The First Minister has told MLAs there must be no facilitation of active paramilitary groups in any public policy discussions, as she called for a “zero-tolerance” approach to the organisations.
Michelle O’Neill said Stormont needed to send a “clear” and “resolute” message that it was long past the time for the paramilitary gangs to disband.
Her comments at the Assembly came amid the ongoing furore over meetings between two DUP ministers and the Loyalist Communities Council (LCC).
In recent weeks, Education Minister Paul Givan and Communities Minister Gordon Lyons have both held meetings with the council, which is an umbrella group representing the Ulster Volunteer Force, Ulster Defence Association and Red Hand Commando.
Rival politicians have further accused the ministers of prioritising the LCC while turning down meeting requests from other groups.
On Tuesday, it emerged that Mr Givan had declined more than 200 meeting invitations with groups and organisations since he took up office earlier this year.
Ms O’Neill was responding to an Opposition Day motion tabled by the SDLP that called for the Executive to undertake a “comprehensive review” of its policies on tackling paramilitarism.
She told members the fact that such a debate was required in the Assembly 26 years after the Good Friday Agreement was “incredulous”.
“It’s also a reminder and underlines the fact that more needs to be done to bring an end to the scourge of paramilitarism,” she said.
The Sinn Féin vice president did not refer specifically to the LCC meetings with Mr Givan and Mr Lyons, but she made clear that no-one in the Assembly should be facilitating paramilitary groups in meetings on public policy issues.
“There is no role for paramilitary groups in our society, and there should be no acceptance, or equally, no tolerance for their continued existence,” she said.
In a message to the groups, she added: “The message across this chamber must be clear and it must be resolute. It is long past time that you disbanded.
“There should be no acceptance, no facilitation of active paramilitary groups in any public policy discussion.”
Speaking earlier in the debate, DUP MLA Harry Harvey defended his party’s approach to the LCC.
He pointed out that, unlike his party, the other main parties in the Assembly had backed the 1998 peace deal that saw paramilitaries secure early release from prison.
“The greatest erosion to the principles of law and justice to ever occur in respect of paramilitarism was, of course, a result of the Belfast Agreement,” he said.
“Unlike the Opposition and other parties around the chamber, our position on dealing with paramilitary criminality was the same in 1998 as it is today. It was wrong to engage in criminality then and it is still wrong today.
“The irony that those who previously championed the early release of convicted criminals should now lament this party for seeking to support those who have a past, have served their punishment and want to move on and build a brighter future is an irony that will escape few.”
He added: “A distinction must rightly be drawn … between those who wish to move on from the shadow of paramilitarism for good and those who only wish to continue to use such structures for their own criminal exploits.
“We must actively seek to help and support those individuals and communities who genuinely wish to secure a better future beyond what has often been all they have ever known.”
In fiery exchanges in the Assembly on Monday, Mr Givan said he would not apologise for “making sure that we seek to move every part of our society forward”.
He pointed out that the LCC meeting request was one of 324 invites he had accepted since taking up post.
Responding directly to criticism from the SDLP, he also referred to the role played by the late SDLP leader John Hume in engaging with Sinn Féin during the Troubles.
He said: “When John Hume embraced Gerry Adams and Sinn Fein when the IRA were up to their neck in murdering people of our country, John Hume’s response was, ‘I don’t give two balls of roasted snow what you think’.
“I, however, do have concern and I share those concerns, but I will continue to work in every community to bring them forward.”
Leader of the Opposition and SDLP MLA Matthew O’Toole responded to those remarks during Tuesday’s debate on paramilitarism.
“Let us be clear, this is 2024 not 1994 or 1998,” he said.
“Talking to representatives of armed groups to bring about peace as people were dying is not the same as talking to representatives of armed groups engaged in widespread criminality 30 years on, who have no apparent intention getting off the backs, getting off the stage and getting off communities’ backs.
“So conflating John Hume’s role as a peacemaker with indulging armed gangs in 2024 is as stupid as it is offensive. It’s a deflection tactic.”
TUV MLA Timothy Gaston said the “elephant in the room” during the debate was a police assessment in 2015 that the IRA Army council still existed and continued to exert influence over Sinn Féin.
The SDLP motion passed on an oral vote without dissenting voices.
