Press Releases

Today, Congressman Richard E. Neal released the following statement commemorating the 30^th anniversary of the IRA ceasefire in Ireland.

“Thirty years ago, I joined in the celebration of the announcement that the IRA had declared its first ceasefire of the Troubles. Later that evening, at the direction of then-Speaker of the House Tom Foley, I traveled to Ireland to observe the ceasefire and meet with members of the Irish and British governments. As the first member of Congress to travel to Ireland after the establishment of a ceasefire, I was honored to represent the United States Congress in what would later be recognized as the first step toward peace and reconciliation on the island.

“The jubilation that filled the streets of Belfast and Dublin cannot be understated. At the same time, we were a long way away from establishing peace on the island of Ireland. Just minutes after I left a meeting with members of Sinn Féin, a bomb went off outside their offices on Falls Road in Belfast. Despite the major development that the ceasefire represented, tensions remained high, but not to miss the point that this announcement marked the first significant step in delivering peace and ending the longest period of conflict in Irish history.

“If it weren’t for this ceasefire, we may have never seen the day that the Good Friday Agreement was signed, the Troubles ended, and two generations grew up not knowing the violence of the Troubles or living with a hard border. To think of where we were not too long ago and where we are now, I have no doubt that my ancestors would be proud of the Ireland we have today. As a guarantor of the Good Friday Agreement, the U.S. has the indispensable role of continuing to uphold the principles embodied in the peace accord, ensuring future generations can enjoy the gains that we have made in the pursuit of peace.” 

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