"IT'S OVER FOR GOOD", was the banner headline in one of the Irish national newspapers on the morning of Thursday, September 1, 1994. It was a headline most people had despaired of ever reading in their lifetimes - the cycle of violence and death in Northern Ireland seemed too persistent and too deep-rooted to end in 1994 or in any other year.
 
But it truly was over. The IRA made their historic cease-fire announcement in the closing moments of August 1994. This was followed six weeks later by the announcement of a loyalist cease-fire, paving the way for real progress on the road to a lasting peace in Ireland.