Parties

Saturday’s Irish Times helpfully dissected the official accounts of Friends of Sinn Féin in the US – Friends of Sinn Féin raised almost $760,000 from US donors.. with $424,000 spent in the US, and just over $394,000 sent back to Northern Ireland. An interesting quote from a “SF spokesman” is noted – He said Sinn Féin did not “physically” receive the money from Friends of Sinn Féin… SF sent invoices for work carried out and FofSF paid the bills.. Hmm.. …

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The Observer’s Henry McDonald follows up on his initial thoughts on Adams’ speech.. and sees a scam coming. In a similar vein to Ed Moloney, he predicts only a ‘paper divorce’ of the IRA from Sinn Féin because, as he puts it, “to ask the Sinn Fein leadership to divorce from the leadership of the IRA is tantamount to asking Sinn Fein to adopt a series of split personalities” and he references an article by Jim Gibney in the Irish …

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The Observer’s Henry McDonald, writing for the Guardian website makes a prediction of the IRA response to Adams’ latest speech, and he notes that we’ve heard similar versions before – “In all probability some kind of ethereal statement indicating that its “war” is over, possibly then backed up by some act of decommissioning albeit without photographs or any other recorded evidence.”As he suggests, they are “bargaining chips” that have been proffered before, but this time they will be used for …

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Ian Paisley has certainly laid his cards on the table, calling Gerry Adams’ speech an “insult to democrats”, adding that no one will be taken in. “I don’t think there is any hope for Sinn Fein and the IRA,” he said. “There must be complete and total abandonment of IRA/Sinn Fein and that’s not going to happen. The DUP won’t be back at any negotiating table. He (Adams) has put himself outside of the arena. It is all over. There …

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THE IRA is expected to respond to Gerry Adams’ statement within the next 24 hours or so, according to Barney Rowan on Newsline. The response is expected to be positive, although the cynics will wait until they see the text of this week’s IRA bulletin. I suspect that those expecting an announcement of the ‘end’ of the IRA will be disappointed. Belfast Gonzosluggerotoole.com

Here is Gerry Adams’ statement to the IRA for all and sundry to make up their own minds. From the Sinn Fein website:I want to speak directly to the men and women of Oglaigh na hEireann, the volunteer soldiers of the Irish Republican Army. In time of great peril you stepped into the Bearna Baoil, the gap of danger. When others stood idly by, you and your families gave your all, in defence of a risen people and in pursuit …

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UTV has the script online. Adams’ question to the IRA – “Can you take courageous initiatives which will achieve your aims by purely political and democratic activity?” – but he says that they are “decisions [which] can only be taken in the aftermath of intense internal consultation”.. A couple of weeks, perhaps? And what initiatives? Decommissioning or disbandment? Policing, according to Adams’ comments to the Daily Ireland, remains on the back-burner. Pete Baker

Breaking news reports that Democratic Unionist Party leader Ian Paisley has vowed never to speak to Sinn Féin under to any circumstances. Is Ian wary of what Gerry Adams is going to say later in the day? George

Irish Government Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dermot Ahern, writing in the Irish Times refutes the claim that party-political considerations are behind the Irish Government’s criticism of Sinn Féin – “This assertion is both wrong and self-serving. Sinn Féin is being challenged because the licence granted its leadership to manage a transition over a period of time from paramilitarism to peace and democracy has expired.” – perhaps the most direct acknowledgement to date that the Irish, and by implication the British, …

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Another post via the resourceful Newshound. Denis Bradley, writing in the Irish News tackles the default position of too many here, the ‘blame game’ – “Blame is no substitute for political reality.” Pete Baker

IT’S childish, but it’ll probably be one of the few laughs the Ulster Unionists will get this year at the expense of the DUP. Check out the website address on the link after you click. Jim Allister doesn’t sound best pleased. Belfast Gonzosluggerotoole.com

As if Sinn Féin didn’t have enough problems, and as the row over the ‘republican policing’ continues in Belfast Sinn Féin embroiled in new row over man’s death, the Leitrim Observer has details of trouble in a bar where it is alleged that SF members claimed to be members of the IRA and arrests were made after two customers were threatened.Sinn Féin members apologise after Manorhamilton ‘incident’ The paper reveals that two Sinn Féin members were part of a large …

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Sinn Fein has selected former RUC reservist and Protestant lay preacher Billy Leonard as its candidate in East Derry for the Westminster election. Leonard defected from the SDLP last year and was apparently selected to contest the seat on Wednesday. A good choice for the constituency? George

As Gerry Moriarty, in the Irish Times reports, the Irish Government Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dermot Ahern, was at the launch of the SDLP’s proposals yesterday. And he had a scathing response to Sinn Féin’s calls for an Irish Government Green Paper on a united Ireland – “Like the snake-oil salesmen of the American west, the proponents of a Green Paper advance it as a panacea for all our ills. It is not.”The Irish Times report consists mostly of quotes …

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Thanks to Alan for this. It’s a website that sells fantasy shares in Westminster MPs. According to Alan the current values of prominent local MPs sit at: Adams £5, Paisley £4.94, Trimble £4.80 and Mallon £4.80. mmm, not between them. Though Gerry does well for never actually turning up! Currently Tony Blair is worth £45! Mick FealtyMick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is …

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The SDLP has launched its blueprint for achieving a United Ireland within the terms of the Good Friday Agreement. Under its blueprint a Northern Ireland Assembly would remain with all its cross-community protections, but as a regional parliament of a United Ireland rather than the United Kingdom. George

Terry Prone argues in the Irish Examiner that, despite media reports to the contrary, the visit of the McCartney sisters has not made the United States a cold house for Sinn Fein. The reality, she says, is that Sinn Féin is still sitting pretty in the USA, its fundraising pipelines as full as ever, and Gerry Adams still has his visa.Prone points out that nobody from Ireland was on the front page of American newspapers on St Patrick’s Day and …

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Not exactly a one-two punch.. but Tom McGurk and Vincent Browne in the Sunday Business Post give their view on the way forward. McGurk takes the “softly softly” line – “Decision Time for SF”, while Browne is clear about what that decision must be “Disbandment is only option left for IRA”Vincent Browne on the “capitulation”, to date, of the republican movement – The capitulation has been significant. Republicans have been forced to deal with the Police Service of Northern Ireland …

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MARTIN McGuinness suggested on the ‘Today’ programme that Anthony Mcintyre was acting as an adviser to the McCartney sisters in some capacity. Mr McIntyre has contacted Slugger to deny this claim outright. There appears to be another ‘hint’ from Mr McGuinness that is without any foundation, but we’ll come to that later, if he makes more of it. Belfast Gonzosluggerotoole.com