Good Friday Agreement: Motion (Resumed) [Private Members]
The following motion was moved by Deputy Gerry Adams on Tuesday, 14 May 2013:
That Dáil Éireann:
notes that:
- this year marks the 15th anniversary of the historic Good Friday Agreement in 1998, which was ratified by an overwhelming majority of citizens in referenda held North and South on 22 May 1998;
- this is set out in an internationally binding treaty;
- the Agreement recognises fully the differences between the equally legitimate political aspirations of the Unionist and Nationalist sections of the community in Northern Ireland;
- the Agreement and subsequent agreements, at St. Andrews in 2006 and at Hillsborough Castle in 2010, are premised on the principles of full respect for, and equality of, civil, political, social and cultural rights, of freedom from discrimination for all citizens, and of parity of esteem and of just and equal treatment for the identity, ethos, and aspirations of both communities; and
- it is essential to acknowledge and address the suffering of all the victims of conflict as a necessary element of reconciliation and healing;
recognises the crucial role played by all those, both in Ireland and abroad, who worked to bring the conflict to an end, promote the political process and build reconciliation; and
calls on the Government, as joint and co-equal guarantors of the agreements, to:
- ensure that all the commitments in these agreements are implemented by both governments;
- renew substantive engagement with the British Government to progress outstanding issues, including the establishment of a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland and an all-Ireland charter of rights and other legislative commitments;
- ensure the realisation of the promised peace dividend and financial package agreed at St. Andrews which the current British Government has failed to deliver;
- expedite the completion of the consideration of the case for additional implementation bodies and areas of co-operation on a North-South basis as agreed; and
- work with the British Government and all parties in re-energising the peace and political processes by promoting engagement and developing a reconciliation process which helps create the circumstances to manage the legacy of the past.
Debate resumed on amendment No. 1:
To delete all words after “Dáil Éireann” and substitute the following:
“notes that:
— this year marks the 15th anniversary of the historic Good Friday Agreement in 1998, which was ratified by an overwhelming majority of citizens in referendums held North and South on 22 May 1998;
— this is set out in an internationally binding treaty;
— the Agreement recognises the legitimacy of whatever choice is freely exercised by a majority of the people of Northern Ireland with regard to its constitutional status;
— the Agreement and subsequent agreements, at St. Andrews in 2006 and at Hillsborough Castle in 2010, are premised on the principles of full respect for, and equality of, civil, political, social and cultural rights, of freedom from discrimination for all citizens, of parity of esteem, and of just and equal treatment for all the people in the diversity of their identities and traditions;
— a crucial role was played by all those, both in Ireland and abroad, who worked to bring the conflict to an end, promote the political process and build reconciliation; and
— the Government, as joint and co-equal guarantors of the agreements, is committed to continuing to:
— work to ensure that the agreements are fully implemented;
— engage substantively with the British Government and the parties of the Northern Ireland Assembly to progress outstanding issues, including the establishment of a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland and an all-Ireland charter of rights, a civic forum and an Irish language Act for Northern Ireland;
— observe and implement human rights principles across the range of issues set out in the agreements;
— ensure, through working with the British Government and the parties in the Northern Ireland Assembly, the acknowledgement of the pain that victims and their families have endured and the accommodations they have made for peace;
— ensure strong and deep cross-Border co-operation on policing, security and justice matters;
— closely co-operate with the Northern Ireland Executive in the framework of the North-South Ministerial Council in support of economic recovery and the provision of public services on a shared basis;
— encourage the Northern Ireland Executive to expedite the review of North-South co-operation as set out in the St. Andrews Agreement, including further development of existing areas of co-operation, additional areas of co-operation on a North-South basis and completion of the consideration of the case for additional implementation bodies; and
— encourage the Northern Ireland Executive and the parties of the Northern Ireland Assembly to continue to work together to develop a strategy for building a shared and reconciled society in Northern Ireland, and to ensure that initiatives and policies to tackle sectarianism and segregation are fully delivered thereafter.”
- (Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade).
The Good Friday Agreement has been a very positive development, but we should not take things for granted. There is still work to be done if we are to ensure the long-term sustainability of the peace process. Like other Deputies in yesterday's debate, I want to concentrate on some of the prison issues. Marian Price and Martin Corey were released on licence many years ago but were rearrested in the last few years and are now imprisoned without trial.
It is called internment. A series of abuses have occurred in the case of Brendan McConville and John Paul Wootton, known as the Craigavon Two. Allegations are weak in both cases and there are serious issues relating to the Police Service of Northern Ireland, PSNI, regarding their convictions and recent failed appeal. Injustices have the potential to put the peace process at risk.
Having visited Maghaberry Prison on three occasions over the last three months with other Members of the Oireachtas and listened to the prisoners' side of the story, one would have to be concerned. I have no interest in republicanism, but I feel the treatment of political prisoners in Maghaberry is unjust and leaves much to be desired. Prisoners' rights were promised in 2010 but did not materialise and this led to a dirty protest which lasted 18 months up to last December. Promises were made again following the end of the protest, and again they were not delivered. Measures were to be introduced to bring about a conflict-free environment in the prison. These were to be brought in over three phases in a 12 month period to include movement access, whereby they were promised they would be allowed to have six men on the landing at one time, three in the laundry, three in the phone room and three in the classroom. It turns out the classroom is not available to them. There are no teachers available to them. These prisoners are getting no education and are locked up in their own cells most of the day. It does not make much sense.
What ever happened to the idea that prison was meant to reform the prisoner, make him or her a better person and fit for society? They also have serious grievances about the continued use of strip-searching and the use of isolation in an effort to break particular prisoners. It would make far more sense to have a peaceful atmosphere in the prison rather than one of conflict.
The issues Deputy Wallace has raised have been silenced by the mainstream media here in the South and we will ignore these issues at our peril. Not too far up the road we have a man who has been in jail for three years who meets all the criteria of the Good Friday Agreement, whose licence was revoked, allegedly for security reasons. He and his legal team have not been informed of these reasons and decisions have been made behind closed doors. The exact same situation faces Martin Corey and the very ill Marian Price, people who have not been presented with the cases against them and who have remained in custody for years. This is not the type of approach that will bring peace in the North. These people are becoming symbols of a continued injustice, and of the fact that internment without trial is still alive and well. There cannot be peace unless justice is done openly and transparently.
I am not a nationalist or a republican. I am an internationalist and am concerned about these issues very much from a human rights point of view, and that is why we have been involved in the cross-party delegations to Maghaberry Prison. It is absolutely reprehensible that the prison authorities and the establishment in the North and Britain have breached agreements and promises regarding prisoners' conditions which should allow the men to go out onto the landings and socially interact, to get an education, to engage in handicrafts and other issues which deal with rehabilitation. This is not a way forward to bring a conflict-free environment. It is not in the interests of the prisoners or the staff in that prison. Unless we here address these issues we cannot have a lasting peace. I urge the authorities in the South to exert pressure for a desperately needed resolution of these issues.
It is appropriate that 15 years on we should note progress and renew commitment to the Good Friday Agreement in this House. The Government's amendment stresses that it continues to work towards the observation and implementation of human rights principles. As has been outlined by other Deputies in their contributions, the human rights of prisoners in the North are being abused on a daily basis. Martin Corey, Marian Price and the Craigavon Two are all having their human rights abused. The Government needs to step up to the mark on this and ensure it deals proactively with the British Administration because the Secretary of State is overruling the court system in the Six Counties to ensure these prisoner are kept in custody. This is internment. Holding prisoners without any notice of charge, trial date or attempt to bring them to trial is an abuse of human rights. This Government needs to ensure this is addressed and to deal with it very proactively.
The purpose of the Good Friday Agreement was to remove the circumstances that caused the conflict in the first place, but the British Government is leaving the potential for martyrs and undermining people's confidence in the justice system. The justice system has to be an integral part of any peace process and the workings of the Good Friday Agreement. I am a member of the North-South Interparliamentary Association which was established under the Agreement and it took many years - since before my time in the House - to get it up and running and to get agreement from the Northern side to establish it. We have recently had our second meeting in Stormont and it shows the potential that is there for reconciliation to take place and the breaking down of barriers where we can come together and discuss issues that are of mutual concern and that can be grown and developed. It is a very worthwhile process.
The most recent phase of conflict in the North began when civil rights protesters campaigning on matters such as equality in housing were beaten off the street by the Royal Ulster Constabulary, RUC back in the late 1960s. That produced 30 years of conflict. We all welcome the fact that an Agreement arose out of the fact that people in the North got sick of communal violence, demanded some sort of end to that violence and rejected paramilitary violence as a way to deal with the problem, and rightly so. However, it is worth reminding ourselves that the start of it all was repressive forces of the state attacking peaceful protesters who were not protesting on communal or even on nationalist lines. They were just campaigning for housing equality.
So it is a great irony when one sees the so-called peace dividend in the North manifesting itself in the most horrendous, deliberately intimidatory security operation around the forthcoming visit of the G8 to Fermanagh where, incredibly, drone planes that are used to kill innocent people in Afghanistan will be deployed in the North to monitor protestors who will protest against the militarist agenda of G8 and its failure to deal with issues such as global poverty. There is a concerted campaign to bully and intimidate those peaceful protesters including the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, Friends of the Earth, War on Want, Trócaire and a host of other civil and political organisations which are campaigning against global poverty and militarism.
Incredibly 2,500 police are being drafted in from Britain for the operation. In an unprecedented move, courts will be opened on Sundays. This is against a background where the Democratic Unionist Party, DUP will not even allow children's playgrounds to open on Sundays because we must keep holy the Sabbath day, apparently. However it is all right to have special openings of courts to deal with protesters, as they are suggesting they are going to do, and prepare cells to arrest hundreds of protesters in a deliberate attempt to discourage, bully and intimidate people who want to do nothing more than engage in peaceful protest around the visit of the G8. That is a disgrace and is the sort of thing that led to the conflict in the North in the first place, and we should be protesting about it down here.
Deputy Jack Wall is sharing time with Deputies Regina Doherty and McNamara, the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Shatter, and Deputies Hannigan and McHugh.
The community sector is vitally important in terms of peace making and reconciliation.
Many argue it was largely left to the community and voluntary groups to try to bridge the divide between Nationalist and Unionist communities in Northern Ireland after the Good Friday Agreement. I am a member of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement. Together with other members, also present in the Chamber, I have visited the North on a number of occasions and seen that. We want to highlight the urgent need for the Governments in Dublin and London and the Executive in Belfast to examine that situation and ensure mechanisms are put in place to support such community groups. These are people on the ground who have been putting the Good Friday Agreement into practice by contributing positively to their communities and in wider community relations. By the time the Belfast Agreement was signed there were approximately 5,000 voluntary and community organisations in operation in Northern Ireland, with up to 33,000 people being provided with some type of employment through those local bodies. That is more than the number employed in the manufacturing sector.
One of the worrying things we saw on our visits related to the Titanic project. Many in the Nationalist community felt it was beyond all possibility for them to get employment within that project, which goes to show the void that still exists. We cannot get to a situation of commonality in respect of entitlement for those seeking employment. In the past 15 years these community groups have helped to sustain economic life, especially in disadvantaged areas, but there is a fear that the work of the community sector in advancing reconciliation and peacemaking in the North has been taken for granted. Complacency has set in with regard to the Northern Ireland Government. In March 2010, for example, the Sinn Féin education Minister introduced a 70% cut in funding for the Northern Ireland Community Relations Council. Part of this budget went towards enhancing good community relations between cohorts of young people aged between 3 and 15 years. This is what we are talking about - the effort these voluntary bodies are making. It is up to the parties involved in government in Northern Ireland, with the help of our Government and that of the UK, to provide funding. One thing I saw when I was there was an enthusiasm to move forward, past all the problems of the troubled times, and to ensure the communities survive and become vibrant, allowing themselves to interact within the situation.
I also welcome the commitment by the First Minister and Deputy First Minister to dismantle the almost 60 peace walls that separate the Catholic and Protestant communities, especially in Belfast, by 2023. Again, this highlights the problems that exist. Communities cannot drive, expand or work together with the present facilities. We have to build confidence and ensure we overcome the basic nervousness that currently exists. We met many members of committees when we visited and, with the help of God, we will go again shortly. That is what we must do to ensure the Good Friday Agreement will reach and involve the people, overcome problems and ensure we will not lose out on this wonderful opportunity of peace.
It is hard to believe I have only two minutes for such a momentous topic, so I will have to talk fast.
The Deputy is well able to do that.
It is genuinely hard to believe that last month was the 15th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. After 30 years of violence and more than 3,700 deaths across the island, we all recognise the peace of the day many people thought would never come.
For me, a fundamental core value of the Agreement was the promotion of integrated education, but today only 7% of the children in Northern Ireland's schools are educated in integrated schools. The sad fact of life today is that some of our young adults do not meet people from the other side of their communities until they go to university. Based on the school population staying the same, it will take another 499 years for the divided education system to be fully and organically integrated. This prolongs the sectarian politics of the main Unionist and Nationalist political parties. When it comes to the increase in integrated schools the figures are no better. Today, there are 511 controlled schools and 519 schools under Catholic management, compared with only 62 integrated schools. Of almost 1,100 nursery, primary and post-primary schools, only 6% are integrated. Research and, unfortunately, practice have shown that a sectarian education system maintains divisions and fosters mutual ignorance, while pupils educated in integrated sectors are far more likely to adopt a positive position on key social issues such as politics, religion and identity, all of which extend into their later adult lives.
Since the Good Friday Agreement, provisional figures indicate that approximately 130 people have died for reasons of division - an average of nine per year, compared to the average of 71 every year for 30 years before the Agreement. Even today, that figure is too large. We must recognise that many people have worked long and hard to achieve peace and it is up to us to ensure we continue to fight equally hard to maintain it.
It is right that Dáil Éireann should mark the 15th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. There are certain momentous events one lives through in one's life. I will never forget where I was on 31 August 1994 when the news of the IRA ceasefire came through - on a campsite in Munich with a good friend from Castlederg. Now, as then, I commend the IRA on having the courage to abandon violence.
The Good Friday Agreement was the culmination of that ceasefire. The Government has already marked the anniversary. The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deputy Gilmore, the Labour Party leader, recently visited Belfast to mark the occasion. He met local party leaders and the British Secretary of State. The Labour Party has a proud history going back to the creation of the Agreement. We were in government during the signing of the Anglo-Irish Agreement in 1985 and, as Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dick Spring had a crucial role in the development of the peace process and the ceasefire of 1994. We never played politics with that process, nor do we intend to. In opposition we wholeheartedly supported the referendum on the Agreement in 1998 and we supported successive Irish Governments in their efforts to establish the institutions and create a peaceful Northern Ireland. Now, in Government, the Labour Party continues to support the full implementation of the Agreement as the basis of our approach on Northern Ireland. I attended the inaugural meeting of the North-South Interparliamentary Association, which was held in the Seanad Chamber.
The motion before us tonight comes from Sinn Féin. It asks us to consider the outstanding elements of the Agreement that are yet to be implemented. As co-guarantors of the Agreement, the two Governments have a responsibility here. That is why the Tánaiste is spending a significant amount of his time meeting his British counterpart and it is the reason our Ministers play an active and engaged role in the North-South Ministerial Council, along with members of the Northern Ireland Executive.
It is true that we need a bill of rights for Northern Ireland. The quasi-incorporation of the European Convention on Human Rights into law here, which mirrored a similar process within the entirety of the United Kingdom, was a positive step towards developing a bill of rights that was universal across these islands. However, a full bill of rights remains outstanding and must be implemented. In considering this motion, however, I ask its authors to outline and examine what they have done to advance this. It is very clear that all of us on this and the other island have a duty to work on the Good Friday Agreement.
The Assembly and Executive in Northern Ireland were suspended from 2002 to 2007. Since then, Sinn Féin has been in government in Northern Ireland, with five Ministers in the Executive. In that time there has been a failure to expand the remit of North-South bodies and even to establish the Executive's review of North-South institutions. Unfortunately, there has also been a failure to convince Unionists in any meaningful way that North-South bodies should be expanded and that many of them should be allowed to remain on the care and maintenance footing on which they were established during the suspension. Instead of seeking to develop such bodies, people have jumped towards talking about a plebiscite.
This has been a highly divisive and destructive subject which has little support from Unionists in Northern Ireland. All of us have a duty to work with the Good Friday Agreement and it is a duty that I, as one of 166 Deputies, take seriously. Sinn Féin Members share this duty and I look forward to hearing their reflections on it.
The Good Friday Agreement was a key milestone in the process of seeking an agreed and durable political solution to the conflict in Northern Ireland. It was instrumental in securing an end to the decades of bloody violence that had visited untold grief on so many families North and South, and in Britain. The Good Friday Agreement was a comprehensive settlement addressing not only the constitutional and political questions concerning the governance of Northern Ireland but also covering security, policing, human rights and equality issues essential to underpinning the political settlement.
In the limited time available to me, I will focus on the strong progress that has been made in policing and criminal justice co-operation, particularly in addressing the threat on this island from terrorists and the organised crime gangs to which they are inextricably linked, put simply, criminal terrorists. There is positive and dynamic North-South co-operation at policy and operational levels in combating crime. The challenges that crime presents on this island are shared ones and joint working will continue to enhance our efforts to improve community safety for all.
Arising from the Good Friday Agreement and the recommendations of the Patten Commission, a new dispensation in policing in Northern Ireland came about with the establishment of the Police Service of Northern Ireland in 2001 and new policing accountability structures. The two Governments signed an agreement on police co-operation in 2002 to provide a framework for the implementation of certain of the Patten recommendations on enhanced police co-operation aimed at improving the level of cross-community confidence in policing in Northern Ireland. This agreement provides, among other things, for personnel exchanges between the two police services, which have been operating successfully across a range of police ranks and work, including training, human resources, general operational policing and the specialist areas of policing. As part of the enhanced policing relationship, the two police services are operating a joint cross-Border policing strategy. The purpose of the strategy is to improve public safety throughout Ireland, disrupt criminal activity and enhance the policing capability of both police services on the island of Ireland. The Garda Commissioner is very committed to building on this joint policing strategy and to maintaining and augmenting cross-Border co-operation across all aspects of policing. He has my full support in doing that.
I meet and maintain regular contact, formally and informally, with the Northern Ireland Minister of Justice, David Ford, MLA. As well as our formal meetings, we frequently discuss matters of interest by telephone as they arise. We, and the officials in our Departments, have developed a close working relationship which is of great benefit in addressing matters of mutual concern and enhancing effective criminal justice cooperation. Building on the Good Friday Agreement, the two Governments signed an agreement on North-South co-operation in criminal justice matters in 2005, which was renewed in 2010 following the devolution of policing and justice to the Northern Ireland Executive. Under the framework of this agreement, I meet regularly with the Minister, Mr. Ford, to review and develop the initiatives and plans in place to achieve more effective co-operation across the criminal justice spectrum. There are a number of project groups which involve the criminal justice agencies, North and South, and they are bringing forward initiatives to enhance joint working. These project groups address issues related to probation, youth justice, forensic science, sex offenders, victims and social diversity. The aim is to improve the knowledge, capacity and responses of the criminal justice systems in facing similar and shared challenges.
The brutal killing of Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe underlines starkly the need for co-operation on all cross-Border aspects of crime. I pay tribute to the cooperation which the Garda Síochána has received from the PSNI in its ongoing investigation into this tragic killing. Since 1998, very significant progress has been made in embedding peaceful and democratic politics in Northern Ireland and in ensuring communities all over this island can aspire to develop and progress. The will of the overwhelming majority of the people of this island has very clearly held sway in that respect. That said, it is sadly the case that there remains a small number of unrepresentative groups who cannot or will not leave the past behind and whose only aspiration is to sow chaos and despair. These paramilitary groups have, unfortunately, become known in some quarters as dissidents. They could not be further from deserving the historical respectability that this label might confer on them. Let us be clear about it; these people are no more or less than criminal terrorists. They have no respect for life or liberty, they only know the law of the gun and the bomb, and they use them both to dishonour democracy. They will happily crawl into bed with any criminal gang of drug dealers or smugglers to fund their comfortable lifestyles and their acts of thuggery and futile violence. Despite the relatively small numbers involved, the threat these criminal terrorists pose, North and South, is real and persistent. The fight against the terrorist threat has always been and remains an absolute priority for the Government and the Garda Síochána. Garda authorities continue to disrupt, pursue and arrest those involved and to make them amenable to the courts for their crimes and terrorist activities. Gardaí co-operate seamlessly with their counterparts in Northern Ireland in bearing down on these criminal terrorists. The Garda Commissioner and the Chief Constable of the PSNI, who have responsibility for operational policing co-operation, have emphasised repeatedly that this close and high quality co-operation has been instrumental in disrupting these groups, preventing attacks, combating criminality and saving lives.
I mentioned already that the Garda is committed to building on and improving the current level of cross-Border co-operation. Likewise on the political front, I will continue to work with the Minister, Mr. Ford, and the UK Secretary of State, Theresa Villiers, to ensure an effective response to ensure an effective response to terrorism and cross-Border criminality.
The House will be aware that I have previously expressed profound concern at the possible withdrawal of the UK from a number of areas of EU police and judicial co-operation from the end of 2014. I have made it clear on a number of occasions that such a move would represent a retrograde step in the area of security co-operation. A large number of areas of police and judicial co-operation could be negatively impacted by such a move. Some of the areas of co-operation are critical to the effective countering of terrorism and cross-border criminality. The European arrest warrant, EAW, is the most obvious example. The EAW procedures have replaced in their entirety the previous arrangements with the UK for extradition of fugitives from justice. If the UK withdraws from the EAW, there will be, as things stand, no legal basis for extradition between our jurisdictions. This would obviously be a most undesirable situation. Other areas of co-operation, such as mutual legal assistance, would also be adversely affected by any withdrawal by the UK from EU police and judicial co-operation measures. It is entirely inconceivable that such areas of co-operation should cease. Who is likely to benefit most from such a situation? It is clear that only terrorists and criminals will profit from the legal gap which would prevent the Garda and the courts from facilitating the effective investigation of offences or the bringing of people to justice in the appropriate jurisdiction. While I have no desire to intervene in a political debate in another jurisdiction, the House will appreciate that I would be failing in my duty if I did not continue to make these points very strongly in meetings with my UK counterparts.
I meet and maintain regular contact with my Northern Ireland counterparts, David Ford and Theresa Villiers, and I can state that we are firmly of one mind with regard to the terrorist threat. We share a strong determination that all appropriate measures within the law will be taken in order to bear down on these criminal terrorists. Fifteen years on from the Good Friday Agreement, our message to these groups must be as loud and as clear as ever: "We, who chose peace, democracy and a decent future for the people of this island, haven't gone away, you know", and we will not go away. Terrorism will not win out in the face of our strong resolve to stand by those who are victims of terror. All the communities on this island, no matter what their background, their beliefs or their aspirations, share a desire to be left to get on with their lives in peace, free from the threat of terrorism. That is the shared aim of all right-thinking people in Ireland, and those groups who do not like that fact should get off the stage. They belong to the past and they should leave the future to the rest of us.
I welcome the Government amendment which demonstrates that we are fully committed to the agreements that underpin the Northern Executive. The Government is working with the Executive to finalise the work commenced with the signing of the Good Friday Agreement 15 years ago.
As my time is limited, I will focus on one aspect of the motion, namely, the proposal to introduce an Irish language Act, as agreed at St. Andrews. As Deputies may be aware, I was fortunate to chair the Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement before Deputy Joe McHugh was appointed to that position. While in that role, I visited Belfast with members of the joint committee where we visited the cross-community Cultúrlann McAdam Ó Fiach, a culture and arts centre on the Falls Road. The centre has a restaurant, theatre, gallery and bookshop and caters for matters concerning the Irish language. The name of the centre was chosen to reflect both communities in Belfast. The Cultúrlann does not have any political affiliation. It was started through local grassroots advocacy with the objective of promoting the Irish language. It is located in a flourishing Gaeltacht area and people from the local streets socialise in the centre and use its facilities to improve their Irish language skills. It is the type of cross-community centre that would benefit from the greater recognition an Irish language Act would afford.
There have been some positive developments in delivering an Irish language Act in recent years. The Northern Ireland Minister for Culture, Arts and Leisure, Ms Carál Ní Chuilín, for example, published draft strategies on an Irish language Act and Ulster-Scots Act in July 2012. Public consultation was invited and many comments were received on the strategies. I pay tribute to the work the Minister is doing on the Líofa 2015 project, which seeks to encourage 5,000 people from all walks of life in the North to take up and become fluent in the Irish language by 2015. Like any good Minister, Ms Ní Chuilín is leading from the front by becoming fluent in Irish. I follow her tweets on the subject on a daily basis.
Other positive developments include the digital cross-over last year, which resulted in TG4 and Raidió na Gaeltachta becoming available in Northern Ireland. This fulfils one of the commitments made under the Good Friday Agreement.
The Government is taking seriously the issue of implementing an Irish language Act in Northern Ireland. The Tánaiste has met many Irish language groups to discuss this subject and he and his Department will continue to work to get the Act over the line. As we all know, this is a key part of the St. Andrews Agreement and it is in everyone's interest that this objective is achieved.
Tá lúcháir orm a bheith anseo ag an díospóireacht seo faoi ábhar iontach tábhachtach 15 bliain i ndiaidh shíniú Chomhaontú Aoine an Chéasta. I am pleased to contribute to this very important debate 15 years after the signing of the Good Friday Agreement.
I acknowledge the role played by members of the Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement who visited Belfast prior to the flags protest and, more recently, to evaluate opinion at both community and political levels. The peace process, 15 years after the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, is very much in its infancy. Developments in recent months have been a wake-up call which has highlighted the fragility of the process. It is important to note, however, that the vast majority of people in Northern Ireland share an overwhelming desire not to return to the dark days of the past. Much effort is being invested in the peace process at civic, community, church and political level in the North and it is important to acknowledge this collective effort being made by former combatants, church leaders, community activists and civic society.
Let us not forget the politicians in Northern Ireland. While criticism from the sidelines often dominates the narrative, it is important to point out that change is slow, especially in a society where some people are segregated by concrete walls and less than 7% of education provided in the jurisdiction is integrated. Notwithstanding this, the warm welcome afforded the First Minister, Mr. Peter Robinson, in Derry at the official opening of the Peace Bridge is very much a sign of progress. Equally, the warm reception received by the Deputy First Minister, Mr. Martin McGuinness, at the official opening of the Skainos Centre in east Belfast also offers testament to the progress that has been made.
Politicians in Northern Ireland cannot travel alone on this important peace journey. Westminster and Dublin still have a very important role to play, whether in terms of engaging at North-South ministerial level or North-South inter-parliamentary level or in day-to-day contact on important matters such as health care, transport or agriculture. The important work of the North-South bodies needs to continue apace and where pragmatic and practical solutions for enhanced co-operation are an option, they should be grasped immediately.
Fifteen years on from the Good Friday Agreement, citizens need to see tangible economic benefits from cross-Border co-operation, examples of which include the planned radiotherapy unit at Altnagelvin Hospital which will open in 2016, the Narrow Water Bridge which will connect County Louth to Warrenpoint and the A5 road connection through the north west.
The east-west strand of the Good Friday Agreement should not be ignored either. I acknowledge the work of Deputy Frank Feighan who chairs the British-Irish sovereign committee. Deputy Feighan has shown excellent leadership and dedication on the decade of commemoration. I also acknowledge the ever present interest of the US Government in the peace process. Through the work of the US embassy in Dublin and US consulate in Belfast, the US Administration is kept abreast of ongoing developments and progress.
Outstanding elements of the Good Friday Agreement include an Irish language Bill, a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland, a charter of rights for the island of Ireland and a civic forum. It is of the utmost importance that these matters are kept high on the agenda.
What was normal in Northern Ireland in the past is different from what is normal in the North today. A British army checkpoint in Aughnacloy, County Tyrone, has been replaced with a hairdressing salon. On a recent trip to Belfast, I was able to roll down the car window to get directions to Coláiste Feirste, as Gaeilge, from a city council employee. That a recent five part television series, "The Fall", could be based in Belfast and not be about the Troubles is progress in a society that is becoming normalised. The irony of a programme depicting a serial killer on the loose in Belfast being considered a reflection of a normalised society will not be lost on many dark humoured citizens of the city.
It is important to create a space for politicians and civic society in Northern Ireland to develop their vision, one which is based on consent and accepts difference. Interwoven in this vision is the serious business of grappling with legacy issues. The weight of the past cannot be ignored. The Parades Commission is working tirelessly with communities to avoid contentious parades. With more than 4,500 parades taking place annually, this can be a very difficult task. The progress we have observed in recent days with regard to a parade in Rasharkin and good work being done in other places such as Castlederg are very welcome. I acknowledge the role of all involved in seeking a way forward.
As a Donegal man and an Ulster man, I am aware that Ulster people are often accused of being a little "thran". For those who are not familiar with Scottish vernacular, this expression means that Ulster people do not like being told what to do. This could help explain to PhD students seeking to explore voting trends the reason County Donegal consistently votes "No" in referendums. On the other hand, the people of Ulster are big enough and bold enough to know that this peace journey, which is very much in its infancy, will require help along the way. I ask Deputies to reach out to our neighbours who are only a few miles up the road. I look forward to working with them on issues of concern to all of the people of this island, North and South.
When the Good Friday Agreement was signed, I was in my mid-20s. I grew up in a republican family during the conflict and my father was imprisoned for nine years. Like thousands of others who had similar experiences, it was unbelievable to watch television coverage of the negotiations. I recall seeing images of the various negotiators standing in the windows of different rooms in the early hours of the morning. I also recall the drama and the immense achievement of Senator George Mitchell in bringing everybody over the line in the context of finalising the Agreement, which was then overwhelmingly endorsed by the majority of Irish people on both sides of the Border.
That was a moment of great hope. It has been a rocky road since but the institutions are up and running, power-sharing is in place, there has been a new beginning in respect of policing and - despite the activities of a tiny minority of individuals who have no support whatsoever - there is peace in the main. However, that is not enough because it is not what was agreed. The outstanding issues include the failure to introduce a Bill of Rights for the North and an all-Ireland charter of rights, the failure to act on the Weston Park commitment to hold an independent inquiry into the killing of human rights lawyer Pat Finucane and the fact that Marian Price and Martin Corey remain in prison. Whose interest does it serve to imprison people without either trial or access to due process? All this does is to drive some young people into the arms of so-called dissident republican organisations. That is the only eventuality to which the ongoing imprisonment of Marian Price and Martin Corey - without any charges being proffered against them and without their having access to due process - gives rise. I cannot understand why the British Government is adhering to its approach in this regard.
The complacency in respect of this matter is unacceptable. Consider how long it took to arrive at the Good Friday Agreement. If the true potential of the Agreement is to be achieved, then both the Irish and British Governments need to reconsider their attitude. The Irish Government must engage in renewed substantive engagement with its British counterpart in order to progress outstanding issues, including the establishment of a Bill of Rights for the North, an all-Ireland charter of rights and other legislative commitments. Sinn Féin wants a strong, inclusive and effective Bill of Rights to be introduced. This instrument must be capable of helping us move away from a society in which fundamental human rights were systematically trampled upon to one in which they are thoroughly, extensively and enduringly protected and promoted. Fifteen years on from the signing of the Agreement, my party maintains that a meaningful process should be put in place to implement a Bill of Rights that is worthy of the aspiration of all the people regarding a rights-based society which offers protection to the most vulnerable and which respects the diversity of our communities. Equality must be at its very core.
The Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, which is chaired by Deputy McHugh, recently heard from representatives from the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and the Northern Ireland Human Rights Consortium about the failure of the Irish and British Governments to implement the key human rights obligations contained in the Agreement. It is 15 years since the Agreement, which was democratically endorsed by the vast majority of the people on this island who voted for a Bill of Rights for the North and an all-Ireland charter of rights, was signed but we are no further along the road. Despite the democratic demand on the part of the people, both Governments have failed to meet this obligation and that continues to undermine the agreement. A Bill of Rights for the North would be an opportunity to establish fundamental rights for all in our society. Who does not want that? What reason could anyone have for delaying the introduction of a Bill of Rights? Who does not believe in equality? Difficulties with regard to equality were core to the conflict in the first instance and were at the heart of the profound tragedy of 30 years of pain and hurt among people in republication and Nationalist areas, in Britain and across this entire island.
It is sometimes for parties in this House which do not have representation in the North to use this matter as an opportunity to score points and to offer often the most bizarre arguments against Sinn Féin. I appeal to the political parties which support the Good Friday Agreement and which contributed - in some cases significantly - to its development to reflect on the level of engagement which is taking place. The Minister for Justice and Equality used the term "in another jurisdiction". The Irish Government is a co-signatory to the Good Friday Agreement. It is, therefore, a co-guarantor and it has every right to have a view in respect of and have a say on what happens in the Six Counties. It does not need to apologise for that or to refer to "another jurisdiction". Those in government will skilfully, diplomatically and respectfully engage with all parties but there is also a need for frank discussion, particularly as the Agreement is not being honoured in full. We know where complacency led us in the past and we cannot afford to go down that path again.
There has been a huge change in the political climate since the pre-Good Friday Agreement era. Every once in a while, people should pause and recall the time when the conflict in and militarisation of the Six Counties affected all aspects of life on this island. They should also recall how, before the Agreement, it was virtually impossible to contemplate an era of peace in which British soldiers and their sidekicks in the RUC would not harass and hound Nationalists, in which the Six Counties would not have been all but cut off from the remainder of the island and in which thousands of men and women would not languishing in jails in Ireland and Britain on foot of conflict-related charges or in which death and injury as a result of war would not be a daily occurrence. We have achieved much of that to which I refer, which was a dream for all of us during the conflict. As an Irish republican, I also dream of a time - soon, I hope - when I will witness the reunification of Ireland.
The subject of this debate is the Good Friday Agreement, 15 years on. I commend those who had the vision to see beyond that supposedly intractable impasse in which we lived until 1998. The work of some of the key players in early years of the peace process has been acknowledged by previous speakers. I support the comments that were made in this regard. However, I especially wish to acknowledge the role of my party leader, Deputy Adams, and of the Deputy First Minister, Mr. Martin McGuinness, MLA. Without them, there would not have been a Good Friday Agreement and there would be no peace. Perhaps Deputy Deasy, who seems to be stuck in blinkered anti-republican mode, might dwell on that when he reflects on his ill-informed contribution to this debate. The Deputy's comments are only a reflection of the other ill-informed statements and jibes we regularly hear in this Chamber. Ignorance is bliss but it behoves the Members of this House - as with any other issue - to fully inform themselves of the facts with regard to what is happening in the Six Counties. Somebody should inform Deputy Deasy that 15 years have passed and that Ireland and the world have moved on. However, that is not to state that everything has been resolved. Far from it. Without Deputy Adams, Deputy First Minister McGuinness and the party, as a whole, pushing out the boundaries during negotiations on the Good Friday Agreement, the Weston Park agreement and St. Andrews Agreement, we would be much worse off than is now the case. Others were contemplating settling for much less than was achieved in the Good Friday Agreement.
Dar leis na Poblachtaigh, is próiseas atá i gceist anseo agus dá réir sin, tá bogadh éigin agus dul chun cinn éigin i gceist. 'Séard is brí le sin, ná go bhfuil ar an Rialtas anseo agus i Sasana comhlíonadh a dhéanamh ar na geallúintí a thug siad. Don chuid is mó, tá an méid atá geallúnta ag an Rialtas anseo comhlíonta, ach níl sé sin déanta i gcás an Rialtais i Sasana. Ag an staid seo, ba cheart go mbeidís ag cur leis an dul chun cinn seachas a bheith fós ag lorg geallúintí a bheith chomhlíonta 15 bliain i ndiaidh an Chomhaontaithe.
My colleagues have outlined many of the outstanding issues, particularly in respect of a peace dividend for the North. In December, I informed the Minister for Justice in the Six Counties, Mr. David Ford, MLA, that the biggest threat to the peace process would be the death in prison of Marian Price or Gerry McGeough.
Since then, the latter has been released, but Marian's health has continued to deteriorate. The intractable mindsets of securocrats who would keep an ageing woman with mental health problems locked up without charge, deny their own Queen's pardon and keep Mr. Martin Corey locked up without trial or a case to answer obviously do not understand the history of prison conflict in Ireland. Maybe they do and it suits their warped agenda, which was never about what was best for Ireland.
The message should go out from this Chamber to the British Government loud and clear - release Marian Price and Martin Corey immediately. There should be no prevarication.
The Good Friday Agreement is one of the most important achievements of 20th century Ireland. It was achieved thanks to the hard work of many dedicated people, including quite a few in the House, and we must honour that achievement with our own dedication to implementing the Agreement and what flowed from it.
I wish to address an issue that affects a large number of people and their families on both sides of this community, but especially the Nationalist side on this part of the island. I am a member of that group, as are some members of other parties who have been elected to the Oireachtas. I speak of former political prisoners and their rights. Many speak abstractly about former combatants and those imprisoned as a result of the conflict. They speak of them as if they have never met one, as if we are unfit to be members of society or are not active members of our communities - fathers, mothers, husbands, wives and providers. This must surely be the case, as in many instances we are not given any consideration in policy formation. I hesitate to use the word "criminal" because it is so insidious in this context, yet that is how we are treated. I am not a criminal, I never was a criminal and I will never allow anyone to treat me as such. I am not alone in this feeling, but many still face criminalisation years or decades out of prison.
The Good Friday Agreement is clear in opposing the erection of barriers to former prisoners finding employment. The Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Varadkar, and the Minister of State, Deputy Kelly, have twice deliberately worked against this principle. In 2011, the Minister introduced a Bill that discriminated against former political prisoners from operating as hauliers. This complaint fell on deaf ears. He had time to make some supposedly witty quips and statements in poor taste, but he had none to consider his Bill's repercussions for the hard-working people whose livelihoods were under threat or the damage done to the Government's credibility in advancing the peace process.
Tomorrow, the Dáil will debate the Taxi Regulation Bill, which will make it possible to suspend or disqualify former political prisoners from operating taxis. The Minister of State has tried to fob the issue off on the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Shatter. This is rubbish. Many former political prisoners are taxi drivers. They will need to appeal to hold on to licences that they have operated without problem for many years.
The Minister might not believe that there is a difference between someone like me and a common criminal, but the people showed they believe differently. The Agreement certainly differs. In the Mr. Daniel McComb case in the North, the courts ruled that it was wrong to discriminate in this exact context. What exactly about the term "equivalency of rights" does the Irish Government not understand? Problems also persist for those who seek employment in the security industry, but it is a difficulty in many more fields. Will any Deputy tell me that neither I nor Deputy Martin Ferris is fit to drive a taxi, or that Deputy First Minister, Martin McGuinness, is good enough to sit at the Executive table but not anywhere else?
The Government must work to provide a legislative basis to ban discrimination in employment against former political prisoners covered by the terms of the Good Friday Agreement. This issue must be a consideration in every Bill it introduces. Treating international agreements to which it signed up as à
la carte menus is not good enough. The Government also has a role in holding its partner in the Agreement to account and in pushing for equality and justice in the North. The Government has done little to push this agenda forward or to progress the Agreement's implementation. It has cynically used the North as a stick with which to beat Sinn Féin, usually displaying a shocking lack of knowledge of the North, the history of the conflict and the issues facing the people today. We need the Government to be a strong campaigner for the Agreement, but how can we expect that when it shows such little respect for it in the Twenty-six Counties?
It is only right that the Government should speak of a shared future through the peace process. It is what we seek to build. Ex-prisoners have been to the fore in pushing the process onwards and in working across communities to build a shared future. The Government would do well to join them in their work instead of devising new ways of barring them from employment or treating them as pariahs. Let us not roll back the clock. It is time to move forward.
I took my seat in the Dáil as the sole Sinn Féin Deputy in 1997. The peace process had broken down at that time. It had been undermined by the refusal of the British Conservative Government of the day to enter inclusive negotiations, respecting all electoral mandates and without preconditions. Through hard work, persistence and consistent engagement by political leaders, not least by the leadership of Sinn Féin, the peace process was revived and inclusive negotiations began. The outcome was the Good Friday Agreement of 1998. I took part in those talks and was present when the Agreement was concluded.
It is difficult to believe that was 15 years ago. In that time, huge progress has been made. We now have a shared peace, apart from isolated incidents, that has been with us for a decade and a half. The political process arising out of the peace process took years to put in place before inclusive institutions were finally established in the North. What for many was previously unthinkable was manifest before their eyes when Unionists and republicans worked together in the Executive and the Assembly, with inextricable links to all-island structures. They are still working together, which is in itself a major achievement.
The big issues, such as the release of political prisoners, demilitarisation, the putting of weapons beyond use and policing, proved intractable for very long periods, but were significantly progressed, allowing the political process to develop. Much progress has been made within the Six Counties and on a cross-Border, all-Ireland basis. Co-operation in areas such as health, transport, agriculture and tourism has been greatly enhanced. The North-South Inter-Parliamentary Association has been established, and I am proud to have played my part in bringing that about. I look forward to it playing an increasingly important role.
A lot has been achieved, but an awful lot more remains to be done. That is fine so long as we can see that progress is being made and there is the political will on the part of the British Government to move forward. The big problem is that the required political will on the part of the British Government is absent. For this reason, Sinn Féin is raising these issues in this debate.
Key commitments are not being met, and the level of engagement required is not forthcoming from the British Government. The Irish Government, sadly, is not acting with the intensity of application required from it either. The £18 billion peace dividend undertaken by the British Government in the St. Andrews Agreement has not been delivered. The block grant for the Six Counties has been cut by £4 billion. The British Government is trying to impose harsh social welfare cuts. The British Secretary of State continues to imprison Ms Marian Price and Mr. Martin Corey. The promised inquiry into the murder of Mr. Pat Finucane has not been established.
I want to focus on two particular outstanding issues. This week marks the 39th anniversary of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings in which 33 people were killed. The British Government continues to refuse to release all the files and other information in its possession relating to this, the biggest single loss of life in a single day during the whole course of the long conflict, and to release the files on the other cross-Border bombings in Dublin, Belturbet, Castleblayney and Dundalk. I believe that this Taoiseach and his two predecessors have been far too accepting of the British position on this.
In February 2012, members of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement met the British Secretary of State for the North, Mr. Owen Paterson, and pressed him on the continuing non-disclosure of British Government documents relating to the cross-Border bombings of the 1970s. Justice for the Forgotten described his response as very disappointing.
He told the committee that the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, William Hague "had assured his counterpart here that we have made available the synopsis that is relevant to this case". This apparently refers to a ten page letter to Judge Barron from former Secretary of State, John Reid, in February 2002. Judge Barron expressed his frustration with the lack of information contained in this letter. He repeatedly requested the British Government for access to the documents themselves but, on every occasion, he was refused. That refusal continues to this day and it is totally unacceptable. The Government must be far more proactive on this matter.
The second outstanding issue I wish to raise is the Ulster Canal. Far-seeing individuals, not least in the local communities, saw the potential long ago of re-opening the Ulster Canal from Lough Erne in County Fermanagh, through Clones in County Monaghan and on to Lough Neagh. This was a flagship project identified in the Good Friday Agreement and confirmed in subsequent negotiations and agreements. Those far-seeing people saw the potential economic return for entire communities throughout this beautiful part of rural Ireland with the opening up of the Erne-Shannon waterway, linking Lough Erne with the River Shannon. They rightly concluded that similar benefits could be gained from re-opening the Ulster Canal, with the 13 km Erne to Clones section marked out as the first phase of the overall project.
In July 2007, nearly six years ago, the North-South Ministerial Council agreed to proceed with the Ulster Canal project. That was widely welcomed at the time, especially in the Border counties, where the peace dividend had been very slow to materialise. It was widely seen as vindication of the campaign of the local communities and the calls from elected representatives of all parties North and South, including my Sinn Féin colleagues and me, for this very positive project to be advanced. In the intervening period we have seen the economic collapse in this State and a parallel contraction in the North. Despite that, the Ulster Canal project was kept live. Nonetheless, it took until October 2011 for Waterways Ireland to lodge planning applications. Permission was granted last month for the northern section by Minister for the Environment, Alex Attwood, and earlier this month by Clones Town Council and Monaghan County Council for the section in this jurisdiction. The Minister, Deputy Deenihan, has advised that the earliest the contract could be awarded would be late 2014 with a completion date in spring 2017. I urge the Government to do all in its power to expedite this process. I also urge the Minister, Deputy Deenihan, and other colleagues to maximise the possible EU funding for the project from the PEACE IV programme. The Ulster Canal project is hugely important, not only symbolically, but will prove to be powerful in terms of economic development across this island. It is time to get the work on the ground under way.
The signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 marked an unprecedented historical breakthrough that has provided the platform upon which the last 15 years of political stability and relative peace has been built. The Agreement itself was recognition by all sides that the policy of partition had failed. Decades of discrimination, oppression and the abuse of power by some within the Six Counties led to an armed conflict that was an inevitable consequence of partition. Prior to the signing of the Agreement, the Six-County state was a bankrupt political entity that, as well as failing Nationalists and republicans by treating them as second-class citizens, also disenfranchised a sizeable percentage of the Protestant-Unionist community.
The signing of the Agreement in April 1998 was a result of more than two years of intense multi-party talks between the political parties in the Six Counties and the Governments in both London and Dublin. While it was not a perfect arrangement, the Good Friday Agreement paved the way for the establishment of a far more equitable and reflective political system that empowered elected representatives from both communities so they could have a more meaningful role in the future direction of their communities. The Agreement also recognised the legitimate but differing political aspirations of Nationalists and Unionists, but for us as republicans - we make no apologies for saying this - we see it as an opportunity to achieve our objective of a united Ireland through political means.
Republicans have always endeavoured to work the Agreement with others in the interests of all citizens - Nationalist, republican, Unionist and loyalist. We have done that despite the fact that the Stormont Executive has had one hand tied behind its back. The lack of fiscal power, the cut in the block grant, the failure of the London Government to honour its commitments to provide a peace dividend and the current Tory Government's attempt to impose more than €1 billion in welfare cuts will not deter republicans from pushing this process forward and from achieving the full implementation of all the outstanding issues.
The establishment of a power-sharing government between parties from very different backgrounds and history and with very different ideologies has not stifled progress in transforming, not only the political landscape of the Six Counties, but the economic, educational, cultural, civic and social landscape. Evidence of that can be seen every day in the infrastructural development of the Six Counties in terms of new hospitals, schools, tourism centres and transport links. Sinn Féin is very proud of the pivotal role we have played, along with others, in forging this Agreement and making it work. Our track record in the Assembly is there for all to see and we have shown on countless occasions a willingness to make the hard but fair decisions that are taken for the betterment of citizens from all backgrounds in the Six Counties. It is a track record that also makes a mockery of some of the condescending comments we hear from too many Government and Fianna Fáil spokespersons, who without even a touch of irony claim Sinn Féin is unfit for government in this State.
The comments from Deputy John Deasy on the motion last night were ill-informed and ignorant. His assertion that for the past 15 years Sinn Féin had no interest in substantive engagement with others on the implementation of the Good Friday Agreement is laughable and has a touch of irony considering he would probably get a nose bleed if he crossed the Border. Deputy Deasy’s contribution reflects the all too familiar partitionist mentality of some Deputies in this Chamber who see and talk about the Irish Republic as a 26-county political entity rather than a 32-county democratic socialist republic as declared in 1916. Lest Deputy Deasy has forgotten, he is a member of a political party that once claimed to be "The United Ireland Party", which makes his crass partitionist attitude all the more ironic. Let us compare what he said to some of the other contributions made by members of his party. Deputy McHugh's contribution was well-informed and conciliatory. That is the type of dialogue we need between political parties in this State. The peace process is not to be taken for granted and needs continuous work. I appeal to people such as Deputy Deasy to step out of the past and into 2013 and to work with us to ensure the full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement. The hardship that ordinary people in this State have had to endure as a result of the ineptitude and corruption of previous Governments resulted in the destruction of the economy in this State, and the policies of their successors in the current Government, of which Deputy Deasy is a member, and which continues to impose the failed policy of austerity is in stark contrast to what the Good Friday Agreement set out to achieve, namely, equality, justice and a path towards a new shared Ireland which respects all of the traditions and cultures on this island.
I am delighted to be present for the debate. When the people of the island of Ireland voted to approve the Good Friday Agreement 15 years ago they were hopeful of a future free of the violence and division which had scarred Northern Ireland for the previous 30 years. They believed that peace was possible and they wanted to see it become reality. In many ways, their wish has come true. Northern Ireland today is a place where all traditions take their seat in government, where Ireland North and South work together to develop a prosperous all-island economy, and where sectarian violence is no longer a feature of everyday life. It is important that we reflect on all the positives that have come out of the peace process, and that we recognise how far we have come in those 15 years but, most importantly, that we concentrate on cementing a lasting peace.
The Tánaiste spoke yesterday of the impact the Agreement has had and the great progress that has been achieved. That is certainly the case. I commend all those involved.
The relationship between North and South and between Ireland and Britain has never been stronger. These strong relationships have seen great benefit for the people of this island and the Government will continue to make them a priority. I commend the work of Deputy Joe McHugh, as Chairman, and his colleagues on the Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement.
More than 15 years on, most of the provisions of the Good Friday Agreement have been implemented, but there are some still outstanding issues. It is still a work in progress. There is great scope for further expansion of North-South co-operation to develop a stronger economy for the whole island. Current economic challenges should stimulate discussion on cost-saving and cost-sharing measures, as well as initiatives to encourage investment. We do have friends, though, and I hope that my colleagues on the other side of the House accept that we have friends outside of Ireland, particularly in the United States of America. Serious work has been done by the United States in recent times to help in the implementation of the provisions of the Good Friday Agreement. In that context, I am delighted that President Obama will visit Belfast before attending the G8 summit in Fermanagh.
As we have heard often in this debate, there remain great challenges to developing a fully reconciled and shared society in Northern Ireland. Parades and flags still have the ability to cause division, tied up closely as they are with identity. The custody and treatment of particular prisoners, an issue which has also come under scrutiny in this debate, is also a source of concern. At the heart of all these issues is the question of rights, reminding us that a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland is an important provision yet to be fulfilled.
The 15th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement has provided an opportunity to take stock of where we are. Northern Ireland is, in many ways, an entirely different place from 15 years ago but there are shadows of the old sectarianism which still cause instability. We hear about such shadows frequently - too frequently. We must continue to work with the British Government, the Assembly and the people of Northern Ireland to build a future where peace is secure and where division is a distant memory. It is useful to reflect on the past but we must really be thinking of the next 15 years and where we want to be by then.
I hope the Government motion can find agreement from all. It makes a number of important amendments to the motion tabled by Sinn Féin. First, it acknowledges the enormous progress which has been achieved over the last 15 years in Northern Ireland. The political institutions of the Agreement are very firmly in place. Second, it reflects the very particular responsibility of the Northern Ireland Executive and those in leadership positions in the Executive to play their part in ensuring full implementation of the Agreement and in tackling sectarianism and segregation. The Government has long since tabled proposals for a North-South consultative forum, sought an early and thorough review on North-South co-operation and tabled specific proposals to eliminate duplication and improve service provision with reduced resources. A response is awaited on each of these. Third, the Government motion reflects the deep and continuous commitment of this Government to implementing and developing the peace process and also to uniting in harmony and friendship all the people who share this island, in all their identities and traditions. Fourth, it gives due importance to the principle of consent with regard to the constitutional status of Northern Ireland. Finally, it more fully reflects some of the un-implemented aspects of the Agreement, including a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland, an Irish language Act and a civic forum.
On a personal level, as a student of Irish history, I remember the bad old days as well as everyone else in this House. I remember how Northern Ireland was when I was growing up. It had a deep impact on me and affected the way in which I thought about every single thing I did. In my role as a Government Minister it has given me great pleasure, while taking part in various official engagements across the Border in Northern Ireland, to see the wealth of growth and friendship there and the way in which attitudes have changed. I had the pleasure of being the first Irish Minister to lay a wreath at the Cenotaph recognising those who died at the Battle of the Somme. I really appreciated that moment and enjoyed doing it.
On that note, I commend the amendment put forward by the Government and hope that all parties will continue to work with this and future Governments on this issue, which is absolutely critical, not just for one political party or political philosophy, but for each and every one of us.
The Good Friday Agreement is now 15 years old. This historic Agreement presents all involved in the Irish peace process with the opportunity to resolve all outstanding issues associated with the military conflict, now thankfully in the past. However, there remain painful difficulties involved in truth recovery, particularly for victims and their families. Sinn Féin believes that as a society seeks to leave conflict behind and to move forward, there is a requirement that all of us address the tragic human consequences of the past.
Republicans are very conscious of the hurt and suffering which has been caused through conflict in our country. We reject any attempts to create and sustain a hierarchy of victims. All victims and survivors of the conflict must be treated on the basis of equality and in order to deal with our past, do justice to the memory victims and give closure to families of victims and survivors, we need to put in place a mechanism to facilitate that. Sinn Féin believes an independent international truth commission is required as a vehicle for truth recovery. Sinn Féin is very mindful of all the difficulties involved in truth recovery, particularly for victims and their families, but there is an onus on all political leaders to promote this. The discharge of these responsibilities needs to be rooted in the political dispensation agreed on Good Friday, 1998.
How
we deal with our past will also help to shape our future. We must also learn from our past. The civil war in this part of our country in 1922 and 1923 left a bitterness and hurt which was allowed to fester for generations and shaped the very nature of politics in this State - civil war politics. There was no truth recovery process and the consequences of that remained with us for many decades. A truth recovery process would have helped to heal the pain of that particular period.
In contrast, Nelson Mandela's government initiated, in 1995, a commission of inquiry, known as the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, in to all apartheid-related activities, with the objective of mending unbridgeable racial disparities. The politics of reconciliation embodied in that inquiry was predicated on the fundamental principle that to forgive is not just to be altruistic but is the best form of self-interest.
For many years Sinn Féin has worked alongside victims and survivor organisations in their efforts to uncover truth, particularly those people killed directly by the British State or by surrogates of British Government agencies in the Unionist paramilitary organisations. An independent international truth commission is required now, with all participants in the conflict sincerely and genuinely embracing it. All process should be victim-centred and should deal with all victims of the conflict on the basis of equality. There are vested interests who do not want the truth to come out and who will oppose the creation of a meaningful truth recovery process. The disgraceful British and Unionist wrangle over the definition of a victim and the recognition payment are cases in point. Truth recovery cannot and will not be dealt with through a British-Unionist prism or, for that matter, through an Irish-Republican prism.
The British Government, which has historically played such a divisive and violent role in Irish affairs, must join in an honest endeavour which allows the people of our island to carve out a new future. The British Government has pursued, as a matter of policy, the use of administrative and institutional violence and collusion. It has employed the full weight of its political influence and authority to deny actively, cover-up and block truth recovery processes. This has involved the suppression of reports by various commissions from Stalker, to Sampson, to Stevens. It has also refused to fulfil its commitments with regard to the Pat Finucane murder case and to co-operate with the Barron commission.
If there is to be an inclusive healing process and a genuine process of reconciliation then the British Government must face up to its responsibilities. The Irish Government has a constitutional, legal and moral responsibility to actively promote and encourage this course of action. All of us must pledge ourselves to tell and hear the truth about the past. Only then can the healing really begin.
Tá Comhaontú Aoine an Chéasta tógtha ar chomhionannas agus cuimsiú. D'átháin Comhaontú Aoine an Chéasta dé-shaoránacht agus féiniúlacht muintir an Sé Chontae. Tá cearta teanga mar chuid lárnach den Chomhaontú agus gheall an Chomhaontú an Ghaeilge a chosaint.
Riomh an Chomhaontú rinne an stát sa Tuaisceart gach iarracht bac a chur ar an Ghaeilge. Rinne an stát gach iarracht an Ghaeilge a imeallú. In ainneoin é seo tháinig borradh iontach ar an Ghaeilge sa Tuaisceart de bharr láidreacht agus chuid oibre an comhphobal.
I mBéal Feirste d’fhás pobal breá bríomhar Gaeilge ar Bhóthar Seoige. Tríd a saothar féin chruthaigh siad an céad Gaeltacht uirbeach sa tír seo. Tháinig fás agus forbairt ar an chomhphobal agus d’oscail siad an chéad Gaelscoil. Rinne an Rialtas san Tuaisceart gach iarracht bac a chur ar an nGaelscoil sin. Ach lean siad ar aghaidh ag obair go díograsach chun an Ghaeilge a chur chun chinn.
De réir an Comhaontú Chill Rímhinn ní mór don Rialtas Sasanach Act na Gaeilge Tuaisceart Éireann a chuir i bhfeidhm. Is trua an rud é gur shocraigh na hAontachtaithe dul i mbun feachtas in aghaidh an Achta, gan deiseanna cur chun chinn éagsúlacht an chomhphobail a thuiscint i gceart. Theip Rialtas Sasana beart a dhéanamh de réir a bhriathar de bharr an fheachtais aontachta seo.
Is rud uafásach an frith Gaelachas seo mar thaispeánann sé easpa measa, easpa comhionannas agus easpa cearta agus leis an fhírinne a rá is rud nua é sin i measc na hAontachtaithe. Bhí Aontachtaithe i gcroí lár Athbheochan na Gaeilge sa tír seo. Chuir na hAontachtaithe le forbairt na Gaeilge i mBéal Feirste go háirithe.
Tá cultúrlann lonnaithe i mBéal Feirste, agus tá an t-ainm atá air in onóir beirt - an Cairdinéil Ó Fiach agus Robert Shipboy McAdam. Rugadh Robert i 1805. Preispitéireach a ba é. Bhí sé eolach i dtrí theanga déag. Ba bailitheoir lámhscríbhinn Gaeilge é agus shocraigh sé ar foclóir Gaeilge-Béarla a chruthú. Chaith sé a shaol ag chuir a Ghaeilge chun cinn. Gan amhras is ómós iontach é an cultúrlann dó.
Is cuid den gcultúr de gach pobal sa tír seo an Ghaeilge. Is cuma cén taobh den phobal a bhaineann tú leis. Tá stair coitianta againn agus tá cúlra coitianta againn agus caithfimid bheith bródúil as.
Ní bagairt é Comhaontú Aoine an Chéasta do éinne. Cosnaíonn sé saibhreas ár n-oidhreacht. Ní bagairt í an Gaeilge nó Acht na Gaeilge ach an oiread. Ní cheart go mbeadh diúltú an mhionlaigh in ann bac a chur ar dhul chun cinn na Gaeilge nó ar chearta teanga muintir na Sé Chontae.
Caithfidh an Rialtas Sasana a chuid dualgais a comhlíonadh agus reachtaíocht a chruthú chun cearta teanga a chosaint. Ba cheart dóibh acmhainní a chur chun forbairt na Gaeilge a láidriú.
Tá Rialtas na hAlbain agus Rialtas na Breataine Bhige tar éis reachtaíocht cosúil le seo a chur i bhfeidhm agus tá a lán le foghlaim againn ó ár gcomharsan béal dorais.
Ceann de na rudaí rathúil a tháinig as an gComhaontú ná tuiscint níos fearr idir an Oirthir agus an Iarthar. Mar bhall den Tionól Pharlaiminteach na Breataine agus na hÉireann is féidir liom tairbhe an chomhoibrithe a fheiceáil. Faoi láthair táim ag obair mar comhúdar ar thuarascáil ar sheirbhísí an EIB agus an slí is fearr níos mó tairbhe a bhaint amach as an EIB. Is féidir liom fás san tuiscint agus san chomhionnas a fheicáil sa tionól.
Mar Ghael, mar Phoblachtach Éireannach ba mhaith liom comhoibriú cothromach a fhobhairt idir an tír seo agus Sasana. Gan amhras tá fadhbanna ann ach is féidir linn iad a comhréiteach ach obair le chéile. Tá deiseanna tráchtála ann agus is féidir linn tairbhe iontach a bhaint amach ach obair le chéile. Ach chun é sin a déanamh caithfimid i bhfad níos mó a dhéanamh chun Chomhaontú Aoine an Chéasta a chur i bhfeidhm. Tá an glúin seo ag brath ar agus tá na glúin atá le teacht ag brath air.
In the course of this debate many speakers have looked back over 15 years and recognised the great achievement that was the Good Friday Agreement. They have acknowledged the efforts and achievements of Irish political leaders and I wish to reiterate that. I wish to recognise in a particular way the friends of Ireland, especially in the United States of America, who have supported and facilitated the process. In truth, there would have been no peace agreement without them. Often, people outside Ireland showed far more vision and courage than many at home were prepared to show and I wish to acknowledge that as well.
As others have noted, the Good Friday Agreement and the Irish peace process are beacons for other parts of the world. They represent a framework of institutions based on equality, power-sharing and democratic principles. Naturally, the Agreement is not an end point but a means by which to deliver peaceful change. As we know, it removed the British Government veto on change, proving that the North of Ireland is not and never was as British as Finchley. It provides for a Border poll. In the final analysis it will be up to the people North and South in this country to determine the future shape of our nation. Yesterday evening I was in Crossmaglen with a panel of speakers at a packed meeting where people from across south Armagh and north Louth enthusiastically and energetically debated the issue of a Border poll and the future Ireland they wished to see for their children.
The two governments are equal co-guarantors of the Agreement. In the first instance it is for them to ensure compliance with and implementation of the Agreement. Like previous administrations, this Government must resist the temptation or instinct to take a back seat to the British Government. To date the actions of the British Government have amounted to stepping outside and undermining crucial elements of the Agreement. For example, it resisted the agreement at Weston Park for a full public inquiry into the killing of Pat Finucane. It has cut budgets and undermined institutions in the North. It has failed to legislate for Acht na Gaeilge. It has set aside financial agreements entered into at St. Andrews for an £18 billion financial package. It has cut the block grant by £4 billion. Now it is seeking to cut a further £1 billion from welfare benefits. Meanwhile it has rejected the joint call by all parties in the North for greater fiscal powers. Therefore, in the mind of the British Administration the Northern economy is to fend for itself, grow, develop and provide opportunity, essentially with one arm tied behind its back. The Irish Government should intervene on this issue. It is not good enough to sit back and observe cutbacks and hardship in the North. The Irish Government should call it as it is and make the case clearly that for the North to flourish and for the country to flourish, fiscal powers must be repatriated to Stormont and those powers must reside with elected Irish leaders.
The actions of this British Government have not only undermined the Agreement and the institutions but frequently the standing of the Irish Government as well. It has often provided cover for those opposed to the agreements. Let us be clear about it in case there is any doubt: Sinn Féin has always delivered on agreements. We want to see the full implementation of all of the outstanding issues and we stand squarely against inequality and sectarianism and for inclusion, equality and respect. We also support absolutely the need for truth and reconciliation and we recognise that this cannot be a one-sided discussion. We have supported and will continue to campaign for the establishment of an international independent truth recovery process and we encourage everyone to play a full part in such a process.
The Agreement belongs to all our people and the current Government is a custodian of it.
The Fianna Fáil amendment to our motion is threadbare and minimalist, raising a question mark over Fianna Fáil's understanding not just of the progress we have made in the North, but the challenges that face us. The Government's amendment, by contrast, provides a constructive consensus on dealing with issues as we move forward. We can only judge the bona fides of that by the actions our colleagues across the floor will take. We note, despite a welcome reference to co-operation in the framework for economic recovery, that there is a studied absence of reference to the peace dividend and the financial package agreed at St. Andrews. I encourage the Government to be proactive on that matter.
I commend the Minister of State, Deputy Kelly, on being the first Minister or Minister of State to lay a wreath at the Cenotaph in Belfast. Clearly that was an important moment for him. In the same spirit, as the Taxi Regulation Bill is considered, I ask the Minister of State to look again at the issue of qualifying prisoners under the Good Friday Agreement. If his analysis is that the conflict is over and we are to move forward collectively and in a spirit of co-operation, why he would facilitate discrimination against that group of men and women? I ask him to reconsider that.
We also call on the Government to work with the British Government and all of the parties to re-energise the peace and political processes. Fifteen years is a long time to some but in truth it is the blink of an eye, an historical heartbeat. There is a danger, however, 15 years on that people can become complacent or even detached from the process unfolding just up the road. The Government does not have that luxury; this is too important. We stand ready to work in co-operation and with goodwill with all parties across the Dáil and with every political party in the country to ensure hope and history continue to rhyme and we have full delivery of the agreements and their political potential.
Amendment No. 1 agreed to.
Motion, as amended, agreed to.
The Dáil adjourned at 9.05 p.m. until 10.30 a.m. on Thursday, 16 May 2013.
