Anglo-Irish records from 1996-2002 from the departments of the taoiseach, foreign affairs and justice are being released this week.
Certain State papers from 1992 are also being declassified, comprising government minutes, files from the Office of the Attorney General and records from the departments of the taoiseach and foreign affairs. Some files from earlier years not previously disclosed are also being made available.
Government documents have normally been released for public viewing after 30 years, but this gap is being reduced over time to 20 years due to legislative change in 2018. The decision to move to a 20-year rule in the Republic follows the precedent set by the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (Proni). On Thursday, it is releasing files covering mainly 1999. Proni is phasing in the 20-year rule over 10 years, with one-two years’ worth of records reviewed and released each year.
Full coverage in The Irish Times can be found at www.irishtimes.com/tags/state-papers/ and in print, including:
John Bowman: Peace deal forced Fianna Fáil to dial down ‘lost Six Counties’ rhetoric
X case ‘horror’, ‘gay bashing’, and republican ‘headbangers’: State papers shed light on a turbulent decade
Ireland’s Charles and Diana wedding ‘snub’ along with five other curious tales
IRA got 75% of its funding in 2000 from fuel smuggling, UK inquiry found
Wednesday: A decade of change: New taoisigh, IRA ceasefires and a more modern Ireland emerges
Thursday: The 1992 X case, Sinn Féin strategies and the human cost of the Troubles
Friday: Marie Coleman of Queen’s University Belfast on the birth of the Northern Ireland Assembly and why it continues to flounder
Saturday: Broadcaster and historian John Bowman assesses some of the key politicians who shaped the peace process