Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 21 Mar 2017

Vol. 943 No. 1

Death of Martin McGuinness: Expressions of Sympathy

The Taoiseach

I was saddened to hear this morning of the death of Martin McGuinness. His passing represents a significant loss not only to politics in Northern Ireland but to the wider political landscape on this island and beyond. Martin McGuinness will always be remembered for the remarkable political journey he undertook in his lifetime. Not only did he come to believe that peace must prevail but he committed himself to working tirelessly to that end and living for his convictions to that end. He was one of the chief architects of the Good Friday Agreement and he worked resolutely in the years that followed it in pursuit of its full implementation. He became Sinn Féin's chief negotiator in the talks that led to the Agreement and after the Good Friday Agreement was concluded, he was returned as a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly and served as Minister of Education between 1999 and 2002.

Mr. McGuinness went on to serve as deputy First Minister with three DUP First Ministers - Ian Paisley, Peter Robinson and Arlene Foster - before retiring from active politics in January of this year. His relationship with the late Dr. Ian Paisley in particular was remarkable given the very different backgrounds they came from. It was a mark of the man that Martin McGuinness was that he worked so closely and effectively with Ian Paisley for the betterment of all the people of Northern Ireland. As we know, he built a strong personal friendship with Ian Paisley which for many would be one of the most enduring images of reconciliation on this island. As deputy First Minister, he displayed great leadership despite being exposed to political criticism and indeed personal risk. This legacy of leadership will no doubt inspire the next generation of leaders in Northern Ireland.

I got to know him well in recent years, including through our working together on the North-South Ministerial Council. His commitment to securing enduring peace and prosperity for all the people of Northern Ireland was unwavering throughout this time. He strove to make Northern Ireland a better place for everyone regardless of background or tradition. I spoke with him on the telephone a few weeks ago when I expressed the hope that he would recover his full health. Unfortunately, this was not to be.

Above all, today is an especially sad day for his family - his wife Bernie, his children, Fiachra, Emmet, Fionnuala and Grainne, his grandchildren and the extended McGuinness family - and, of course, the people of Derry, who always held a special place in Martin McGuinness's heart. I offer my deepest sympathy to all of them at this sad and difficult time.

Deputy Michael McGrath

On behalf of our party leader, Deputy Micheál Martin, and the entire Fianna Fáil Party, I extend sincere sympathies to the McGuinness family and Sinn Féin on the loss of Martin McGuinness. I hope his wife Bernie and his children, Fiachra, Emmet, Fionnuala and Grainne, get some consolation from the great accolades and genuinely held tributes Martin has received today to acknowledge his sterling work in the name of peace building on our island. It is important to acknowledge that while we all knew Martin as a public figure, Bernie has lost her loving husband and his four children and grandchildren have lost their father and grandfather. Their loss is, of course, the greatest of all.

Martin's death represents a very sad moment in the shared history of the island of Ireland. Martin was heavily involved, as we know, in the army council of the IRA for many years of the Troubles - his views no doubt shaped by his upbringing in Derry and the treatment of Catholics as a young boy growing up there. When he converted to full-time politics, he removed himself from conflict. He also managed to convert many hardened IRA members to peace and politics. This will be a very significant part of his legacy. In the early 1990s, Martin used to meet with the late Albert Reynolds who it is recognised among others laid the building blocks for the Good Friday Agreement, which was eventually negotiated in 1998. Martin was always spoken about as being a man of his word and when he decided to commit to the peace process, he condemned acts of violence on all sides.

History will judge Martin's transition to peace as being a welcome and committed one. This is not to say that we can forget or ignore the many deaths that occurred during the Troubles. History will, of course, record a fuller assessment of his entire legacy but more than most, Martin McGuinness embraced the peace process with a generosity of spirit that won people over. By his actions and words over the past 25 years, he demonstrated a keen understanding of what the peace process was all about. He worked to build bridges between the different traditions and communities on the island. He reached out to the Unionist community in particular and to its leaders to steer Northern Ireland towards a better shared future.

As the Taoiseach stated, his leadership with the former DUP leader, the late Reverend Ian Paisley, was quite remarkable and seems incredible when we look back on it now. It is a testament to his character, determination, ability and charisma that he managed to work so closely with the late Reverend Dr. Ian Paisley.

Throughout his political career, Martin McGuinness had a clear commitment to the disadvantaged and saw the pivotal role education can play in providing equality of opportunity for all. Despite the peace process going through a rocky period at the time, he retained a respect on all sides and never allowed the politics of the situation to affect the personal relationships he held. He was deeply committed to reconciliation, retained respect from all sides and always managed to have personal relationships with others. I hope his work in the peace process will inspire others to follow his legacy by continuing to build stronger bridges between both traditions on this island.

This peace can never be taken for granted. It is crucial that the lasting peace is founded on a greater understanding by Nationalists and Unionists of each other. We all look forward to when citizens' concerns will get priority over the actual labels into which they are born. Today, I hope that Martin McGuinness's legacy of reaching out to Unionists can be reciprocated because it is in the interests of all communities in the North and throughout the island of Ireland that all citizens on the island can co-operate and peacefully co-exist. He wanted to make peace on all sides and would never want to go back to the violence of the Troubles.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

Deputy Mary Lou McDonald

Above anything else, Martin McGuinness was a proud Derryman. There is no doubt that his childhood and young life in the Bogside formed him, shaped him and defined his character. Martin was born in 1950 into an Orange, discriminatory state. He, his family and his kind were regarded as second-class citizens. They endured terror. Martin, a person of courage, chose to stand up and be counted. He chose to fight injustice. He chose to fight back. I know that he felt a deep sense of personal responsibility to defend Derry and his community. Martin joined the IRA. He never resiled from his ambition or his duty to defend his city. He felt a sense of responsibility to fight back because terror was brought to the streets of his city.

In later years, Martin would show that same courage again and again and not least as chief negotiator on behalf of our political party in crafting and delivering the Good Friday Agreement and the agreements which followed. In bringing forward that work, Martin demonstrated not just his courage, but his considerable political skills, personality and ability to build bridges and work with others. He always believed that, whatever the odds, a good outcome was possible. In the course of his work, he demonstrated that to be true.

As Minister of Education, Martin handled and tackled the issue of educational inequality head on when he took on the 11-plus. In taking on the 11-plus, he took on large sections of the educational establishment and the establishment more generally. Martin believed that every person was born equal and that every child deserved equality of opportunity.

Perhaps it is in his role as deputy First Minister for ten years that Martin's star shone most brightly. In reaching not just a partnership, but a deep personal friendship, with the late Ian Paisley and in his work with Peter Robinson and - let it be said - Arlene Foster, Martin demonstrated not just by words but by deeds his intention, ability and resolve to build peace. He famously met the Queen for the first occasion. I thought they hit it off rather well, which I said to him at the time.

Martin visited the Somme and I accompanied him on one such trip. He developed very strong personal ties and relationships with many people from what is termed the other side of the community. He did this work sincerely, not for show or headlines but because he believed and knew it was the right thing to do. All the while, Martin never lost his essence as an Irish republican. His absolute commitment to Irish unity, justice and full democracy on the island of Ireland remained undimmed and it was never dimmed by his ability to reach out the hand of friendship to the other side.

Martin McGuinness was an international as well as a domestic figure, an outstanding statesman and proud republican, a worker for reconciliation, a champion of peace, an IRA volunteer, a risk taker and a hope giver. He was also a committed family man who made it his business to return home each and every evening that he was in the Assembly in Belfast. He was immensely proud of his children, Fiachra, Fionnuala, Grainne and Emmet, his grandchildren and his wider family. Martin never missed an opportunity to tell the story of and praise his clan. He loved his wife, Bernie, who was, without doubt, the centre of his world. Today, we offer Bernie and the rest of Martin's family our deep condolences.

We, on these benches, have lost not just a leader but a friend. We will never see his likes again. Ní bheidh a leithéid arís ann.

Deputy Brendan Howlin

Like many in this House, I was saddened when I turned on RTE radio this morning to hear of the death of Martin McGuinness. As on all such occasions, our first thoughts are with his wife, Bernie, his children and grandchildren and his extended family, which, as others have said, were the first centre of his life. I also think of the Sinn Féin Deputies who knew Martin as a friend and colleague and all of those outside this House who also knew him as a friend and colleague.

The role Martin McGuinness played in bringing peace and reconciliation to our island will never be forgotten. He did not do so alone but his was an important role. As we remember his life, we cannot escape the appreciation of how far we have come since the darkest days of the Troubles. Many of us have been privileged to have been many decades in this House and we have seen a slow evolution from a very dark place to a better place.

As we remember Martin McGuinness's life, we also think that his, like all our lives, is written in chapters. It is appropriate that today we concentrate largely on the later chapters of that life and leave the rest to the historians. It is clear, however, that Martin McGuinness was a man who came to realise that the way to peace is through understanding, empathy and compromise and not through other means.

Many will remember - some in this House have already referenced it - the moment five years ago that Martin McGuinness shook hands with Queen Elizabeth on her visit to Belfast. As was pointed out in the media this morning, such a gesture between a former IRA commander and the head of the British Commonwealth would once have been unimaginable.

We will not forget Martin McGuinness's real and truly warm relationship with Ian Paisley. Peace is essentially built upon human understanding and personal friendships. That two people from such opposing walks of life could come together to walk the path towards a common goal of achieving peace and stability in Northern Ireland and on the island of Ireland is a testament to how politics can bridge even the darkest divisions between us. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

Deputy Bríd Smith

On behalf of the People Before Profit Alliance, I genuinely want to offer our condolences to Martin's family, friends, and, indeed, his comrades here in the Chamber. I know they are all very saddened but they also have great cause to be very proud. We would like to offer our condolences, as has been mentioned, to the citizens of Derry who have experienced a double whammy over recent days following the loss of Ryan McBride as well. I know I should not do this but, on a personal note, my own family knew Martin because my parents were great republicans and my mother would like to offer her condolences as well. Martin was, like others, a child of the civil rights movement. Many people, such as John Hume, Eamonn McCann and Bernadette Devlin, were products of that legitimate movement of resistance to discrimination, sectarianism and state repression. The ongoing debate about how we finally end sectarianism and partition is a matter of continuous struggle for all of us but no one could doubt Martin McGuinness's commitment to his tireless struggle for a united Ireland, a cause he so passionately believed in and a cause he served with great honour and dignity. His comrades will be hugely proud of him. Suaimhneas agus síocháin go deo dó.

Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan

Ba mhaith liom mo chomhbhrón a chur in iúl do bhean chéile Martin McGuinness, dá chlann, dá chairde, do phobal chathair Dhoire agus do lucht Shinn Féin. Tá sé an-bhrónach dóibh go léir faoi láthair. Our country had a turbulent and violent 800 years under the British empire before the Twenty-six Counties gained independence, but that turbulence and violence continued much longer for the Six Counties. That time, known as the Troubles, brought a great deal of pain, devastation and loss to many people. Individuals, parties and groups in the North took different paths. For some, it was a path of war and violence; for others, it was the path of peace. Martin McGuinness was a person who journeyed on both paths. On the few occasions I met him, it was obvious that he was a warm person, a man with a sense of humour and someone who was very committed to his principles. Gan dabht, is féidir linn a rá gur dhein sé difríocht. Rinne sé éacht ar son na síochána sa tír seo. He made a difference because he was willing to communicate, talk, listen, engage and compromise. May he rest in peace.

Deputy Michael Healy-Rae

On behalf of the Rural Independent Group, regardless of our political loyalties, we all owe a debt of gratitude to Martin McGuinness and, in particular, his part in delivering the legacy of the Good Friday Agreement. A generation of young Irish people have come of age never having known the awful and terrible violence of the Northern Ireland conflict. Thanks in large part to the political and personal courage he displayed, they did not know that. I say to his family, to Sinn Féin and, in particular, to my colleague, Deputy Martin Ferris, that he was a proud Derryman from the Bogside who never forgot where he came from and who wanted to defend at all times his people, as Deputy McDonald said. He did that in a courageous way and he did everything to the best of his ability at all times. He played a political role that will be remembered forever. There are people alive today who have children who have seen adulthood, which might not have happened but for the work of Martin McGuinness and people like him over a number of years.

Everybody knows he had a great sense of humour and, on a day like this, it is right to remember something like that. Around this time last year, I was in hospital recovering from an altercation with a cow. He rang me and he wondered how I was doing. When I informed him how I was, he laughed. When I asked him what he was laughing at, he said, "I have just thought of something very funny; I would hate to be that cow." He was a very nice man and I will always remember him fondly. May he rest in peace. God bless him.

Deputy Catherine Murphy

We in the Social Democrats were very saddened to hear of the death of Martin McGuinness. It was a very short illness and it certainly feels sudden and untimely. We extend our sympathies to his wife and family and also to the Sinn Féin Party which will be feeling a huge void as a result of his passing. During the Troubles, Ireland, and particularly Northern Ireland, experienced some of its darkest hours when politics failed and violence took over. The peace process that followed was one of the finest hours for politics. That is what it was - a process. At all times, it needed, and needs, leadership. Martin McGuinness's willingness to work with people and the strength of character he showed by taking ownership of his past while acknowledging the need to move away from it helped to take this island beyond conflict and destruction and into a modern democracy. It is not surprising today on the occasion of his passing that we hear many warm tributes paid to him. None of us would have predicted when the Good Friday Agreement was signed that such a warm and successful relationship would have been struck up between Martin McGuinness and Dr. Ian Paisley. The warmth and honesty of that relationship is not written into any agreement, nor could it be, but is the very human thing that was an essential component in developing the respect and reconciliation needed to make the peace process successful to date. May he rest in peace.

I ask that we also be associated with the expressions of sympathy to the family of Captain Dara Fitzpatrick and the hope for the recovery of the crew of helicopter R116, and to the families of Maureen Haughey and Ryan McBride.

Deputy Eamon Ryan

On behalf of the Green Party, North and South, I extend our commiseration to all those affected by the loss of life in recent days but especially to the family of Martin McGuinness and to his colleagues in Sinn Féin. My colleague, Steven Agnew said today that Martin "brought great gravitas to the Executive Office but also managed to stay true to his down to earth nature." That is something I saw in the work we did on the British-Irish Council. He had warmth and at the same time steely determination which is a great combination in politics. More than anything else, if we are reflecting on his life in politics, we have to reflect on that ability to change. He is someone who went from being at the very centre of the Troubles to being at the very centre of solutions. A quote was used recently by President Obama in his final speech as American President which is appropriate. He quoted Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird who said, "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view ... until you climb into his skin and walk around in it." As others have mentioned here, that relationship and ability to see from the other side, particularly from Dr. Ian Paisley's, allowed some of the peace and development we have seen in recent decades which has been so valuable to all of us. I heard Ian Paisley Jnr. today saying that as a Christian one judges someone at the end on the closing chapters of their life. In that context, all of us, North and South, Nationalist and Unionist are celebrating the life of Martin McGuinness, although his death is a tragic loss for his family, and the contribution he made to all the people of this island.

An Ceann Comhairle

We will stand for a minute's quiet reflection.

Members rose.

An Ceann Comhairle

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.