The Sentence Review Commission was established by the

Northern Ireland (Sentences) Act 1998 Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

and was co- chaired by

Brian Currin Brian Currin (born 20 September 1950) is a South African lawyer who was instrumental in the establishment of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Currin practiced law in Pretoria from 1977 to 1987, specializing in labour law and civil an ...

, a

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

human rights law International human rights law (IHRL) is the body of international law designed to promote human rights on social, regional, and domestic levels. As a form of international law, international human rights law are primarily made up of treaties, ag ...

yer, and Sir John Blelloch, a retired senior

Northern Ireland Office The Northern Ireland Office (NIO; ga, Oifig Thuaisceart Éireann, Ulster-Scots: ''Norlin Airlann Oaffis'') is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for Northern Ireland affairs. The NIO is led by the Secretary of State for N ...

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

. The Sentence Review Commissioners in Northern Ireland were appointed to oversee and regulate the early release of certain prisoners convicted during the period of civil unrest known as

the Troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an "i ...

. It was established by the

Belfast Agreement The Good Friday Agreement (GFA), or Belfast Agreement ( ga, Comhaontú Aoine an Chéasta or ; Ulster-Scots: or ), is a pair of agreements signed on 10 April 1998 that ended most of the violence of The Troubles, a political conflict in No ...

which allowed for up to 500

loyalist Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cro ...

and

republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

prisoners sentenced before 10 April 1998 to be released by 28 July 2000. This decision to release prisoners without serving their full sentences provoked moral outrage. Many people, especially unionists were aggrieved at this part of the Agreement, although it was seen as necessary to appease the

paramilitary A paramilitary is an organization whose structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but is not part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. Paramilitary units carr ...

organisations, namely the

Provisional IRA The Irish Republican Army (IRA; ), also known as the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and informally as the Provos, was an Irish republicanism, Irish republican paramilitary organisation that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, fa ...

Ulster Volunteer Force The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) is an Ulster loyalist paramilitary group. Formed in 1965, it first emerged in 1966. Its first leader was Gusty Spence, a former British Army soldier from Northern Ireland. The group undertook an armed campaig ...

and the

Ulster Defence Association The Ulster Defence Association (UDA) is an Ulster loyalism, Ulster loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 as an umbrella group for various loyalist groups and Timeline of Ulster Defence Association act ...

. To be eligible for early release, the prisoner had to be affiliated to a paramilitary organisation that had established, and maintained, "a complete and unequivocal cease-fire". The Sentence Review Commission decided which prisoners should be released early and whether any were a threat to society and could re-offend. Each prisoner was released on a licence that could be revoked if the Commissioners and

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...

decided that they had rejoined a paramilitary organisation or supported paramilitary activity.

List of commissioners

*Sir John Blelloch (Co-chairman) *David Bolton (Resigned to deal with

Omagh bombing The Omagh bombing was a car bombing on 15 August 1998 in the town of Omagh in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It was carried out by the Real Irish Republican Army (Real IRA), a Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) splinter group who oppose ...

, replaced by Dr Duncan Morrow) *Silvia Casale *Peter Curran *

(Co-chairman) *Ian Dunbar *Adrian Grounds *Mary Gilpin *Clodagh McGrory *Duncan Morrow (Appointed 9 September 1998) *Donal McFerran (Appointed in October 2002) *Dave Wall (1998-2000)

References

{{Reflist

Sources

''BBC NI - Schools - Agreement - Policing - Prisoners''
''BBC NI''. Accessed 3 November 2007
''BBC NI - CAJ Report July/August 1998''
''BBC NI''. Accessed 3 November 2007

''Office of Public Sector Information''. Accessed 3 November 2007

''Sentence Review Commission''. Accessed 3 November 2007

''Sentence Review Commission''. Accessed 3 November 2007 Northern Ireland peace process Law of Northern Ireland