A thread about the possible reintroduction of the British Army in the North for Covid-19.

Demilitarisation and the end of an Army presence was core to the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement. It is a pillar of our Peace Process. On the 22nd anniversary we should be mindful of that.

It is entirely legitimate to view and fear the BA as an aggressor and one that still has questions to answer. You might not like that, but it is reality. Therefore a collective and honest position needs to be taken by the entire Executive. I think most Nats/Reps recognise that.

Some Unionist politicians are keen to “remind” us the North is part of the UK. That is extremely counter-productive to any conversation on the possible need to reintroduce the BA. With that in mind, the decision cannot be unilateral. It drives a truck through the Peace Process.

While you have a right to point out the position of the North within the UK, you can recognise that the role of the military requires liaison/agreement across these islands. Attempting to frustrate that will only frustrate the response to Covid-19. Crying wolf after won’t help.

No Minister has the right to circumvent the ethos and principles of power-sharing, despite how grave the situation is. The Executive needed to consider proportionality, timing, and the appropriate role for the BA. That decision could have been reached in a sensitive way.

No decision is easy during this pandemic and all Ministers are under extreme pressure, which makes it all the more nonsensical that a decision like this should be presented by any politician as “We’re part of the UK, get over it.”

To end, democracy and disagreement are not suspended during this crisis. Neither is the Peace Process. If anything, these things are even more important to our common humanity and are important parts of our fight to save lives and strengthen public services.