IRA Easter Message

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The following statement appears in this week's issue of An Phoblacht
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The leadership of Oglaigh na hEireann extends fraternal
greetings to republican activists, supporters and friends at home
and abroad.

On this, the 87th anniversary of the Easter Rising, we
commemorate all of those who have given their lives for Irish
freedom.

We extend solidarity to the families of our fallen comrades. In
particular, we extend our solidarity to the family of our
comrade, Volunteer Keith Rogers, who died while defending his
community in Cullaville on 12 March.

We extend solidarity to our imprisoned comrades and their
families.

We commend the commitment and discipline of the Volunteers of
Oglaigh na hEireann.

We remain committed to our republican objectives, the
establishment of an Irish Republic, as outlined in the
Proclamation of 1916.

The root cause of conflict in Ireland is partition and the denial
of self-determination to the people of Ireland.

All parties to the conflict have a role to play in bringing
conflict to an end.

For our part, we have demonstrated our commitment to creating a
just and lasting peace through the maintenance of our cessation
and through a number of significant initiatives.

It is not possible, at this moment, to give a definitive comment
on ongoing developments.

On Sunday 13 April, an Army statement said that we had shared
concepts and draft elements on a range of issues with the British
and Dublin governments. We gave our attitude on:

. the current disposition of Oglaigh na hEireann and the status of
our cessation,

. our future intentions,

. our attitude to re-engagement with the IICD and engagement in a
process of putting arms beyond use,

. a third act of putting arms beyond use.

We also made it clear that we had then closed on a statement
after internal consultation.

The following day a finalised statement was passed to the two
governments.

We stand ready to issue that statement in due course.

We continue to monitor events very closely.

There has been much anger and annoyance among republicans at the
media spins and leaks over recent days that have attempted to
misrepresent our position.

We know that the majority of republicans have not seen the
statement that was passed to the two governments.

We ask people to remain patient. We know that republicans will
understand the sensitivities of the current situation.

We will speak for ourselves at the appropriate time.

This is a period for republicans to remain resolute.

The onus remains on the two governments and the political parties
to fulfil their obligations and commitments.



P O'Neill
Irish Republican Publicity Bureau
Dublin