Chris Heaton-Harris (right) says the chances of a further conviction are slim. Photo: Liam McBurney/PA
Joe Biden has suggested Ireland is backing a dispute with Britain over a new British law granting amnesty to Troubles murderers.
Dublin is considering a rare cross-country legal challenge against the law, which is also widely opposed Northern Ireland's main political parties at the European Court of Human Rights.
The US President, who is very proud of his Irish roots, met Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar in New York on Wednesday.
The Taoiseach said he discussed the UK Heritage Bill, which received Royal Assent on Monday, as well as the ongoing impasse at Stormont over Rishi Sunak's Brexit deal for Northern Ireland.
“I said him that we don't have a specific question. at the moment, but we are very pleased that he continues to be aware of the problems in Ireland,” Mr Varadkar said in New York, where the UN General Assembly is taking place.
He said he raised the issue. legacy bill and told Biden that while there was no specific request for his help at this time, “we will keep him apprised of what's going on.”
When asked if he could seek help from the US president , Mr Varadkar replied: “Well, there is an offer, but at the moment there is none.”
Dublin is considering the possibility of the UK appealing to the European Court. Photo: Getty/Charles McQuillan
Mr Biden, who has been accused by senior unionists of hating Britain, has the form to intervene in disputes between Dublin and London.
After Britain threatened to tear up the Brexit deal over its Irish Sea border, Washington warned it would mean a trade deal with the US would be off the table.
Michael Martin, Deputy Prime Minister of Ireland, also briefed the White House and State Department officials on the Northern Ireland (Heritage and Reconciliation) Bill.
Dublin expects to receive legal advice on the possibility of the UK taking the European Court of Justice, which is not an EU body, in the next two weeks or so. He called on London to suspend the law.
“There are legal issues, but there are also political issues,” Mr Varadkar said, according to the Irish Times.
“It’s not a small thing to file a claim in Strasbourg against another state, a neighboring state. » he said of an issue that could undermine improved relations following the signing of a new Brexit deal for Northern Ireland in February.
«[It's] not something we would want to do or a position in which we want to be. But we have to do the right thing, and the voice we always listen to when it comes to the Troubles legacy is the voice of the victim and their family.»
More than 1,000 murders during the Troubles have never been solved.
Joe Biden has offered to support Ireland in challenging the amnesty bill. Photo: EPA-EFE/Shutterstock/TOLGA AKMEN
The Legacy Bill would stop new investigations and civil cases through an effective amnesty and create an Independent Reconciliation and Information Recovery Commission.
Killers will be offered immunity for providing information about the murders, and victims' families will be offered a report. in the circumstances of the death of their relatives.
On the island of Ireland, this is opposed by, among others, Sinn Féin and the DUP.
They argue that this is a conditional amnesty for accused murderers during the Trouble will deprive victims justice by the IRA or British forces.
But Chris Heaton-Harris, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, said the chances of a conviction 25 years after the end of the Troubles were slim.
He called on Dublin to cooperate with the new commission.
To date, 16 legal challenges have been filed against the outdated law, which received Royal Assent on Monday.
People confront British soldiers minutes before paratroopers opened fire, killing 14 civilians on Bloody Sunday. Photo: HULTON ARCHIVE/William L Rukeyser
They include cases of victims from 1971 to the mid-1990s, including the widow of a man shot dead by the British Army. in 1987.
Some of the families were at Belfast Crown Court on Wednesday for a brief hearing of the issues.
If Dublin does take legal action, it will be the second time Ireland has sued the UK European Court
A court in Strasbourg found that 14 men were subjected to “inhuman and degrading treatment” by Britain during their interrogation after Dublin brought proceedings in that country in 1971.< /p >
A spokesman for the Northern Ireland Office said: “The Heritage Act provides a framework for establishing effective legacy arrangements for victims and survivors, while respecting our international obligations.”
“The UK Government will do everything possible to support ICRIR as it asserts itself and strives to effectively assist victims and survivors. We hope others, including the Irish Government, can do the same.”
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