27 June 1996

BRITISH POLICY CRITICAL TO RESTORATION OF PEACE PROCESS

In the course of a speech given at a Cairde Sinn Fein Function in An Cearthrú Rua, Co. Galway this evening, Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams said:

``It is obvious that British policy is critical to any restoration of the peace process. From my contact with the IRA it is clear that this is where the greatest difficulty lies at present.

``There can be no doubt that many republicans and nationalists view the British government's stance as the biggest obstacle to any effort to bring about a restoration of the cessation. Its bad faith, so evident during the 18 month cessation, is at the core of all of this.

``The gulf of mistrust which now exists must be bridged. Confidence must be created.

``I know that recent events have caused difficulties for the Taoiseach, and for everyone else, but none of us can retreat to our old positions. I am concerned that Mr. Bruton has given up on the peace process. This is not a time for giving up. It is a time for digging deep and for being resilient. This is a challenging time for all political leaders, the Taoiseach especially must rise above party politics, or party political analysis. The Taoiseach must represent the entire national interest. Mr. Bruton has closed the door on Sinn Fein. That is the reality. Until the dialogue was cut off Sinn Fein and the Irish government were making progress. That dialogue should be re-established on exactly the same basis as before. That is the restoration of the peace process.''

Mr. Adams said that the ``greatest challenge facing us today is the resolution of the causes of conflict. This is the most urgent task facing the people of Ireland and the people of Britain''.

He added that partition had failed ``the people of the 26 Counties as well as the people of the six counties. In the north the failure is obvious in the 75 years of repression, of discrimination, of injustice. The northern state has existed only in a permanent state of crisis, always dependent on repressive laws and the ever present reality of British military force to back it up.

``But the failure of partition is equally stark here in the 26 Counties and especially in areas like this, ravaged by unemployment and emigration, social and economic and cultural deprivation and poverty.''

Speaking on the collapse of the peace process he went on to say: ``We always knew that making peace wasn't going to be easy. Any attempt to undo the wrongs of centuries was never going to be anything other than difficult.

``But clearly, these difficulties need to be addressed and overcome. This requires an even greater urgency and application to the task of restoring the peace process. Problems, however deep seated or shocking cannot become a cause of paralysis.

``It is important for everyone to remain focussed on the fact that what we are attempting to do is very ambitious, as well as risky and dangerous. We are seeking for the first time in Irish history and in the relationship between Ireland and Britain, to successfully resolve the deep rooted issues which lie at the heart of the conflict.

``Sinn Fein's priority and the solemn promise which our party made to the electorate in the north several weeks ago, is to do all we can to pursue vigorously and with determination the restoration of the peace process, an agreed peace settlement and a permanent end to all armed actions.

``It is my firm view that despite the British government's bad faith during the 18 month cessation and its refusal to grasp the opportunity which then existed, the potential to build a lasting peace through an inclusive process of negotiations still remains. The immediate objective is to create the conditions in which the peace process can be restored so as to allow that potential to be realised.

``But this is not just our responsibility. That responsibility is a shared one and must involve the two governments and all the political parties. That requires political will a good faith engagement by all involved in a real effort to find agreement, but in particular it means John Major's government.

``It is obvious that British policy is critical to any restoration of the peace process. From my contact with the IRA it is clear that this is where the greatest difficulty lies at present.

``There can be no doubt that many republicans and nationalists view the British government's stance as the biggest obstacle to any effort to bring about a restoration of the cessation. Its bad faith, so evident during the 18 month cessation, is at the core of all of this.

``The gulf of distrust which now exists must be bridged. Confidence must be created.

``I know that recent events have caused difficulties for the Taoiseach, and for everyone else, but none of us can retreat to our old positions. I am concerned that Mr. Bruton has given up on the peace process. This is not a time for giving up. It is a time for digging deep and for being resilient. This is a challenging time for all political leaders, the Taoiseach especially must rise above party politics, or party political analysis. The Taoiseach must represent the entire national interest. Mr Bruton has closed the door on Sinn Fein. That is the reality. Until the dialogue was cut off Sinn Fein and the Irish government were making progress. That dialogue should be re-established on exactly the same basis as before. That is the restoration of the peace process

``In all of this Sinn Fein is seeking no special favours. We are imposing no preconditions. We seek only the opportunity to engage on the same basis as everyone else in a process of democratic negotiations.

``The right of voters to elect representatives of their choice is a fundamental democratic principle which cannot be set-aside because governments don't like the outcome of an elective process which the British government imposed.

``The Irish government has a responsibility to defend the principle of equality and to uphold the rights of all voters on this island. Political isolation does not work. Exclusion does not work. These are failed policies. They can make no constructive contribution to the development of a real process of negotiation. It is illogical to believe that peace can be built on a policy which deliberately ignores the voice of a significant section of people on this island.

``Dialogue provides the only real hope for progress in the present difficult circumstances.

``The challenge facing me and other political leaders is to create confidence in the means to put behind us forever conflict in Ireland. Do we do that by repeating the mistakes of the past - cobbling together agreements which are flawed and by excluding republicans?

``Or do we end conflict by addressing its causes; seeking an inclusive agreement and creating democratic structures which win the allegiance and support of all the people of this island.

``That is our intention. Sinn Fein wants to see an end to the gun in Irish politics. We want to put behind us the grief, the funerals, the pain of conflict. We want to contribute to what previous generations have failed to do; to end the cycle of conflict in our country.

``We may fail. But we intent doing everything in our power; to use all of our influence; to leave no stone unturned in our efforts, to achieve a lasting peace in Ireland.''

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