WAVE OF REVULSION AGAINST ATROCITY OPENS UNIQUE WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY
Wave of revulsion against atrocity opens unique window of opportunity
By BARRY WHITE
ALREADY Omagh can be said to be a watershed, since Gerry Adams has condemned it "without equivocation,'' but it remains to be seen if the atrocity proves to be the unifying event in politics that it has been in a grieving community.
Adams abandoned his distaste for the "language of condemnation'' to launch his strongest attack ever on the dissident elements in republicanism.
There was no attempt to cover his tracks in a generalised statement of "regret'' for all deaths, including those of civilians or security forces, or all violence. These deaths were not only wrong, or counter-productive, but strongly to be condemned.
It was an attempt to distance Sinn Fein, internationally, from any association with the Real IRA, if they were the culprits whatever their connection in the past.
The political leadership took the opportunity, essential in the circumstances, to align itself with the backers of the Belfast Agreement against those who would destroy it by force.
Adams and, to a lesser extent, Martin McGuinness, appealing to the dissidents to "stop now'' has finally passed a most basic test of democracy, but that cannot be his last word.
As David Trimble said, emerging from a month-long holiday exile in Germany, it will be necessary for Sinn F�in to drop their equivocation about everyday republican violence, if they are to be regarded as a normal democratic party.
Going back to Gerry Adams's notorious remark, during the first IRA ceasefire "They haven't gone away, you know'' there has been a tendency of born-again Sinn Fein democrats to revert to their traditional defence of the IRA, under pressure.
Punishment beatings can be regretted, never condemned, and even when a kneecapping results in murder with the IRA heading the list of suspects there are traditional references to the unacceptability of the police force.
As seen by Trimble and most unionists, this is Sinn Fein's attempt to "have it both ways'' pocketing the progress they are undoubtedly making in public life by becoming legitimate politicians while hanging on to the local power that paramilitary links convey. It can't be done, Trimble says, and expect unionists to treat them as equals.
This is where Omagh could come in, providing a unique window of opportunity for a political rapprochement between unionism and republicanism that has not seemed remotely possible, even since they signed the same agreement in April.
If Adams could bring himself to radically alter the present IRA link, unionists might begin to see him and the party in a new light. He has effectively cut himself off from one branch of the militant republican family, so moving to distance himself from the other might not be so difficult.
This can be seen as a vital period, when revulsion against an atrocity brings people and parties together, against the offender.
Before Omagh, it would have been hard to argue that introducing internment for the small band of Real IRA renegades would be worth the risk of creating martyrs, but those days are gone.
Unionists have a common cause with the Irish government in wanting to see effective action against republican militants, and any moves to put them behind bars would reduce their fears of North-South institutions.
It would also help to create the trust that is still lacking in the peace process.
The Assembly is in place, due for a rousing send-off by President Clinton, but the barriers between Sinn F�in and the unionist community are as high as ever, and likely to prevent Trimble from agreeing to republicans in government, thus delaying the creation of the North-South council.
If Omagh can be a catalyst for change, and a new approach to unionist-republican and unionist-Dublin relations, it might not be the disaster for which its perpetrators hoped.
That is the optimistic scenario, to be weighed against the reinforcement that the tragedy can give to the anti-Agreement unionists, who make no distinction between brands of republicanism.
By BARRY WHITE
ALREADY Omagh can be said to be a watershed, since Gerry Adams has condemned it "without equivocation,'' but it remains to be seen if the atrocity proves to be the unifying event in politics that it has been in a grieving community.
Adams abandoned his distaste for the "language of condemnation'' to launch his strongest attack ever on the dissident elements in republicanism.
There was no attempt to cover his tracks in a generalised statement of "regret'' for all deaths, including those of civilians or security forces, or all violence. These deaths were not only wrong, or counter-productive, but strongly to be condemned.
It was an attempt to distance Sinn Fein, internationally, from any association with the Real IRA, if they were the culprits whatever their connection in the past.
The political leadership took the opportunity, essential in the circumstances, to align itself with the backers of the Belfast Agreement against those who would destroy it by force.
Adams and, to a lesser extent, Martin McGuinness, appealing to the dissidents to "stop now'' has finally passed a most basic test of democracy, but that cannot be his last word.
As David Trimble said, emerging from a month-long holiday exile in Germany, it will be necessary for Sinn F�in to drop their equivocation about everyday republican violence, if they are to be regarded as a normal democratic party.
Going back to Gerry Adams's notorious remark, during the first IRA ceasefire "They haven't gone away, you know'' there has been a tendency of born-again Sinn Fein democrats to revert to their traditional defence of the IRA, under pressure.
Punishment beatings can be regretted, never condemned, and even when a kneecapping results in murder with the IRA heading the list of suspects there are traditional references to the unacceptability of the police force.
As seen by Trimble and most unionists, this is Sinn Fein's attempt to "have it both ways'' pocketing the progress they are undoubtedly making in public life by becoming legitimate politicians while hanging on to the local power that paramilitary links convey. It can't be done, Trimble says, and expect unionists to treat them as equals.
This is where Omagh could come in, providing a unique window of opportunity for a political rapprochement between unionism and republicanism that has not seemed remotely possible, even since they signed the same agreement in April.
If Adams could bring himself to radically alter the present IRA link, unionists might begin to see him and the party in a new light. He has effectively cut himself off from one branch of the militant republican family, so moving to distance himself from the other might not be so difficult.
This can be seen as a vital period, when revulsion against an atrocity brings people and parties together, against the offender.
Before Omagh, it would have been hard to argue that introducing internment for the small band of Real IRA renegades would be worth the risk of creating martyrs, but those days are gone.
Unionists have a common cause with the Irish government in wanting to see effective action against republican militants, and any moves to put them behind bars would reduce their fears of North-South institutions.
It would also help to create the trust that is still lacking in the peace process.
The Assembly is in place, due for a rousing send-off by President Clinton, but the barriers between Sinn F�in and the unionist community are as high as ever, and likely to prevent Trimble from agreeing to republicans in government, thus delaying the creation of the North-South council.
If Omagh can be a catalyst for change, and a new approach to unionist-republican and unionist-Dublin relations, it might not be the disaster for which its perpetrators hoped.
That is the optimistic scenario, to be weighed against the reinforcement that the tragedy can give to the anti-Agreement unionists, who make no distinction between brands of republicanism.
Further Information
Publisher: IRISH INDEPENDENT
Ref: II/035
Published Date: 17-Aug-98
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