Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny has said the release of the killers of Detective Garda Jerry McCabe would prove that the Government is incapable of distinguishing between right and wrong, and of upholding the rule of law.
Mr Kenny said that the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, should never have allowed the issue to be part of the final agenda in talks on the future of the North's institutions.
The Fine Gael leader was speaking during a by-election selection convention in Navan this evening.
He warned that releasing the killers of Det. Garda McCabe would undermine the integrity and authority of the Office of the Taoiseach.
He said it was the Government's duty to stand by the Institutions of State, and that the IRA Army Council should have no say in the rule of law.
GRA seeks meeting with Taoiseach
Meanwhile, the Garda Representative Association has sought an urgent meeting with the Taoiseach about the possible early release of Garda McCabe's killers.
The association also called on Sinn Féin to withdraw its demand for the early release of the killers, adding that it is totally opposed to any early release.
Speaking on RTÉ Radio, the chairman of the GRA's Limerick division, Kevin McCarthy, said that neither Garda McCabe's widow, Anne, nor others opposed to the early release of the men could be held responsible for delaying the North's peace process.
Last week, when the matter was raised in the Dáil, the Taoiseach indicated the concession on the killers' release may be part of a settlement linked to the decommissioning of IRA weapons and the end of paramilitarism.
The Minister for Justice, Michael McDowell, said the release of the men would require an end to all paramilitary and criminal activity by Republicans.
Detective Garda McCabe was shot dead in an attempted robbery in Adare in Co Limerick in June 1996, while his garda colleague, Ben O'Sullivan, was wounded.
Although the IRA initially denied involvement, four Republicans were later convicted of manslaughter, while a fifth man, who has since been released after serving his sentence, was convicted of robbery charges.
