Issue 089, Saoirse : Irish Freedom (September, 1994)

              uimh 89 mean fomhair - september 1994 455,173 unemployed while official unemployment figures now stand at 381,700 for the 32 counties the irish national organisation of the unemployed's figures reveal 141 200 people are out of work in the six counties and 313 973 in the 26 counties making a nationwide total of 455,173 see also page 6 west of ireland must create own economic system to survive provos halt campaign but no british withdrawal the announcement of a halt to their armed campaign by the provisionals on august 31 marks the acceptance by them of the unionist veto and the six-county statelet under the terms of the downing street declaration saoirse has underlined the deterioration the future of our country of the provisionals since they accepted the 26 county state in 1 986 eight years later a british high-ranking security source credited john chilcott britain s top civil servant in stormont with laying the trap for sf which led them into the downing street declaration and sub sequently the impending ceasefire he sensed they had made a fatal mistake when they compromised on the issue of unionist consent sunday tribune august 28 1994 as pointed out by true republicans in 1 986 those who accept the 26-county state will before long recognise its counterpart in the six counties as surely as night follows day republican sinn fein president ruairi 6 bradaigh warned on august 3 1 that while all irish people at home and in exile would welcome ajust and lasting peace in our country apermanent peace can only be achieved with british disengagement from ireland that is the lesson of history he said there seems to be no indication at present that a process ofbritish disengagement is under way on the contrary as much of the secret hume-adams document as is known to the public declares that the artificial and contrived maj ority in the six occupied counties — and not the people oflreland acting as a unit — will decide the centuries of irish resistance to british aggression teach us that history has not stopped today the provisionals speak only for themselves the right of the irish people to engage in active struggle in a controlled and disciplined manner for the freedom of their country remains intact and the provisionals have no monopoly on resistance to british rule the whole thrust of irish history indicates that while britain maintains an armed presence in ireland there will be a revolutionary movement to oppose it it is no accident that such an announcement comes on the day of the debate on the beef tribunal at leinster house and the disclosure of huge increases in salary for politicians and others in high places well may people in every one of the six counties ask today ' what were the sacrifices of the past 25 years all about the coming months will tell the story but the lessons dearly learned during the 1 975 bilateral truce remain with us a totally new ireland with separation of church and state apluralist society together with maximum local power in a four-province federation would provide security and defence for all traditions in a irish context both states will have to yield to an ireland built by all communities on this island the irish people should not be deluded again — as in 1 92 1 — by the will-o'-the-wisp of a false peace denied visa the republican sinn fein leader was denied a us visa by washington to address the irish race convention two months ago a decision which is in stark contrast to the dublin government sponsored visas given to provisional spokespersons in recent days to allow them to sell their ceasefire to irish americans at the end of august gerry adams called for a list of reforms from the british administration nowhere did he demand that the dublin administration of albert reynolds and dick spring halt their extradition of irish citizens to the british injustice system nor was there any mention of the post-section 31 censorship of republican or even nationalist viewpoints on rte;orthe emergency legislation special courts and political police which shore up the collaborationist 26-county state on august 3 1 also the executive of cumann na mban issued a statement in dublin rejecting this latest sell-out of republican principles by erstwhile comrades who have since 1 986 gone further and further along the road of compromise and surrender and who now appear to have accepted the right ofbritain to rule in ireland by laying down their arms unconditionally thus negating the sacrifices of the past 25 years this latest attempt at an ' interim solution underscores the bankruptcy of the provisionals and british/irish establishment thinking and the need for a new approach based on the restoration of democracy to the irish people acting as a unit the statement added from new york veteran republican and radical george harrison told saoirse that regardless of recognition of the london declaration or surrender by others our quest for the all-ireland republic will continue we in the usa will continue to support those who strive for an end to british rule in any part of ireland " former mid-ulster mp bernadette mcaliskey told bbc television's spotlight programme august 31 that as far as the provisionals are concerned the war is over and the good guys lost if they are relying on fianna fail and the social democrats ofdublin to stand up for the people up here then they better deliver because if they do not it will be the end of political action here and the present leaders provisional will no longer be leaders republican sinn fein can say to the present day loyalists in the six counties that the 26 county state is part of the problem not of the solution an entirely new democratic system such as that outlined in eire nua in the context of a british withdrawal can provide a secure permanent and just peace in ireland bvtu gpo dublin 2.30pm saturday september 17 for republican sinn fein's three-point peace plan 1 apublic british declaration of intention to leave ireland 2 a new ireland negotiated by the irish people themselves and 3 a general amnesty for all political prisoners