Sinn Féin Pleads with IRA?
Gerry Adams of Sinn Féin today told the IRA to drop its violent revolutionary tactics and pursue a "political solution".
What do you think of what's going on in Northern Ireland? I find myself less supportive, over time, of Irish Nationalism in the way it has been historically defined and envisioned by the IRA and Sinn Féin.
posted by Sean @ 4/07/2005 09:30:00 PM
3 comments
3 Comments:
Only about 30 years too late. Being English and around in London for the peak of the IRA activity there I have very little sympathy for any of them. I've seen what their methods do first hand and for how long they have made Adams dance like a puppet on a string. To call now for a peaceful solution lends him even less credibility.
I believe the IRA has outlived its usefulness. It seems to have turned from a political tool into a band of thugs, who feel they answer to no one. The best example of this was when they made the offer to the sisters of slain Robert McCartney to kill the IRA members who killed their brother. That's pretty insane.
The IRA was born out of the desparation of Northern Irish Catholics to free themselves from protestant and English authority. And, while I don't condone their tactics, their motivation was understandable to me. But, now there are other, peaceful and political means to reach their goals. But, it seems like the IRA has forgotten those goals, and exist only for themselves. The time has come to disband and let the political process run its course peacefully.
All that being said, whether or not Ian Paisley likes it, he is going to have to abandon his own rhetoric and come back to the negotiation table. Now is not the time for posturing. If the IRA is truly going to abandon its tactics, the move should be supported - not mocked and rejected.
As much as I mourn for the plight of the Irish people over the last several hundred years, I cannot believe that fighting violence with more violence will lead to anything but death, destruction, and hatred for all involved. I would agree that the IRA has devolved into a band of thugs and criminals, but I would also contend that they were doomed from the start. I know the English government is far from an innocent party in all of this, but how many innocent people on both sides have lost their lives and how many more have to do die, before either side can say enough is enough? As Carolyn said, now is not the time for posturing. A peaceful solution is possible, it has to be, because the stakes are too high and the alternative is too dire.
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