Protestants Reject Disarmament Plan

The main Protestant political parties voted Wednesday to reject a proposal by the British and Irish governments on procedures for disarming the Irish Republican Army and Protestant paramilitary groups.

But British and Irish officials, who expected the decision, said that the setback would not kill Northern Ireland peace negotiations, pointing out that the largest Protestant party, the Ulster Unionist Party, has pledged to continue to work with the government on a compromise.

The cease-fire by the overwhelmingly Catholic IRA, which went into effect last Sunday, is expected to gain Sinn Fein, its political wing, a place in formal peace talks that are to reconvene on Sept. 15. Sinn Fein’s position is that the IRA will not disarm until a full political settlement is reached at the talks.