UK to drop SA’s Northern Ireland TRC model

The new UK Government last week said it would scrap an amnesty scheme for ex-soldiers and militants involved in decades of violence in Northern Ireland that has been opposed by all major parties in the region and by the Irish Government. News24 reports that the plan had been inspired by SA's Truth and Reconciliation Commission process, based on proposals dating back more than two decades. The move fulfils a promise in the Labour Party's election manifesto to repeal and replace the Legacy Act, which the government said ‘denies justice to the families and victims of the troubles’. Specifically, it will repeal the ‘conditional immunity scheme,’ which has been found by the Northern Ireland High Court to be incompatible with Britain's obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights. It will also reverse the policy of prohibiting victims and families from bringing civil claims.