London (AP) — The British government announced on Wednesday plans to introduce a statute of limitations for alleged crimes committed during decades of violence in Northern Ireland. This is a move to end the prosecution of killings by both British soldiers and members of the militant group.

Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis told members of the House of Commons that the law “applies equally to all trouble-related cases.” He said the change reflected the increasing difficulty of prosecuting people for old crimes.

More than 3,500 people were killed during 30 years of violence known as “trouble,” a tripartite conflict involving Irish republicans and British Loyalist paramilitaries and British troops. Most of them are civilians.

“We know it’s difficult to accept the prospect of ending criminal charges, and this is not a position we downplay,” Lewis said.

“But we have come to the view that this is the best and only way to facilitate an effective information retrieval and delivery process, and the best way to help Northern Ireland go further on the path to reconciliation. I did, “he said. “In reality, it’s the very real painful perception of where we are.”

According to Lewis, the statute of limitations involves a new independent agency tasked with finding and editing information about trouble-related casualties.

The Good Friday Peace Agreement of 1998 ended massive violence in Northern Ireland. As part of the peace process, many militants were released from prison or were not charged in proceedings in trouble.

The British conservative government is under pressure from many party members and troops to remove the threat of prosecution from troops who served in Northern Ireland decades ago. Several prosecutions of former soldiers for alleged trouble crimes have recently collapsed.

Earlier this month, authorities announced plans to suspend prosecution of two former British soldiers for killing three in Northern Ireland in 1972.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the statute of limitations would prevent veterans from facing “violent prosecutions in the 1970s and 1980s.”

He told lawmakers that the plan “allows the Northern Irish district to draw a line in trouble to allow the people of Northern Ireland to move forward.”

Setting a deadline for prosecution also means that the perpetrators of some paramilitary attacks may escape justice.

The opposition Labor Party called the statute of limitations “all amnesty except for the name” of the murder.

“Victims focus these proposals on the perpetrators, not on the victims, our troubles and their families,” said Jeffrey Donaldson, leader of the Democratic Unionist Party in Northern Ireland. It would be seen as an insult to both the memories of the innocent victims who died during the period. “

“We understand that the outlook for justice has diminished for many over time, but if these proposals are passed, the flicker of justice will be completely extinguished and unacceptable. It’s a moral overkill, “said Donaldson.