Spanners in the works:
Get real
by Lynda Walker
We are not far from the date when we will be celebrating a year in office of Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness (26 March 2007), when “Never, never, never” became “Och, all right, then.” Much water has passed under the bridge since that day with incredible co-operation between the First Minister and Deputy First Minister. That is why the latest threat by Ian Paisley not to recommend the transfer of policing to the Assembly is one step out of place. Ian Paisley is seeking urgent talks with Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, and in doing so he said, “I will not be bullied or cajoled by either premier,” a bit of an understatement by someone who is quite verbally forceful.
There are always more hurdles to jump when it comes to power-sharing, and this time it is that the DUP want the IRA army council to be disbanded (no doubt with photographs) before the transfer of policing and justice powers to the Assembly in Northern Ireland. In response to this, Gerry Adams said, the DUP has agreed with the broad principles of these matters, it is only a question of timing. “The big issue is does the DUP have the confidence to do what I think the Unionist people want?”
In the meantime the threat by the Real IRA (named as dissident republicans by the media) that a new offensive will take place comes as a disturbing piece of news for the people of Ireland. The “Real IRA” said that the PSNI would be prime targets, and that businesses would be hit by incendiary devices causing millions of pounds’ worth of damage. They said that British soldiers, British ministers and Assembly ministers would also be targeted. They stated that there would be “minimal risk to civilians”; this will be comforting news to the many victims of the last violence, and also to those who have lost their jobs because of bombings, more recent ones being the Shane Retail Park on the Boucher Road, where over fifty people lost their jobs.
Part of Real IRA intentions is to ensure that “British soldiers are brought back onto the streets to bolster the cops,” a statement that was allegedly made by the Real IRA to the Sunday Tribune. According to their spokesperson, “this would shatter the façade that the British presence has gone and normality reigns. People will again be made visibly aware that we remain occupied.”
Is this what freedom-fighting is about, then? Not that we have a right to fight politically against economic and social injustices but instead that we have to have foisted upon us a new round of violence.
We in the Communist Party campaigned for years to get the British army off the streets, and now the Real IRA want them back on again, for target practice. Many people within a whole host of organisations, trade unions, women’s and community organisations, have been living and working through the peace process for the past fourteen years, trying to break down barriers, make politics work, and create a new future for the people of Ireland. Both the Real IRA and the DUP should take a long look at themselves and see what kind of legacy they want for their children and their children’s children. |