Ireland Requires A Visionary Unionist Leader

Is there a unionist leader capable of being honest with their electorate? – Raymond McCartney

September 27th, 2013 

In an article published in today’s Belfast Telegraph, Sinn Féin MLA Raymond McCartney gives a republican analysis of where political unionism is at.

The Foyle MLA said:

“While a silent centre within broader unionism recognised that the end to conflict and beginning of negotiations put us all on a journey of change and transformed the political landscape, other unionists are challenging their elected leadership.

“They ask if republicans were supposed to have been defeated, then why can orange marches not parade where they wish; why does the Parades Commission make determinations on parades; why should the use of flags and emblems be subject to compromise; why should the Irish identity and republican tradition be accorded equality? That section of unionism believes that equality and compromise renders them losers.”

The Sinn Féin MLA said this challenge from within unionism opposed to equality has sent the unionist political leadership into a tailspin, and shifted much of it closer to the rejectionist right wing of unionism.

“That is the context for their inflammatory language of “cultural war” and “de-Britification”; and all as a pretext to stop change, to perpetuate sectarianism and maintain the “them and us” mindset, which divides our people.

“They cannot accept that there is no single narrative for what happened in the north and they cannot countenance an alternative that does not match their view that equates to ‘unionists good’, ‘republicans bad’.”

McCartney said the refrain from those unionists opposed to the Good Friday Agreement is that ‘the unionist community has been required to give at every turn’.

“What they really mean is that unionism is no longer the dominant power; that it now has to share power rather than being able to enforce its agenda on the nationalist/republican community.

“That is the context we have to see this summers events in and it is the context that will no doubt dominate the thinking of some as we go through the Haass talks.

“The question that we must all ask ourselves therefore is - is there a unionist leader who is capable of being honest with the unionist electorate and giving them real leadership rather than simply following the loudest siren voice?” CRÍOCH/END

*Below is the full text of Raymond McCartney’s article:

“Of late, and particularly throughout the summer, many people have been left confused and bewildered by the antics of unionism in general and political unionism in particular.

In order to fully understand what is happening within unionism today we need to look back to 1994 and remember the comment of the then leader of the Ulster Unionist party about the IRA ceasefire. He is reported as saying; “a prolonged IRA ceasefire could be the most destabilising thing to happen to unionism since partition”.

What James Molyneaux correctly recognised at the time was that republicans had not been defeated and that changes loomed with the onset of negotiations. In seeking to disguise that simple fact unionists had sought to paint a picture of republican defeat. They continuously sold that message to their electorate in the hope of retaining their votes; they failed to positively promote the Good Friday Agreement as the historic compromise it represented. However, time has moved on.

While a silent centre within broader unionism recognised that the end to conflict and beginning of negotiations put us all on a journey of change and transformed the political landscape, other unionists are challenging their elected leadership.

They ask if republicans were supposed to have been defeated, then why can orange marches not parade where they wish; why does the Parades Commission make determinations on parades; why should the use of flags and emblems be subject to compromise; why should the Irish identity and republican tradition be accorded equality? That section of unionism believes that equality and compromise renders them losers.

The challenge from within unionism opposed to equality has sent the unionist political leadership into a tailspin, and shifted much of it closer to the rejectionist right wing of unionism. That is the context for their inflammatory language of “cultural war” and “de-Britification”; and all as a pretext to stop change, to perpetuate sectarianism and maintain the “them and us” mindset, which divides our people. 

A secondary factor of this has been the abandoning of their liberal outreach agenda to Catholics to support the union. Instead, over the summer, we have witnessed unionist political leaders, cosy up to the worst elements of loyalism, as they seek to out do each other to prove who is the most ‘true blue’.

How otherwise can we make sense of unionist leaders asserting a common refrain of ‘we will not allow history to be re-written’? There is an old maxim, accepted as a truism that the victors write the history, so as far as unionists are concerned they won and there can only be one history. However, the reality is that there is no agreed history and their version of it is not universally accepted.

They cannot accept that there is no single narrative for what happened in the north and they cannot countenance an alternative that does not match their view that equates to ‘unionists good’, ‘republicans bad’. 

They rail against republicans remembering our dead, claiming that we have inflicted pain and hurt on their community but they fail to recognise the similar pain and hurt that exists within republican communities when those that inflicted that pain and hurt are commemorated.

For those unionists who have always opposed the Good Friday Agreement the refrain is that ‘the unionist community has been required to give at every turn’. What they really mean is that unionism is no longer the dominant power; that it now has to share power rather than being able to enforce its agenda on the nationalist/republican community. 

It is also possible that fear of demographic change and the inevitability of more change in the north may be causing genuine instability within some sections of political unionism, even though republicans will never allow the rights of unionist and protestant citizens to be undermined.

That is the context we have to see this summers events in and it is the context that will no doubt dominate the thinking of some as we go through the Haass talks. The question that we must all ask ourselves therefore is - is there a unionist leader who is capable of being honest with the unionist electorate and giving them real leadership rather than simply following the loudest siren voice? 
 
If there is such a leader and he - they are all men - possesses the political will, then the Haass talks will present another opportunity to resolve some very difficult issues. This is a huge challenge to us all. But we need to approach these talks with an open mind and in listening mode, 

The requirement on all of us as we enter these talks is that we are resolute in our determination to stand faithfully by any agreements that we reach and that we treat each other with equality, mutual respect and parity of esteem. This is essential if we are to reach resolution of the prevailing issues.  If we could agree these as underpinning principles for the Haass all-party talks, we could be more confident of success than ever before.” 

Sinn Féin Mountmellick – Serving The Community

Sinn Féin Launching Its Rural Ireland Discussion Document

Sinn Féin ploughing away

September 23rd, 2013 - Martin Ferris TD

Sinn Féin has announced details of its participation in the National Ploughing Championships in Ratheniska, Co Laois, this week.

The party’s spokesperson on agriculture, Martin Ferris TD, said:

“We will be launching our Rural Ireland discussion document at the Ploughing on Thursday. Sinn Féin president, Gerry Adams TD, will be with us on Thursday at noon for that.

“Meanwhile, over the three days, our elected representatives will be visiting the Sinn Féin stand at S297, to meet people and to answer questions about our policies and activities.

“The austerity policies of the coalition government have had a severe effect on rural Ireland, the same as in the cities and towns. We are proposing alternatives in our rural Ireland discussion document and in our alternative budget which will be published shortly.

“Meanwhile, we are all looking forward to the Ploughing, which has proven itself to be the main event of the year in rural Ireland. As always, we stand in awe of the organisational ability of Anna May McHugh, her daughter Anna Marie and the National Ploughing Association.

“See you at the Ploughin’!”

Sinn Féin Mountmellick - Serving The Community

Seanad Referendum Debate Continues

Column: The Seanad is elitist, outdated and an affront to democracy writes Councilor Matt Carty

The Journal.ie 22/09/2013

The Seanad is a useless, undemocratic body; don’t be fooled into thinking it will be reformed if we keep it, writes Matt Carthy.

IT’S NOT THAT the Seanad has a negative impact on people’s lives – the truth is it doesn’t have any impact whatsoever.

Certainly, for political cronies, it has given them access to big salaries and pensions, to car parking in Leinster House and access to the members bar for life. But for most people it remains a mysterious arm of government.

The Seanad, modelled on the House of Lords, is an affront to democracy because it goes against the most basic principal of a modern democratic electoral system – the principal of equality between citizens – ‘one person one vote’.

The body has no role in a modern society

It is elitist, undemocratic and outdated. That’s not to say that everyone who ever sat in it are all those things but the body itself has no role in a modern society.

In the last two-and-a-half years, the Seanad has supported the government on every single occasion.  There is little value in a chamber that is less about checks and balances and more about rubber- stamping government policy. Senators cannot even put questions to ministers, they cannot prevent a bill from being passed into law. They can delay a bill, for just 90 days. And the last time the Seanad did this was 1964 – it was a Pawnbrokers Bill – and the Seanad voted against it by accident. They cannot delay a ‘money bill’ at all.

The big argument of the opponents of the constitutional referendum is “Don’t abolish it – reform it”.
It’s ironic that those who argue this point most loudly are those who were in the best position to introduce such reforms in recent years.

The Green party – remember them? – they want a reformed Seanad, they say. They never did an ounce to achieve it between 2007-2011 when they were in government.

The PDs, we remember them alright, and Michael McDowell. They didn’t do a tap to bring about reform during their long period of government from 1997 – 2007. This probably isn’t surprising considering Michael and his party had previously campaigned to abolish of the Seanad.

Reform? Not likely.

We can speculate as to why there is now a turnaround in this thinking but I suppose it’s not hard to understand how someone who is on the record as stating that inequality is good in an economy would also believe that it’s good in the political system as well.

And of course, we have those champions of reform in Fianna Fáil who didn’t just have one term of government, or two, or three but have had decades of opportunity to radically alter the shape of the Seanad but chose time and time again to use it as a prop for their own party interests

For Fianna Fáil the Seanad has always been an instrument of their power – not a check or balance to it – it was where they provided a political lifeline for former TDs or provided an office and perks to aspiring candidates

I drove around Dublin recently looking at Fianna Fáil posters on this referendum that are 90 per cent covered with images of its local election candidates and I couldn’t help but think that, even now, Fianna Fáil cannot help themselves but use the Seanad for their own party objectives.

Such has been the abject scandal that is the Seanad that Fianna Fáil actually committed themselves in the last General Election to supporting its abolition. We used to have to wait until they got into government before Fianna Fáil broke pre-election promises – it now appears they’re just as adapt of doing it in opposition.

A useless, undemocratic body

Mícheál Martin has said that they are unhappy with the government’s proposals for Dáil and wider political reform – well join the club. But to argue that a government that won’t commit to real Dáil reform will, on the back of a referendum defeat, commit themselves to radically reforming the second chamber isn’t naivety – it is deceitful.

If Fianna Fáil and the continuity PDs really want a reformed Seanad they should vote to abolish it on referendum day. They could then put proposals for a new chamber before the people in another plebiscite and it would be the electorate, rather than politicians, who would pass judgement. As it stands, under the constitution, even with the reforms suggested by opponents of this amendment, the Taoiseach of any given day will still be in a position to appoint his/her cronies to that second chamber.

The next Seanad election, if this referendum isn’t carried, will likely take place in 2016. There will have been no reform in the meantime. We will be left, on the centenary of the Easter 1916 rising, with this useless, undemocratic body, which even those who want to retain it accept is not fit for any purpose.

I don’t like the thoughts of that. On October 4th, I will happily vote Yes.

Matt Carthy is a Sinn Féin councillor.

Sinn Féin Mountmellick – Serving The Community

Irish Thoroughbred Breeders Association Oppose Plans for Industrial Wind Turbine Farms in Irish Midlands

South Kildare Against Spin

ITBA Oppose Wind Turbine plan for Midlands - From Todays Irish Field:

At a meeting of the Irish Thoroughbred Breeders Association on Thursday it was agreed that the association oppose the intended wind turbine projects in the midlands area.

ITBA manager Shane O Dwyer said "The Associations office has had a flood of calls in recent weeks from our members concerned about these turbines. As a member driven association it is important that we respond to what we are hearing"

He added "The size of the turbines at 180 metres and the scale of the project - with over 2000 spread across four counties threatens the beauty of the Irish Landscape in the heart of one of Ireland's main bloodstock regions.

"All of the energy generated would be for the British grid. We are not opposed to renewable energy but this project is incompatible with breeding, raising and training thoroughbreds.

Sinn Féin Mountmellick – Serving The Community