Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- List of Abbreviations
- Introduction
- Part I: Defining the Community
- Part II: The Historic Compromise?
- Introduction to Part II
- 4 The Ideological Origins of New Sinn Féin
- 5 On the Long Road: The Provisional Politics of Transition
- 6 The Historic Compromise?
- Conclusion: The End of a Song?
- Bibliography
- Index
6 - The Historic Compromise?
from Part II: The Historic Compromise?
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- List of Abbreviations
- Introduction
- Part I: Defining the Community
- Part II: The Historic Compromise?
- Introduction to Part II
- 4 The Ideological Origins of New Sinn Féin
- 5 On the Long Road: The Provisional Politics of Transition
- 6 The Historic Compromise?
- Conclusion: The End of a Song?
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
We cannot, and we should not ever tolerate, or compromise with (by government structures or any other means), loyalism [Unionism]. Loyalism is a major obstacle to democracy in Ireland, and to Irish independence. [Emphasis added]
The [Good Friday] Agreement was an historic compromise between Irish nationalism and Irish Unionism. As such it can only work with the willing participation of both political traditions … Cherished positions have been reworked and remoulded to facilitate changed political realities… Such realities require … a Unionism which takes ownership – co-ownership with nationalists – of the agreement and its institutions. [Emphasis added]
‘We need to reach out to each other’
Provisional strategy after 1998 appeared ultimately to rest upon nothing more substantial than a faith in the dynamics of the Belfast Agreement and an optimistic belief in the inevitability of demographic and economic change. As a result, the role of dialogue and the power of persuasion assumed even greater significance in the Republican rhetoric of transition during this period. This new language perfectly accorded with the tenor of the times: the theme of the ‘historic compromise’, with its implications of a new beginning and a unique opportunity to bring peace, has become the dominant political discourse in Northern Ireland. The descriptions of the new Sinn Féin–DUP government in May 2007, for example, drew heavily on these tropes of healing and reconciliation by suggesting that a process of normalization was underway that gave the region a ‘chance to shake off those heavy chains of history’ and become ‘a place of peace and promise.’ Sinn Féin joined in this narrative of transformation by arguing that this compromise had occurred because ancient enemies had come together to make ‘history rather than hype … [in] one of the mightiest leaps forward’ for the whole island. Typical of this new Republican discourse were Gerry Adams's frequent calls for a:
genuine enlightened dialogue between all of us who share this island. The big question for Unionist leaders is the one provided by the example of the Good Samaritan: ‘Who will have the courage to cross to the other side?’… For too long we have each kept a distrustful distance from each other… Now we need to cross the road and address one another's injuries and pain. Now we need to comfort and restore one another.
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- Information
- The New Politics of Sinn Féin , pp. 217 - 248Publisher: Liverpool University PressPrint publication year: 2007