“For reconciliation to work it must be a social rather than political process… “

Good piece from Barney Rowan, with a useful perspective from the PUP on Sinn Fein’s reconciliation project lead by party officer (probably a reflection of how highly the project lies within party priorities) Declan Kearney…

“However reconciliation is defined, we believe that it will not work if conceived as an extension of the political process,” the document reads.

“In that instance reconciliation will become little more than a reinforcement of the two-horse political race that currently dominates. It will be about point-scoring and securing and protecting political interest.

“For reconciliation to work it must be a social rather than political process. That is, it must enable all sections of society to have a say and a stake in how the past is interpreted and memorised.”

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