TONY BLAIR'S MESSAGE
TONY BLAIRS MESSAGE
I'M not going to pretend the next few days will be easy. Progress towards peace in Northern Ireland never is.
But I also know the prize in front of us is great.
I know, too, that if we fail, we will have let down the overwhelming majority of the people. They will find it hard to understand how we have got this far and let this opportunity slip away.
I think they will find it hard to forgive us as well.
We have already seen as the stalemate has dragged on, how violence on both sides has increased. It is still, thankfully, far below the level which has scarred Northern Ireland for decades.
But the marching season is about to start. Without a breakthrough, tensions and frustrations will increase.
Wednesday's deadline is real. We have to make progress. And we need to make it quickly.
I have said Northern Ireland stands again on the edge of an abyss. Some have claimed I was exaggerating in a bid to end the stalemate. I'm not. It is that serious.
But on Friday we at least agreed the three principles we now have to translate into practice. First, we have all agreed there must be an inclusive element.
Second, we are all agreed there must be decommissioning of weapons and it must be completed by May.
Ready
And thirdly, we have all agreed that the independent decommissioning body has a key role in that process.
Given we have all agreed on these three principles, the public will not understand if we can not make this work.
The Good Friday Agreement did not deliver everything everyone wanted.
It did, however, give both communities what they've demanded for years. Establishing the principle of consent. A directly elected assembly. An executive in which both communities have a real stake. Agreement on north-south co-operation.
All this is now ready to roll. It remains the best basis for peace. There is no practical alternative.
This agreement was only possible because David Trimble and Gerry Adams, with the other political leaders, showed courage and vision.
In the next three days, they will have to show such leadership again.
It will require trust, a leap of faith. But we have got this far because the leaders have concentrated not, as in the past, on why progress shouldn't be made but on why it must.
They have been driven by the desire for peace among the ordinary people.
That goal is now in sight. No matter what the obstacles, we must not throw away this chance for peace.
I'M not going to pretend the next few days will be easy. Progress towards peace in Northern Ireland never is.
But I also know the prize in front of us is great.
I know, too, that if we fail, we will have let down the overwhelming majority of the people. They will find it hard to understand how we have got this far and let this opportunity slip away.
I think they will find it hard to forgive us as well.
We have already seen as the stalemate has dragged on, how violence on both sides has increased. It is still, thankfully, far below the level which has scarred Northern Ireland for decades.
But the marching season is about to start. Without a breakthrough, tensions and frustrations will increase.
Wednesday's deadline is real. We have to make progress. And we need to make it quickly.
I have said Northern Ireland stands again on the edge of an abyss. Some have claimed I was exaggerating in a bid to end the stalemate. I'm not. It is that serious.
But on Friday we at least agreed the three principles we now have to translate into practice. First, we have all agreed there must be an inclusive element.
Second, we are all agreed there must be decommissioning of weapons and it must be completed by May.
Ready
And thirdly, we have all agreed that the independent decommissioning body has a key role in that process.
Given we have all agreed on these three principles, the public will not understand if we can not make this work.
The Good Friday Agreement did not deliver everything everyone wanted.
It did, however, give both communities what they've demanded for years. Establishing the principle of consent. A directly elected assembly. An executive in which both communities have a real stake. Agreement on north-south co-operation.
All this is now ready to roll. It remains the best basis for peace. There is no practical alternative.
This agreement was only possible because David Trimble and Gerry Adams, with the other political leaders, showed courage and vision.
In the next three days, they will have to show such leadership again.
It will require trust, a leap of faith. But we have got this far because the leaders have concentrated not, as in the past, on why progress shouldn't be made but on why it must.
They have been driven by the desire for peace among the ordinary people.
That goal is now in sight. No matter what the obstacles, we must not throw away this chance for peace.
Further Information
Publisher: THE MIRROR
Ref: TM/088
Published Date: 28-Jun-99
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