IT is exactly 20 years since the IRA announced a ceasefire after what it called its “armed struggle”.

The move was seen as a positive step forward as the organisation spoke of its willingness to enter into talks on the political future of Northern Ireland following 25 years of violence and thousands of deaths.

The IRA’s statement read: “Recognising the potential of the current situation and in order to enhance the democratic process and underlying our definitive commitment to its success, the leadership of the IRA have decided that as of midnight, August 31, there will be a complete cessation of military operations. All our units have been instructed accordingly.” The Impartial Reporter spoke to a number of people of different backgrounds and age groups this week to get their thoughts on that historic moment and where we go from here.

Chris McCaffrey from Derrylin is an Irish language and literature student and member of Sinn Fein. At 19, he wasn’t born when the ceasefire was declared in 1994.

“Twenty years later, it’s important to look at how much has changed and how far we’ve come. It’s hard for people of my generation to imagine a time when checkpoints, explosions and killings were part of everyday life.

Our country was in a state of disarray and things looked bleak, so I can only imagine that the IRA’s cessation of military operations must have been a sigh of relief for many people, as few ever thought a ceasefire was possible.

“I suppose I feel somewhat detached from the ceasefire as I have no first hand account of it, it’s hard to form opinions about something that happened before I was born. Although, I am grateful for the change the ceasefire brought, it was the beginning of the end of the gun in Irish politics and was a building block of the peace process.

“My hope and dreams for the future are that continual peace will last, and that there will be an even more inclusive relationship between our two communities.” John Maxwell’s 15 year old son Paul was killed, alongside Lord Louis Mountbatten, the Queen’s cousin, by an IRA bomb on board a fishing boat in Mullaghmore in 1979. One of the driving forces behind integrated education in Fermanagh, the former teacher helped set up Erne Integrated Primary School, 25 years ago.

“The ceasefire was a big breakthrough, something that was fantastic when it happened. It should have happened sooner but it was better late than never. I felt a great sense of relief because it was a whole change in tactic, and it meant innocent people weren’t going to be killed any more.

“I did think about the children I was teaching, at the time, because it meant they had a future, that the Troubles were more or less over. I would like to see peace maintained and I would like to see much more contact with both sides in inverted commas, through integrated education and so on.

“All these years of integrated college and it is brilliant to see all kids working together, coming together, with friendships that last and you can see that they do last. It is rewarding for me and everybody else who was involved in setting up the school.” Michael Long is 20 and from Enniskillen. He is studying history and politics and works one day a week for Ulster Unionist MLA Tom Elliott.

“I was only a couple of months old when the IRA and combined loyalist ceasefires were called, I did not live through the dark days of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. At the time, I am sure, the ceasefire was welcomed by the vast majority of people in Northern Ireland and further afield.

“I was fortunate to grow up in a relatively peaceful Northern Ireland. Others were not as lucky as me, and were subject to, and affected badly by the Troubles. I have only read about the Troubles and have heard people speak about what happened. But even 20 years on from the ceasefire, no one should forget the victims of the Troubles, and justice for victims should be a priority.

“There will be those today that will try and spin the ceasefire as a victory. The ceasefire was an acceptance of failure of an unjustified terrorist campaign. The Troubles should not have happened in Northern Ireland and a ceasefire should not have been needed.” Bernice Swift serves as an Independent councillor on both Fermanagh District Council and Fermanagh and Omagh District Council. In 2008, she resigned from Sinn Fein.

“In my opinion the complete absence of peace with justice, the over-egged, euphoric celebrations around 20 years on from the historic IRA ceasefire falls very short for all those who have been so adversely affected by the conflict. The causes, nature and extent of the conflict remains unaddressed and dealing with the legacy of the past is still not agreed. For Republicans there has been no movement towards the reunification of Ireland as the promises by Sinn Fein to secure British withdrawal and the realisation of a sovereign Irish Republic have totally failed to materialise. There is nothing to show but a dysfunctional and disagreeable Stormont Executive which copper-fastens partition and only works to serve the continued preservation of the greedy capitalist and strategic interests of the British state in Ireland. The absence of violence does not mean peace.” Diane Woods lost her uncle and aunt, Thomas Bullock, an off-duty member of the Ulster Defence Regiment, and his wife Emily, when they were killed by the IRA at their home near Derrylin in 1972.

“The IRA ceasefire set the ball rolling for negotiations that resulted in the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. I, for one, did not support the agreement because shortly afterwards both republican and loyalist prisoners were released by prison as part of that agreement. In my opinion that should never have happened as murderers and others terrorists should have to serve their full term.

“How do I feel 20 years on? Sinn Fein have gained more ground than they ever did during the Troubles. I also feel the protestant culture is being gradually eroded. For many people there is still a great deal of mistrust 20 years on and terrorism is still being glorified.

“Sinn Fein talk about a shared future but on-the-run letters and other deals outrage me and don’t give me much confidence for the future The bombings and murders may have virtually stopped and we now have peace but in my opinion it is an uneasy peace.”