Today’s Irish News reports a deal to resolve the ongoing dispute in Magheraberry gaol between prison authorities and Republican inmates, meant to have been resolved a year ago, has yet again fallen apart. This time the dispute was unresolved due to intransigence from Peter Robinson and the DUP:
Sources say the Department of Justice agreed to the compromise in principle and the proposal was put to OFMDFM.
Sinn Fein Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness is also believed to have agreed to the compromise.
However, it was abandoned at the last hour after Peter Robinson’s office said it would not compromise with dissident paramilitary groups in the present climate.
This is the same Peter Robinson and DUP that directly met UVF leaders barely hours after riots the PSNI declared:
at the very least members of east Belfast UVF were involved in organising…
So Mr Robinson and the DUP won’t negotiate even indirectly with imprisoned Republicans but will negotiate face-to-face with Loyalists actively engaged in criminality, sectarianism and violence?
Nothing ever really changes does it?
