church leaders, council leaders, community 
     leaders, and people from all walks of life.
       It is my duty as Prime Minister of the UK to maintain the 
     Union for as long as that is the will of the people. It is a 
     duty in which I strongly believe, and one which these 
     proposals protect. Just as people cannot be held within the 
     Union against their will, so equally they will never be asked 
     to leave it in defiance of the will of the majority.
       Consent and free negotiation are fundamental to me, and 
     they are the foundation stones of this Joint Document.
       In the four years of the Talks process, we have travelled a 
     long way, but not yet far enough.
       I know that many people will be worried, perhaps even 
     pessimistic, about the future.
       But as we look at the hurdles ahead, let us consider where 
     we have come from.
       The dialogue of the deaf has ended.
       For four years, we have been engaged in talks.
       The three-stranded approach is becoming a reality.
       The Joint Declaration has been accepted.
       The British Government is engaged in talks with 
     paramilitaries on both sides.
       We have had nearly six months of peace.
       Prosperity and a normal life are returning to Northern 
     Ireland.
       The principle of consent, once accepted only by Unionists 
     and the British Government, is today accepted almost 
     everywhere.
       These are some of the gains for everyone in Northern 
     Ireland.
       More gains can lie ahead if we have the courage to conduct 
     ourselves with patience, with foresight and with 
     consideration.
       To reach our destination, all concerned must be ready to 
     look to the future rather 
     [[Page S2961]] than to the past. We must put aside old 
     shibboleths. We must show fairmindedness and imagination.
       The destination I seek is a lasting and peaceful 
     settlement. It is attainable, and I believe we have taken a 
     very important step towards it today.
                                                                    ____

                     A New Framework for Agreement

 (A shared understanding between the British and Irish Governments to 
   assist discussion and negotiation involving the Northern Ireland 
                                parties)

       1. The Joint Declaration acknowledges that the most urgent 
     and important issue facing the people of Ireland, North and 
     South, and the British and Irish Governments together, is to 
     remove the causes of conflict, to overcome the legacy of 
     history and to heal the divisions which have resulted.
       2. Both Governments recognize that there is much for deep 
     regret on all sides in the long and often tragic history of 
     Anglo-Irish relations, and of relations in Ireland. They 
     believe it is now time to lay aside, with dignity and 
     forbearance, the mistakes of the past. A collective effort is 
     needed to create, through agreement and reconciliation, a new 
     beginning founded on consent, for relationships within 
     Northern Ireland, within the island of Ireland and between 
     the peoples of these islands. The Joint Declaration itself 
     represents an important step towards this goal, offering the 
     people of Ireland, North and South, whatever their tradition, 
     the basis to agree that from now on their differences can be 
     negotiated and resolved exclusively by peaceful political 
     means.
       3. The announcements made by the Irish Republican Army on 
     31 August 1994 and the Combined Loyalist Military Command on 
     13 October 1994 are a welcome response to the profound desire 
     of people throughout these islands for a permanent end to the 
     violence which caused such immense suffering and waste and 
     served only to reinforce the barriers of fear and hatred, 
     impeding the search for agreement.
       4. A climate of peace enables the process of healing to 
     begin. It transforms the prospects for political progress, 
     building on that already made in the Talks process. Everyone 
     now has a role to play in moving irreversibly beyond the 
     failures of the past and creating new relationships capable 
     of perpetuating peace with freedom and justice.
       5. In the Joint Declaration both Governments set themselves 
     the aid of fostering agreement and reconciliation, leading to 
     a new political framework founded on consent. A vital 
     dimension of this three-stranded process is the search, 
     through dialogue with the relevant Northern Ireland parties, 
     for new institutions and structures to take account of the 
     totality of relationships and to enable the people of Ireland 
     to work together in all areas of common interest while fully 
     respecting their diversity.
       6. Both Governments are conscious of the widespread desire, 
     throughout both islands and more widely, to see negotiations 
     underway as soon as possible. They also acknowledge the many 
     requests, from parties in Northern Ireland and elsewhere, for 
     both Governments to set out their views on how agreement 
     might be reached on relationships within the island of 
     Ireland and between the peoples of these islands.
       7. In this Framework Document both Governments therefore 
     describe a shared understanding reached between them on the 
     parameters of a possible outcome to the Talks process, 
     consistent with the Joint Declaration and the statement of 26 
     March 1991. Through this they hope to give impetus and 
     direction to the process and to show that a fair and 
     honourable accommodation can be envisaged across all the 
     relationships, which would enable people to work 
     constructively for their mutual benefit, without compromising 
     the essential principles or the long-term aspirations or 
     interests of either tradition or of either community.
       8. Both Governments are aware that the approach in this 
     document presents challenges to strongly-held positions on 
     all sides. However, a new beginning in relationships means 
     addressing fundamental issues in a new way and inevitably 
     requires significant movement from all sides. This document 
     is not a rigid blueprint to be imposed but both Governments 
     believe it sets out a realistic and balanced framework for 
     agreement which could be achieved, with flexibility and 
     goodwill on all sides, in comprehensive negotiations with the 
     relevant political parties in Northern Ireland. In this 
     spirit, both Governments offer this document for 
     consideration and accordingly strongly commend it to the 
     parties, the people in the island of Ireland and more widely.
       9. The primary objective of both Governments in their 
     approach to Northern Ireland is to promote and establish 
     agreement among the people of the island of Ireland, building 
     on the Joint Declaration. To this end they will both deploy 
     their political resources with the aim of securing a new and 
     comprehensive agreement involving the relevant political 
     parties in Northern Ireland and commanding the widest 
     possible support.
       10. They take as guiding principles for their co-operation 
     in search of this agreement:
       (i) the principle of self-determination, as set out in the 
     Joint Declaration;
       (ii) that the consent of the governed is an essential 
     ingredient for stability in any political arrangement;
       (iii) that agreement must be pursued and established by 
     exclusively democratic, peaceful means, without resort to 
     violence or coercion;
       (iv) that any new political arrangements must be based on 
     full respect for, and protection and expression of, the 
     rights and identities of both traditions in Ireland and even-
     handedly afford both communities in Northern Ireland party of 
     esteem and treatment including equality of opportunity and 
     advantage.
       11. They acknowledge that in Northern Ireland, unlike the 
     situation which prevails elsewhere throughout both islands, 
     there is a fundamental absence of consensus about 
     constitutional issues. There are deep divisions between the 
     members of the two main traditions living there over their 
     respective sense of identity and allegiance, their views on 
     the present status of Northern Ireland and their vision of 
     future relationships in Ireland and between the two islands. 
     However, the two Governments also recognize that the large 
     majority of people, in both parts of Ireland, are at one in 
     their commitment to the democratic process and in their 
     desire to resolve political differences by peaceful means.
       12. In their search for political agreement, based on 
     consent, the two Governments are determined to address in a 
     fresh way all of the relationships involved. Their aim is to 
     overcome the legacy of division by reconciling the rights of 
     both traditions in the fullest and most equitable manner. 
     They will continue to work towards and encourage the 
     achievement of agreement, so as to realise the goal set out 
     in the statement of 26 March 1991 of ``a new beginning for 
     relationships within Northern Ireland, with the island of 
     Ireland and between the peoples of these islands''.
       13. The two Governments will work together with the parties 
     to achieve a comprehensive accommodation, the implementation 
     of which would include interlocking and mutually supportive 
     institutions across the three strands, including:
       (a) Structures within Northern Ireland (paragraphs 22 and 
     23)--to enable elected representatives in Northern Ireland to 
     exercise shared administrative and legislative control over 
     all those matters that can be agreed across both communities 
     and which can most effectively and appropriately be dealt 
     with at that level;
       (b) North/South institutions (paragraphs 24-38)--with clear 
     identity and purpose, to enable representatives of democratic 
     institutions, North and South, to enter into new, co-
     operative and constructive relationships; to promote 
     agreement among the people of the island of Ireland; to carry 
     out on a democratically accountable basis delegated 
     executive, harmonising and consultative functions over a 
     range of designated matters to be agreed; and to serve to 
     acknowledge and reconcile the rights, identities and 
     aspirations of the two major traditions;
       (c) East-West structures (paragraphs 39-49)--to enhance the 
     existing basis for co-operation between the two Governments, 
     and to promote, support and underwrite the fair and effective 
     operation of the new arrangements.


                         constitutional issues

       14. Both Governments accept that agreement on an overall 
     settlement requires, inter alia, a balanced accommodation of 
     the differing views of the two main traditions on the 
     constitutional issues in relation to the special position of 
     Northern Ireland.
       15. Given the absence of consensus and depth of divisions 
     between the two main traditions in Northern Ireland, the two 
     Governments agree that such an accommodation will involve an 
     agreed new approach to the traditional constitutional 
     doctrines on both sides. This would be aimed at enhancing and 
     codifying the fullest attainable measure of consent across 
     both traditions in Ireland and fostering the growth of 
     consensus between them.
       16. In their approach to Northern Ireland they will apply 
     the principle of self-determination by the people of Ireland 
     on the basis set out in the Joint Declaration: the British 
     Government recognise that it is for the people of Ireland 
     alone, by agreement between the two parts respectively and 
     without external impediment, to exercise their right of self-
     determination on the basis of consent, freely and 
     concurrently given. North and South, to bring about a united 
     Ireland, if that is their wish; the Irish Government accept 
     that the democratic right of self-determination by the people 
     of Ireland as a whole must be achieved and exercised with and 
     subject to the agreement and consent of a majority of the 
     people of Northern Ireland.
       17. New arrangements should be in accordance with the 
     commitments in the Anglo-Irish Agreement and in the Joint 
     Declaration. They should acknowledge that it would be wrong 
     to make any change in the status of Northern Ireland save 
     with the consent of a majority of the people of Northern 
     Ireland. If in future a majority of the people there wish for 
     and formally consent to the establishment of a united 
     Ireland, the two Governments will introduce and support 
     legislation to give effect to that wish.
       18. Both Governments recognize that Northern Ireland's 
     current constitutional status reflects and relies upon the 
     present wish of a majority of its people. They also 
     acknowledge that at present a substantial minority of its 
     people wish for a united Ireland. Reaffirming the commitment 
     to encourage, facilitate and enable the achievement of 
     agreement over a period among all 
     [[Page S2962]] the people who inhabit the island, they 
     acknowledge that the option of a sovereign united Ireland 
     does not command the consent of the unionist tradition, nor 
     does the existing status of Northern Ireland command the 
     consent of the nationalist tradition. Against this 
     background, they acknowledge the need for new arrangements 
     and structures--to reflect the reality of diverse 
     aspirations, to reconcile as fully as possible the rights of 
     both traditions, and to promote co-operation between them, so 
     as to foster the process of developing agreement and 
     consensus between all the people of Ireland.
       19. They agree that future arrangements relating to 
     Northern Ireland, and Northern Ireland's wider relationships, 
     should respect the full and equal legitimacy and worth of one 
     identity, sense of allegiance, aspiration and ethos of both 
     the unionist and nationalist communities there. Consequently, 
     both Governments commit themselves to the principle that 
     institutions and arrangements in Northern Ireland and North/
     South institutions should afford both communities secure and 
     satisfactory political, administrative and symbolic 
     expression and protection. In particular, they commit 
     themselves to entrenched provisions guaranteeing equitable 
     and effective political participation for whichever community 
     finds itself in a minority position by reference to the 
     Northern Ireland framework, or the wider Irish framework, as 
     the case may be, consequent upon the operation of the 
     principle of consent.
       20. The British Government reaffirm that they will uphold 
     the democratic wish of a greater number of the people of 
     Northern Ireland on the issue of whether they prefer to 
     support the Union or a sovereign united Ireland. On this 
     basis, they reiterate that they have no selfish strategic or 
     economic interest in Northern Ireland. For as long as the 
     democratic wish of the people of Northern Ireland is for no 
     change in its present status, the British Government pledge 
     that their jurisdiction there will be exercised with rigorous 
     impartiality on behalf of all the people of Northern Ireland 
     in their diversity. It will be founded on the principles 
     outlined in the previous paragraph with emphasis on full 
     respect for, and equality of, civil, political, social and 
     cultural rights and freedom from discrimination for all 
     citizens, on parity of esteem, and on just and equal 
     treatment for the identity, ethos and aspirations of both 
     communities. The British Government will discharge their 
     responsibilities in a way which does not prejudice the 
     freedom of the people of Northern Ireland to determine, by 
     peaceful and democratic means, its future constitutional 
     status, whether in remaining a part of the United Kingdom or 
     in forming part of a united Ireland. They will be equally 
     cognizant of either option and open to its democratic 
     realization, and will not impede the latter option, their 
     primary interest being to see peace, stability and 
     reconciliation established by agreement among the people who 
     inhabit the island. This new approach for Northern Ireland, 
     based on the continuing willingness to accept the will of a 
     majority of the people there, will be enshrined in British 
     constitutional legislation embodying the principles and 
     commitments in the Joint Declaration and this Framework 
     Document, either by amendment of the Government of Ireland 
     Act 1920 or by its replacement by appropriate new 
     legislation, and appropriate new provisions entrenched by 
     agreement.
       21. As part of an agreement confirming the foregoing 
     understanding between the two Governments on constitutional 
     issues, the Irish Government will introduce and support 
     proposals for changes in the Irish Constitution to implement 
     the commitments in the Joint Declaration. These change in the 
     Irish Constitution will fully reflect the principle of 
     consent in Northern Ireland and demonstrably be such that no 
     territorial claim of right to jurisdiction over Northern 
     Ireland contrary to the will of a majority of its people is 
     asserted, while maintaining the existing birthright of 
     everyone born in either jurisdiction in Ireland to be part, 
     as of right, of the Irish nation. They will enable a new 
     Agreement to be ratified which will include, as part of a new 
     and equitable dispensation for Northern Ireland embodying the 
     principles and commitments in the Joint Declaration and this 
     Framework Document, recognition by both Governments of the 
     legitimacy of whatever choices is freely exercised by a 
     majority of the people of Northern Ireland with regard to its 
     constitutional status, whether they prefer to continue to 
     support the Union or a sovereign united Ireland.


                     structures in northern ireland

       22. Both Governments recognize that new political 
     structures within Northern Ireland must depend on the co-
     operation of elected representatives there. They confirm that 
     cross-community agreement is an essential requirement for the 
     establishment and operation of such structures. They strongly 
     favour and will support provision for cross-community 
     consensus in relation to decisions affecting the basic 
     rights, concerns and fundamental interests of both 
     communities, for example on the lines adumbrated in Strand 1 
     discussions in the 1992 round-table talks.
       23. While the principles and overall context for such new 
     structures are a recognized concern of both Governments in 
     the exercise of their respective responsibilities, they 
     consider that the structures themselves would be most 
     effectively negotiated, as part of a comprehensive three-
     stranded process, in direct dialogue involving the relevant 
     political parties in Northern Ireland who would be called 
     upon to operate them.


                        north/south institutions

       24. Both Governments consider that new institutions should 
     be created to cater adequately for present and future 
     political, social and economic inter-connections on the 
     island of Ireland, enabling representatives of the main 
     traditions, North and South, to enter agreed dynamic, new, 
     co-operative and constructive relationships.
       25. Both Governments agree that these institutions should 
     include a North/South body involving Heads of Department on 
     both sides and duly established and maintained by legislation 
     in both sovereign Parliaments. This body would bring together 
     these Heads of Department representing the Irish Government 
     and new democratic institutions in Northern Ireland, to 
     discharge or oversee delegated executive, harmonising or 
     consultative functions, as appropriate, over a range of 
     matters which the two Governments designate in the first 
     instance in agreement with the parties or which the two 
     administrations, North and South, subsequently agree to 
     designate. It is envisaged or overseen by the North/South 
     body, whether by executive action, harmonisation or 
     consultation, account will be taken of:
       i the common interest in a given matter on the part of both 
     parts of the island; or
       ii the mutual advantage of addressing a matter together; or
       iii the mutual benefit which may derive from it being 
     administered by the North/South body; or
       iv the achievement of economies of scale and the avoidance 
     of unnecessary duplication of effort.
       In relevant posts in each of the two administrations 
     participation in the North/South body would be a duty of 
     service. Both Governments believe that the legislation should 
     provide for a clear institutional identity and purpose for 
     the North/South body.It would also establish the body's terms 
     of reference, legal status and arrangements for political, 
     legal, administrative and financial accountability. The 
     North/South body could operate through, or oversee, a range 
     of functionally-related subsidiary bodies or other entities 
     established to administer designated functions on an all-
     island or cross-border basis.
       26. Specific arrangements would need to be developed to 
     apply to EU matters. Any EU matter relevant to the competence 
     of either administration could be raised for consideration in 
     the North/South body. Across all designated matters and in 
     accordance with the delegated functions, both Governments 
     agree that the body will have an important role, with their 
     support and co-operation and in consultation with them, in 
     developing on a continuing basis an agreed approach for the 
     whole island in respect of the challenges and opportunities 
     of the European Union. In respect of matters designated at 
     the executive level, which would include all EC programmes 
     and initiatives to be implemented on a cross-border or 
     island-wide basis in Ireland, the body itself would be 
     responsible, subject to the Treaty obligations of each 
     Government, for the implementation and management of EC 
     policies and programmes on a joint basis. This would include 
     the preparation, in consultation with the two Governments, of 
     joint submissions under EC programmes and initiatives and 
     their joint monitoring and implementation, although 
     individual projects could be implemented either jointly or 
     separately.
       27. Both Governments envisage regular and frequent meetings 
     of the North/South body:
       To discharge the functions agreed for it in relation to a 
     range of matters designated for treatment on an all-Ireland 
     or cross-border basis:
       To oversee the work of subsidiary bodies.
       28. The two Governments envisage that legislation in the 
     sovereign Parliaments should designate those functions which 
     should, from the outset, be discharged or overseen by the 
     North/South body; and they will seek agreement on these, as 
     on other features of North/South arrangements, in discussion 
     with the relevant political parties in Northern Ireland. It 
     would also be open to the North/South body to recommend to 
     the respective administrations and legislatures for their 
     consideration that new functions should be designated to be 
     discharged or overseen by that body; and to recommend that 
     matters already designated should be moved on the scale 
     between consultation, harmonization and executive action. 
     Within those responsibilities transferred to new institutions 
     in Northern Ireland, the British Government have no limits of 
     their own to impose on the nature and extent of functions 
     which could be agreed for designation at the outset or, 
     subsequently, between the Irish Government and the Northern 
     Ireland administration. Both Governments expect that 
     significant responsibilities, including
      meaningful functions at executive level, will be a feature 
     of such agreement. The British Government believe that, in 
     principle, any function devolved to the institutions in 
     Northern Ireland could be so designated, subject to any 
     necessary savings in respect of the British Government's 
     powers and duties, for example to ensure compliance with 
     EU and international obligations. The Irish Government 
     also expect to designate a comparable range of functions.
       29. Although both Governments envisage that representatives 
     of North and South in the body could raise for discussion any 
     matter of interest to either side which falls within the 
     competence of either administration, it is envisaged, as 
     already mentioned, that 
     [[Page S2963]] its designated functions would fall into three 
     broad categories:
       consultative: the North/South body would be a forum where 
     the two sides would consult on any aspect of designated 
     matters on which either side wished to hold consultations. 
     Both sides would share a duty to exchange information and to 
     consult about existing and future policy, though there would 
     be no formal requirement that agreement would be reached or 
     that policy would be harmonized or implemented jointly, but 
     the development of mutual understanding or common or agreed 
     positions would be the general goal;
       harmonising: in respect of these designated 
     responsibilities there would be, in addition to the duty to 
     exchange information and to consult of the formulation of 
     policy, an obligation on both sides to use their best 
     endeavors to reach agreement on a common policy and to make 
     determined efforts to overcome any obstacles in the way of 
     that objective, even though its implementation might be 
     undertaken by the two administrations separately;
       executive: in the case of these designated responsibilities 
     the North/South body would itself be directly responsible for 
     the establishment of an agreed policy and for its 
     implementation on a joint basis. It would however be open to 
     the body, where appropriate, to agree that the implementation 
     of the agreed policy would be undertaken either by existing 
     bodies, acting in an agency capacity, whether jointly or 
     separately, North and South, or by new bodies specifically 
     created and mandated for this purpose.
       30. In this light, both Governments are continuing to give 
     consideration to the range of functions that might, with the 
     agreement of the parties, be designated at the outset and 
     accordingly they will be ready to make proposals in that 
     regard in future discussions with the relevant Northern 
     Ireland parties.
       31. By way of illustration, it is intended that these 
     proposals would include at the executive level a range of 
     functions, clearly defined in scope, from within the 
     following broad categories:
       Sectors involving a natural or physical all-Ireland 
     framework;
       EC programmes and initiatives;
       Marketing and promotion activities abroad;
       Culture and heritage.
       32. Again, by way of illustration, the Governments would 
     make proposals at the harmonising level for a broader range 
     of functions, clearly defined in scope (including as
      appropriate, relevant EU aspects; from within the following 
     categories:
       Aspects of--agriculture and fisheries; industrial 
     development; consumer affairs; transport; energy; trade; 
     health; social welfare; education; and economic policy.
       33. By way of example, the category of agriculture and 
     fisheries might include agricultural and fisheries research, 
     training and advisory services, and animal welfare; health 
     might include co-operative ventures in medical, paramedical 
     and nursing training, cross-border provision of hospital 
     services and major emergency/accident planning; and education 
     might include mutual recognition of teacher qualifications, 
     co-operative ventures in higher education, in teacher 
     training, in education for mutual understanding and in 
     education for specialized needs.
       34. The Governments also expect that a wide range of 
     functions would be designated at the consultative level.
       35. Both Governments envisage that all decisions within the 
     body would be by agreement between the two sides. The Heads 
     of Department on each side would operate within the overall 
     terms of references mandated by legislation in the two 
     sovereign Parliaments. They would exercise their powers in 
     accordance with the rules for democratic authority and 
     accountability for this function in force in the Oireachtas 
     and in new institutions in Northern Ireland. The operation of 
     the North/South body's functions would be subject to regular 
     scrutiny in agreed political institutions in Northern Ireland 
     and the Oireachtas respectively.
       36. Both Governments expect that there would be a 
     Parliamentary Forum, with representatives from agreed 
     political institutions in Northern Ireland and members of the 
     Oireachtas, to consider a wide range of matters of mutual 
     interest.
       37. Both Governments envisage that the framework would 
     include administrative support staffed jointly by members of 
     the Northern Ireland Civil Service and the Irish Civil 
     Service. They also envisage that both administrations will 
     need to arrange finance for the North/South body and its 
     agencies on the basis that these constitute a necessary 
     public function.
       38. Both Governments envisage that this new framework 
     should serve to help heal the divisions among the communities 
     on the island of Ireland; provide a forum for acknowledging 
     the respective identities and requirements of the two major 
     traditions: express and enlarge the mutual acceptance of the 
     validity of those traditions; and promote understanding and 
     agreement among the people and institutions in both parts of 
     the island. The remit of the body should be dynamic, enabling 
     progressive extension by agreement of its functions to new 
     areas. Its role should develop to keep pace with the growth 
     of harmonization and with greater integration between the two 
     economies.


                          east-west structures

       39. Both Governments envisage a new and more broadly-based 
     Agreement, developing and extending their co-operation,
      reflecting the totality of relationships between the two 
     islands, and dedicated to fostering co-operation, 
     reconciliation and agreement in Ireland at all levels.
       40. They intend that under such a new Agreement a standing 
     Intergovernmental Conference will be maintained, chaired by 
     the designated Irish Minister and by the Secretary of State 
     for Northern Ireland. It would be supported by a Permanent 
     Secretariat of civil servants from both Governments.
       41. The Conference will be a forum through which the two 
     Governments will work together in pursuance of their joint 
     objectives of securing agreement and reconciliation amongst 
     the people of the island of Ireland and of laying the 
     foundations for a peaceful and harmonious future based on 
     mutual trust and understanding between them.
       42. The Conference will provide a continuing institutional 
     expression for the Irish Government's recognized concern and 
     role in relation to Northern Ireland. The Irish Government 
     will put forward views and proposals on issues falling within 
     the ambit of the new Conference or involving both 
     Governments, and determined efforts will be made to resolve 
     any differences between the two Governments. The Conference 
     will be the principal instrument for an intensification of 
     the co-operation and partnership between both Governments, 
     with particular reference to the principles contained in the 
     Joint Declaration, in this Framework Document and in the new 
     Agreement, on a wide range of issues concerned with Northern 
     Ireland and with the relations between the two parts of the 
     island of Ireland. It will facilitate the promotion of 
     lasting peace, stability, justice and reconciliation among 
     the people of the island of Ireland and maintenance of 
     effective security co-operation between the two Governments.
       43. Both Governments believe that there should also be 
     provision in the Agreement for developing co-operation 
     between the two Governments and both islands on a range of 
     ``East-West'' issues and bilateral matters of mutual interest 
     not covered by other specific arrangements, either through 
     the Anglo-Irish Intergovernmental Council, the Conference or 
     otherwise.
       44. Both Governments accept that issues of law and order in 
     Northern Ireland are closely intertwined with the issues of 
     political consensus. For so long as these matters are not 
     devolved, it will be for the Governments to consider ways in 
     which a climate of peace, new institutions and the growth of 
     political agreement may offer new possibilities and 
     opportunities for enhancing community identification with 
     policing in Northern Ireland, while maintaining the most 
     effective possible deployment of the resources of each 
     Government in their common determination to combat crime and 
     prevent any possible recourse to the use or threat of 
     violence for political ends, from any source whatsoever.
       45. The Governments envisage that matters for which 
     responsibility is transferred to new political institutions 
     in Northern Ireland will be excluded from consideration in 
     the Conference, except to the extent that the continuing 
     responsibilities of the Secretary of State for Northern 
     Ireland are relevant, or that cross-border aspects of 
     transferred issues are not otherwise provided for, or in the 
     circumstances described in the following paragraph.
       46. The Intergovernmental Conference will be a forum for 
     the two Governments jointly to keep under review the workings 
     of the Agreement and to promote, support and underwrite the 
     fair and effective operation of all its provisions and the 
     new arrangements established under it. Where either 
     Government considers that any institution, established as 
     part of the
      overall accomodation. Is not properly functioning within the 
     Agreement or that a breach of the Agreement has otherwise 
     occurred. The conference shall consider the matter on the 
     basis of 3 shared commitment to arrive at a common 
     position or, where that is not possible, to agree a 
     procedure to resolve the difference between them. If the 
     two Governments conclude that a breach has occurred in any 
     of the above circumstances, either Government may make 
     proposals for remedy and adequate measures to redress the 
     situation shall be taken. However, each Government will be 
     responsible for the implementation of such measures of 
     redress within its own jurisdiction. There would be no 
     derogation from the sovereignty of either Government; each 
     will retain responsibility for the decisions and 
     administration of government within its own jurisdiction.
       47. In the event that devolved institutions in Northern 
     Ireland ceased to operate, and direct rule from Westminster 
     was reintroduced, the British Government agree that other 
     arrangements would be made to implement the commitment to 
     promote co-operation at all levels between the people, North 
     and South, representing both traditions in Ireland, as agreed 
     by the two Governments in the Joint Declaration, and to 
     ensure that the co-operation that had been developed through 
     the North/South body be maintained.
       48. Both Governments envisage that representatives of 
     agreed political institutions in Northern Ireland may be 
     formally associated with the work of the Conference, in a 
     manner and to an extent to be agreed by both Governments 
     after consultation with them. This might involve giving them 
     advance notice of what is to be discussed in the 
     [[Page S2964]] Conference, enabling them to express views to 
     either Government and inviting them to participate in various 
     aspects of the work of the Conference. Other more structured 
     arrangements could be devised by agreement.
       49. The Conference will also be a framework for 
     consultation and coordination between both Governments and 
     the new North/South institutions, where the wider role of the 
     two Governments is particularly relevant to the work of those 
     institutions, for example in a coordinated approach on EU 
     issues. It would be for consideration by both Governments, in 
     consultation with the relevant parties in the North, or with 
     the institutions after they have been established, whether to 
     achieve this through formal or ad hoc arrangements.


                          protection of rights

       50. There is a large body of support, transcending the 
     political divide, for the comprehensive protection and 
     guarantee of fundamental human rights. Acknowledging this, 
     both Governments envisage that the arrangements set out in 
     this Framework Document will be complemented and underpinned 
     by an explicit undertaking in the Agreement on the part of 
     each Government, equally, to ensure in its jurisdiction in 
     the island of Ireland, in accordance with its constitutional 
     arrangements, the systematic and effective protection of 
     common specified civil, political, social and cultural 
     rights. They will discuss and seek agreement with the 
     relevant political parties in Northern Ireland as to what 
     rights should be so specified and how they might best be 
     further protected, having regard to each Government's overall 
     responsibilities including its international obligations. 
     Each Government will introduce appropriate legislation in its 
     jurisdiction to give effect to any such measure of agreement.
       51. In addition, both Governments would encourage 
     democratic representatives from both jurisdictions in Ireland 
     to adopt a Charter or Covenant, which might reflect and 
     endorse
      agreed measures for the protection of the fundamental rights 
     of everyone living in Ireland. It could also pledge a 
     commitment to mutual respect and to the civil rights and 
     religious liberties of both communities, including: The 
     right of free political thought, the right to freedom and 
     expression of religion, the right to pursue democratically 
     national and political aspirations, the right to seek 
     constitutional change by peaceful and legitimate means, 
     the right to live wherever one chooses without hindrance, 
     the right to equal opportunity in all social and economic 
     activity, regardless of class, creed, gender or colour.
       52. This Charter or Covenant might also contain a 
     commitment to the principle of consent in the relationships 
     between the two traditions in Ireland. It could incorporate 
     also an enduring commitment on behalf of all the people of 
     the island to guarantee and protect the rights, interests, 
     ethos and dignity of the unionist community in any all-
     Ireland framework that might be developed with consent in the 
     future, to at least the same extent as provided for the 
     nationalist community in the context of Northern Ireland 
     under the structures and provisions of the new Agreement.
       53. The Covenant might also affirm on behalf of all 
     traditions in Ireland a solemn commitment to the exclusively 
     peaceful resolution of all differences between them including 
     in relation to all issues of self-determination, and a solemn 
     repudiation of all recourse to violence between them for any 
     political end or purpose.
                               conclusion

       54. Both Governments agree that the issues set out in this 
     Framework Document should be examined in the most 
     comprehensive attainable negotiations with democratically 
     mandated political parties in Northern Ireland which abide 
     exclusively by peaceful means and wish to join in dialoque on 
     the way ahead.
       55. Both Governments intend that the outcome of these 
     negotiations will be submitted for democratic ratification 
     through referendums, North and South.
       56. Both Governments believe that the present climate of 
     peace, which owes much to the imagination, courage and 
     steadfastness of all those who have suffered from violence, 
     offers the best prospect for the Governments and the parties 
     in Northern Ireland to work to secure agreement and consent 
     to a new political accommodation. To accomplish that would be 
     an inestimable prize for all, and especially for people 
     living in Northern Ireland, who have so much to gain from 
     such an accommodation, in which the divisions of the past are 
     laid aside forever and differences are resolved by 
     exclusively political means. Both Governments believe that a 
     new political dispensation, such as they set out in this 
     Framework Document, achieved through agreement and 
     reconciliation and founded on the principle of consent, would 
     achieve that objective and transform relationships in 
     Northern Ireland, in the island of Ireland and between both 
     islands.
       57. With agreement, co-operation to the mutual benefit of 
     all living in Ireland could develop without impediment, 
     attaining its full potential for stimulating economic growth 
     and prosperity. New arrangements could return power, 
     authority and responsibility to locally-elected 
     representatives in Northern Ireland on a basis acceptable to 
     both sides of the community, enabling them to work together 
     for the common welfare and interests of all the community. 
     The diversity of identities and allegiances could be regarded 
     by all as a source of mutual enrichment, rather than a threat 
     to either side. The divisive issue of sovereignty might cease 
     to be symbolic of the domination of one community over 
     another. It would instead be for decision under agreed 
     ground-rules, fair and balanced towards both aspirations, 
     through a process of democratic persuasion governed by the 
     principle of consent rather than by threat, fear or coercion. 
     In such circumstances the Governments hope that the 
     relationship between the traditions in Northern Ireland could 
     become a positive bond of further understanding, co-operation 
     and amity, rather than a source of contention, between the 
     wider British and Irish democracies.
       58. Accordingly the British and Irish Governments offer for 
     consideration and strongly commend these proposals, trusting 
     that, with generosity and goodwill, the peoples of these 
     islands will build on them a new and lasting agreement.
     

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