The Republic of Ireland voted to ratify the Nice treaty on Saturday, for the second time of asking. Much of the international emphasis is on the fact that now allows the EU to expand and take up to 10 other countries into it’s membership: “The result was greeted with relief and delight in the chancelleries and on the streets of the candidate countries Cyprus, Malta, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Slovenia who hope to join …
I normally steer clear of linking directly to party press releases but this one seems remarkably clean of party spin. It’s Gerry Adams’ straightforward reply to Tony Blair’s speech of last Thursday. The Independent’s Ireland correspondent David McKittrick interviews Adams. Slugger O'TooleA general account used for the daily threads and other things.
One of the two big Irish stories of the weekend was the proposed disbandment first reported in yesterday’s Sunday Independent. However it is far from clear whether this was a bona fide move or further signs of a split within organisation. Serious tensions over a possible ceasefire broke media cover a few weeks ago. The split is substantially between prisoners in Port Laoise jail lead by the organisation’s founder and leader Michael McKevitt and the organisation’s Army Council on the …
To Glenn Reynolds at Instapundit for the mention of the Letter. If you’re still not sure what a weblog or blog is, this site is the daddy of them all. Slugger O'TooleA general account used for the daily threads and other things.
On a lighter note: “IT isn’t often I come to the conclusion that I prefer the company of horses to humans, but I came perilously close to it last week.” More. Slugger O'TooleA general account used for the daily threads and other things.
Was one of Belfast’s most successful cultural exports. Bell, who played with Irish traditional music group the Cheiftains whilst sustaining his own classical music career for nearly 30 years, has died in Arizona at 66. Obits in the Belfast Telegraph, the Guardian, the Salt Lake Tribune, and from his former employers, the BBC. Slugger O'TooleA general account used for the daily threads and other things.
Tony Blair gave what may have been the keynote speech of the final stage of the Northern Ireland peace process yesterday. We’ve blogged the highlights here: He began by reminding his audience of the reasons for establishing the Agreement in the first place. He went on to outline the problems the process had run into from every side. After a short reminder of some of the benefits the Agreement has brought, he reminded Nationalists and Unionist of their commitments. He …
The Irish Independent has taken Blair’s word as a sign that the IRA must disband. The Irish Times quoted an insider in the Dublin government: “It was a good speech. He was saying it’s about deeds, not words anymore. And he was right: there has to be movement now, and it has to be substantial. It’s not good enough to fiddle around at the margins.” The Times of London believes he has laid out the only viable deal on offer …
This may be the sound bite that outlasts the rest when the time and the place of this speech are long forgotten. Blair calls for decisive action: It’s time for acts of completion. We will do our best to carry on implementing the Agreement in any event. But, should real change occur, we can implement the rest of the Agreement, including on normalisation, in its entirety and not in stages but together. And we are prepared to do what is …
Noel McAdam suggests that yesterday’s speech from Tony Blair has caused serious unease amongst parties right across the board. Whilst a strongly negative reaction might have been expected from Sinn Fein, it is more surprising to hear this from Assembly man Billy Armstrong of the UUP: “He had his opportunity last week to remove Sinn Fein from the Assembly and the Executive, and he chickened out. That was his opportunity to keep the written word he had given. Mr Blair, …
He continued: “…in return for equality and justice – in politics, policing, in acceptance of nationalist identity – all parties were to commit exclusively to peace. And for unionism, the right of the people of Northern Ireland to remain part of the UK so long as a majority want to, was enshrined. Indeed, provided, in effect, unionists agreed to equality and to recognising the legitimacy of the identity of nationalists, the union would remain.” Previously: the benefits. Slugger O'TooleA general …
The Irish News says that whilst it is clear that the IRA has no intentions of going back to war “…as long as the IRA operates in its present twilight zone, it will always have the potential to cause huge damage to our political structures” and gives the British PM a seal of approval: “…Blair remains focussed on the full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, which still in every respect represents the best hope for all sections of the …
The focus changes to the political and economic benefits the Agreement has brought: “…there is still violence, but at a far, far reduced rate – in 1972, 470 people died. This year, so far, ten. Ten too many, but let us recognise the progress made. The transformation in the economy has been enormous: unemployment at its lowest since 1975; long-term unemployment, down 65 per cent since the Agreement; manufacturing up 15 per cent, uniquely in the UK. New jobs, new …
A useful, if slightly lengthy biography of the Secretary of State by writer Kevin Toolis in the Guardian last March. He concludes: “Is Dr John Reid a nice person? I doubt it. In fact, I’m glad he’s not. Reid is an old-fashioned, straightforward devious political operator: you know where you stand with him. Reid might of political necessity dole out some pain, but he’s not going to give you a hug, cry or share “your sorrow”. But, in a tough …
Blair goes on to outline the fierce opposition the Agreement has faced from a number of otherwise unlikely bedfellows: “…the malignant whisperings of those opposed to the process, always pointing out its faults, never aiding its strengths; and the evil violence from dissidents, from so-called loyalists, designed to re-ignite sectarian hatred to convulse such progress as we have made. At every step, those working for peace, trying to make the Agreement function, were being undermined, often from within their own …
A small but growing theme of discussion in NI has centred around the possible re-alignment of politics. According to Toby Harnden, operating to purely party interests may not be the most effective means of achieving a United Ireland. He digs up a 1990 quotation from Gerry Adams: “Adams mused about a ‘gradualist scenario with Dublin taking up more and more responsibility and the British influence slowly waning’. This meant ending up ‘with a situation that may be very bad for …
Terence McMenamin has been writing reams of good copy on Northern Ireland and the Nice referendum over the last week, unnoticed by the Letter. Natalie Solent mentions our Bloody Sunday report from yesterday. British Spin has an extract from the Blair speech. Update: Paul Dunne casts a sceptical eye over the Blair speech. Brendan O’Neill believes Blair is playing pantomine politics. Slugger O'TooleA general account used for the daily threads and other things.
In his speech at Belfast Harbour Authority Blair went on to outline some of the difficult issues thrown up in the process: “Prisoner release was there in black and white in the Agreement. But who could not understand the anguish of the families of the victims of terrorism when they saw their dearest ones’ murderers given a rapturous welcome as they were released? Or those who were prepared to die in the cause of a united Ireland who saw their …
Letter Slugger O’Toole has it’s first syndication. The Irish in Britain site has added the top five posts from the Letter to its front page. Again many thanks! If you would like to do the same for your own website, just click on the EML button at the top of the page and you’ll find the appropriate code. Slugger O'TooleA general account used for the daily threads and other things.
Rosie Cowan believes the ball is in the Sinn Fein court. It is not going to be easy for them to play, but that it may be the logical destination for the generations old organisation: “No one should under-estimate the monumental scale of the concept of disbanding the IRA for republicans: decommissioning was a huge issue, but the Provisional organisation itself has been an integral part of their identity and their everyday lives for generations. But some think the Rubicon …
