My Tuppence Worth: The Big IRA Statement

Was it good for you too, honey?

Not especially. Like a couple making love in the last days of a dying relationship, every manoeuvre between Nationalists and Unionists was predictable from the offset. At the start of the week the media foreplay looked promising: there was much teasing, yet Sinn Fein were uncharacteristically tight-lipped throughout.

But just when it looked like we were getting somewhere, someone went and released Sean Kelly. Darn. Libido lost. PR blitz flattened.

Then ?the statement? was released. On one side of the bed, the Republicans had a self congratulatory climax at the day?s history-making while on the other Unionists grumped along, feeling left out.

An Historic Announcement?

Historic in the sense that similar announcements have been made before, in 1994 and 1997. Only this time I didn?t notice too many cheering hoards on the streets of West Belfast as I drove home on Thursday.

I?m not denouncing this as an empty gesture, though. It may well provide the framework for a lasting settlement provided that the Unionist communities (in time) accept it. Of course, Nationalists need to accept that variations of this statement have been released before and not upheld. It will take time to gain Unionist trust.

The View From The Entrenched Benches

Even when the announcement was just a rumour, our illustrious politicians had reverted to type, trotting out standard rhetoric from their respective rulebooks. I don?t think there was an imaginative statement from any of them.

• Sinn Fein: Historic announcement, courageous/brave decision by the IRA, we?ve raised the bar for Unionists to follow?Chucky Ar Wa?
• DUP: Fire and brimstone. Republican lies/deception. Actions not words. Some wrath of God for good measure (optional)
• SDLP: Erm?.can?t suppose to speak for the IRA?.statement seems sound enough?let?s wait and see?
• UUP: Outraged at release of Sean Kelly?..government treachery?.sop to republicans?.no trust?..actions not words?.what did Ian say?aye, that too.

I lost interest after a while. Even the blog boards were filled with unimaginative party-line comments.

What Mr. Levee Thinks….

My view? Accept it for what it is. It?s a statement. It may lead to a more positive situation, or it may not. Everyone in Northern Ireland will have to give it the benefit of the doubt, and see what actions it is backed up with.

My hope is that it will influence other groups to ?down tools? and adopt a more peaceable approach. My hope is that it buys time for the memories of conflict to recede, to die off with older generations. My desperate hope is that over time, more people will come to see Nationalism and Unionism as unsuccessful and unhelpful ideologies and start to question their prejudices.

We need new thinking in Northern Ireland. Maybe if the terrorists bow out for a while we?ll eventually be able to change our mindsets. Maybe a political party will emerge with clear policies affecting how we live, not wasting years on redundant arguments.

And maybe, just maybe, this statement will start this process. That’s my view, for what it’s worth.