By Gerry Maclochlainn
Peace in Ireland means withdrawal
[On January 30, 1972 — Bloody Sunday — British troops in Derry opened fire on a peaceful civil rights demonstration, killing 14 protesters. Twenty years later, northern Ireland appears no closer to peace. The following is reprinted from the British paper socialist. Gerry Maclochlainn is Sinn Fein's British representative.]
As I write this piece, the media is engaged in one of its regular bouts of contemplation on "the Northern Irish Question".
No doubt there will be much soul-searching and sympathy, but it's a pity there will be little examination of the politics of Ireland and Britain and no determination to end the conflict.
Peace is a goal we should all strive for, and we should not tolerate governments or political leaders hiding behind trite or pious declarations to prevent a peace process. Violence occurs in Ireland because of the political problems which exist between Britain and Ireland. It will not end until an agreed solution is found to these problems.
British governments have said this in the past and, when we cut through the rhetoric, we hear them say it now. Northern Ireland secretary Peter Brooke said the IRA could not be beaten and suggested that were circumstances in which he would be prepared to talk to Sinn Fein.
Since then, however, he has persisted in banning Sinn Fein from the airwaves, refused to talk to Sinn Fein elected representatives and colluded with covert military operations against Republicans.
It seems no matter how much Britain professes that it wants peace, its desire to stay in Ireland is greater.
Yet it has only been able to stay there by implementing a series of brutal measures to suppress opposition. Political prisoners in "Northern Ireland" have been denied the right to trial by jury for all but a few of the 70 years of the statelet's existence.
This is not a way to resolve conflict, only to prolong and deepen it. Sooner or later the British authorities will have to find a mechanism to talk to Republicans. Until they do, Irish and British families will continue to grieve their dead.
Irish Republicans have made clear we want peace and are prepared to talk to anyone who can achieve it. Above all, we want to talk to those with the power to change things — the British government which controls the six counties. We would place no preconditions on such talks.
If a peace process is initiated, we will do all in our power to make it work. We are prepared to compromise and to take risks. Our fundamental position is that Ireland has the right to a national democracy and we will accept the freely expressed wishes of our people as a whole.
Peace is achievable in Ireland, but it has to be striven for. The British government needs to state that it no longer wishes to remain in Ireland, to commit itself to remaining there only as long as it takes to facilitate a full and peaceful withdrawal. Such a process would have the overwhelming support of Irish and British people.
Without this, we are condemned to end this millennium locked into a conflict which has lasted almost that long. Surely the British and Irish people deserve better than this.