Forum for Peace and Reconciliation

The Forum was envisaged in paragraph 11 of the Downing Street Declaration of December 1993: Preparations for the forum were triggered by the ceasefires announced in September 1994 by the republican Provisional IRA and loyalist UVF and UDA, whose associated political parties were thus invited to the forum. Sinn Féin accepted, while the loyalist PUP and UDP rejected, as did the mainstream unionist UUP and DUP. The presence of Sinn Féin alongside constitutional nationalist and centrist parties was considered a significant "confidence building measure"; substantive negotiations involving the unionist parties and the British government would not begin till the following year. The British ambassador was invited to the opening of the forum, but there was no other British involvement. Its terms of reference were: ==Regular sessions==

The forum's structure was modelled on the New Ireland Forum of 1983–84. It was chaired by Catherine McGuinness, then a judge of the Circuit Court, and had a secretariat with six members. It first met in Saint Patrick's Hall in Dublin Castle on 28 October 1994. It had 41 plenary sessions and commissioned several reports, and subcommittees began drafting responses to the reports. The Canary Wharf bombing on 9 February ended the IRA ceasefire and, with the continued participation of Sinn Féin in question, the Forum was adjourned. It considered the reports and made a draft report recommending changes to the Constitution of Ireland, as well as changing the Irish national anthem and tricolour flag. When the Forum was revived in 2002, the draft report was not published as it was felt the intervening events had rendered it obsolete. There were observers from the European Parliament (Piet Dankert and Leo Tindemans) and the British-Irish Interparliamentary Body. ==Later work==

The Northern Ireland Forum established in 1996 became the focus of the peace process, with the relevance of the Forum for Peace and Reconciliation called into question. in 1997, new Taoiseach Bertie Ahern envisaged further meetings "on an occasional basis". One was held on 5 December 1997, at which Ahern broached the possibility of amending Articles 2 and 3 of the Constitution; after the 1998 Good Friday Agreement this was effected by a 1999 referendum. Based on the results of 1996 elections to the Northern Ireland Forum, invitations to the 1997 meeting were received and accepted by the Northern Ireland Women's Coalition and Labour Party of Northern Ireland (LPNI) as well as the previous parties. There were suggestions that it be revived in 2000 after the suspension of the Northern Ireland Executive, and again in December. Ahern said at the time, "It might come to that point but there are some other ideas we must try first. If it is going nowhere however, I will consider it". It was reconvened in late 2002 after further suspension of the Assembly following spying allegations. As Catherine McGuinness had in the meantime been appointed to the Supreme Court, Maurice Hayes replaced her as chairman. Compared to the 1997 delegates, the LPNI was absent while the Socialist Party was present. One session discussed the Holy Cross dispute in Belfast. The Forum's 2002–3 meetings failed to ameliorate the deadlock in the peace process. In 2007, Ahern told the Dáil, "With the restoration of the devolved institutions in Northern Ireland, there are no current proposals to reconvene the Forum for Peace and Reconciliation." In 2010, the Forum's €5000 line item in the Department of the Taoiseach's annual budget estimate was deleted. In 2011, Senator Paul Bradford inquired about the Forum's status and suggested it might be revived as a truth and reconciliation commission. The Reconciliation Networking Forum established in 2006 is an annual forum to which the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade invites groups which promote reconciliation. ==Influence==

The Forum for Peace and Reconciliation and the National Economic and Social Forum provided a model for the National Forum on Europe established in 2001 after the referendum rejecting the Treaty of Nice. ==Publications==

Some of the Forum's commissioned reports and submissions were published. {{unordered list ==See also==