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January 14, 2007

Charges Loom After Report on RUC Collusion

News About Ireland & The Irish

ST 01/14/07 Charges Loom After Report On RUC Collusion
SF 01/13/07 Sinn Féin Ard Fheis To Go Ahead On January 28th
UT 01/13/07 Text of Gerry Adams' Speech On Policing
IT 01/14/07 SF To Consult Grassroots Over Ardfheis
ST 01/14/07 UVF States Plan To Lay Down Arms
SL 01/14/07 PUP Party Members' Invite To McCord Report
BB 01/14/07 Premiers Welcome Sinn Fein Move
BN 01/14/07 SF Move Puts Pressure On Unionists
BT 01/14/07 Hain Has Delivered Nothing: DUP Chairman
ST 01/14/07 Opin: Ahern Chats Up SF, But Hearta On Dif Dalliance
SB 01/14/07 The Death Knell For Rural Life?
ST 01/14/07 Ireland: The Unusual Suspect

*********************

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2091-2546672,00.html

Charges Loom After Report On RUC Collusion

Liam Clarke

THE attorney general is considering bringing prosecutions
against seven Northern Ireland police officers for alleged
collusion with loyalist paramilitaries in murders in north
Belfast.

Lord Goldsmith has been sent files on the serving and
retired officers by Nuala O'Loan, the policing ombudsman.
She has conducted an extensive inquiry into the alleged
involvement of loyalist agents and their police handlers in
the 1990s murders.

Her report, entitled Operation Ballast, is due to be
published next week despite attempts by lawyers acting for
more than 20 officers to have it halted so their clients
can study the contents. Chris MehafFey, the ombudsman's
senior investigating officer, has refused to allow the
officers advance notification.

It is understood that individual officers will not be named
in the report but will be reFerred to by letters. They are
identified in fuller copies of the report that have been
forwarded to Peter Hain, the secretary of state, and Sir
Hugh Orde, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI)
chief constable.

Richard Murphy, a solicitor who represents most of the
officers, said: "Last Thursday I delivered a letter to the
ombudsman's office pointing out that under ordinary
domestic law and under the European Convention of Human
Rights any officers who are subject to adverse comment are
entitled to relevant portions of the report before
publication."

Although the ombudsman has allowed officers time to view
reports in some previous investigations, she has refused to
do so in this case. The fact that prosecution files have
been reFerred to the attorney general underlines the
sensitivity of the cases. The Public Prosecution Service
(PPS) normally only calls in the attorney general when
matters of national importance or security are involved.

It is possible, for instance, that prosecuted officers
could identify senior government officials or even
ministers to whom they had expressed misgivings about the
handling of informants. There are also concerns that
sensitive intelligence information, which would endanger
the lives of agents, could be revealed in court.

The Retired Police Officers Association, which has more
than 3,000 members in Northern Ireland, wrote to Hain last
September predicting that individuals would break the
Official Secrets Act in order to deFend themselves.

"Few, if any, RUCGC [Royal Ulster Constabulary George
Cross] officers were ever convicted for breaching the
Official Secrets Act but we Fear that many are being
compelled to consider proceeding in that direction, if only
to counter the relentless tide of leaks and media
speculation which surround the discharge by the police
ombudsman of her function," the letter said.

"We also believe that the present system of random
retrospective investigation and associated briefing to the
media is having a detrimental efFect on wider support for
the PSNI from various sections of the community."

The Ballast report arose from demands by Raymond McCord for
an investigation into the 1997 murder of his son, also
Raymond, killed by Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) members as
part of a dispute over drugs.

Several of those involved were police agents or informants.
This was revealed by Johnston Brown, a retired Criminal
Investigation Department (CID) detective, who accused
special branch officers of refusing to arrest an agent even
after it became clear he had carried out murders. One
victim was Sharon McKenna, a Catholic taxi driver who was
also supplying information to the police and who was shot
dead by the UVF in 1993.

Since then Ballast's remit has spread further.
Investigators have discovered that the majority of the
UVF's senior leaders were registered as police agents.
According to Murphy, about a dozen former officers refused
to be interviewed because the ombudsman insisted the
interviews should be conducted under caution. Another four,
including Brown, were arrested for questioning. About a
dozen attended voluntarily.

Raymond White, a former assistant chief constable who was
head of CID at the time of the McCord murder, said: "Just
because someone was registered as an informant or agent, it
did not mean we had complete control of him.

"People with relevant intelligence might hold back
information to suit their own agendas or protect friends."

*********************

http://www.sinnFein.ie/news/detail/17402

Sinn Fein Ard Fheis To Go Ahead On January 28th

Published: 13 January, 2007

Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams MP speaking following a
meeting of the party's Ard Chomhairle in Dublin this
afternoon said 'The Ard Chomhairle today backed a proposal
for an Extraordinary Ard Fheis to go ahead on January 28th.
This is a hugely courageous decision and will ensure that
the process continues to move forward." Mr. Adams said 'I
believe that the new beginning to policing promised in the
Good Friday Agreement is now within our grasp. Sinn Fein
wants to get policing right. The Extraordinary Sinn Fein
Ard Fheis is the important next step.'

Mr. Adams said:

Irish republicans and nationalists want, need and deserve
proper and accountable policing. On Thursday, December 28,
I said that I believe that Irish republicans need now to
take the necessary next step on policing -- that it is the
right thing to do. This was the position I put to today's
meeting. In response, the Sinn Fein Ard Chomhairle today
took the historic and courageous decision to proceed to an
Ard Fheis on policing despite the failure of the DUP to
respond positively. If the Ard Fheis adopts the proposed
motion then we will have the potential, for the first time
ever, for the full involvement by Irish republicans in
policing structures across the island.

The Ard Chomhairle has decided to proceed with the planned
Ard Fheis on January 28th and on the basis of the motion
agreed by the Ard Chomhairle on December 29 which commits
Sinn Fein to:

- Support for the PSNI and criminal justice system

- Hold the police and criminal justice systems fully to
account both democratically and legally

- Appoint party representatives to the Policing Board and
District

- Policing Partnership Boards to secure fair, impartial and
efFective policing with the community;

- Authorise Sinn FEin Ministers to take the ministerial
Pledge of Office

- Actively encourage everyone in the community to co-
operate fully with the police services in tackling crime in
all areas and actively supporting all the criminal justice
institutions

The Ard Chomhairle is proposing that an Extraordinary Ard
Fheis adopts this motion and gives the Ard Chomhairle the
responsibility and authority to fully implement all
elements of it. The necessary context for this is the re-
establishment of the political institutions and
confirmation that policing and justice powers will be
transFerred to these institutions or when acceptable new
partnership arrangements to implement the Good Friday
Agreement are in place.

It would be entirely wrong to allow the most negative
elements of unionism a veto over republican and nationalist
efforts to achieve the new beginning to policing promised
in the Good Friday Agreement. Sinn Fein will not be
paralysed by rejectionist elements of the DUP.

There are also those within the PSNI who are opposed to
change. In this context, I have been made aware of
incidents in parts of South Derry, Castlederg and County
Armagh where local PSNI units are involved in trying to
destabilise nationalist communities. This is entirely
predictable and needs to be stopped.

Our objective is to secure a proper policing service and to
hold that policing service, once achieved, fully to
account. We have already achieved enormous progress on the
issues of democratic accountability, human rights
protections and the ending of political and repressive
policing. Over recent days, we have also seen progress and
changes on the key issues of the removal of MI5 from local
policing structures and on the use of plastic bullets. I
believe that the new beginning to policing promised in the
Good Friday Agreement is now within our grasp. Sinn Fein
wants to get policing right. The Extraordinary Sinn Fein
Ard Fheis is the important next step. ENDS

*********************

http://u.tv/newsroom/indepth.asp?id=79277&pt=n

SUNDAY 14/01/2007 12:20:14

Gerry Adams' Speech On Policing

Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams has claimed republicans
have finally achieved the blueprint for an acceptable
police force envisaged in the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.

By:Press Association

After his party`s national executive voted to hold a
special conFerence that could end an opposition stretching
back generations, he praised their bravery in pressing on
with their strategy despite lingering uncertainty over the
response from Ian Paisley`s Democratic Unionists.

Here is the West Belfast MP`s full speech following the Ard
Chomhairle meeting in Dublin.

"Irish republicans and nationalists want, need and deserve
proper and accountable policing.

"On Thursday, December 28, I said that I believe that Irish
republicans need now to take the necessary next step on
policing. That it is the right thing to do. This was the
position I put to today`s meeting.

"In response, the Sinn Fein Ard Chomhairle today took the
historic and courageous decision to proceed to an Ard Fheis
on policing despite the failure of the DUP to respond
positively.

"If the Ard Fheis adopts the proposed motion then we will
have the potential, for the first time ever, for the full
involvement by Irish republicans in policing structures
across the island.

"The Ard Chomhairle has decided to proceed with the planned
Ard Fheis on January 28th and on the basis of the motion
agreed by the Ard Chomhairle on December 29 which commits
Sinn Fein to: support for the PSNI and criminal justice
system; hold the police and criminal justice systems fully
to account both democratically and legally; appoint party
representatives to the Policing Board and District Policing
Partnership Boards to secure fair, impartial and efFective
policing with the community; authorise Sinn Fein Ministers
to take the ministerial Pledge of Office; actively
encourage everyone in the community to co-operate fully
with the police services in tackling crime in all areas and
actively supporting all the criminal justice institutions.

"The Ard Chomhairle is proposing that an Extraordinary Ard
Fheis adopts this motion and gives the Ard Chomhairle the
responsibility and authority to fully implement all
elements of it. The necessary context for this is the re-
establishment of the political institutions and
confirmation that policing and justice powers will be
transFerred to these institutions or, when acceptable, new
partnership arrangements to implement the Good Friday
Agreement are in place.

"It would be entirely wrong to allow the most negative
elements of unionism a veto over republican and nationalist
efforts to achieve the new beginning to policing promised
in the Good Friday Agreement.

"Sinn Fein will not be paralysed by rejectionist elements
of the DUP.

"There are also those within the PSNI who are opposed to
change. In this context, I have been made aware of
incidents in parts of South Derry, Castlederg and County
Armagh where local PSNI units are involved in trying to
destabilise nationalist communities. This is entirely
predictable and needs to be stopped.

"Our objective is to secure a proper policing service and
to hold that policing service, once achieved, fully to
account.

"We have already achieved enormous progress on the issues
of democratic accountability, human rights protections and
the ending of political and repressive policing.

"Over recent days, we have also seen progress and changes
on the key issues of the removal of MI5 from local policing
structures and on the use of plastic bullets.

"I believe that the new beginning to policing promised in
the Good Friday Agreement is now within our grasp. Sinn
Fein wants to get policing right.

"The Extraordinary Sinn Fein Ard Fheis is the important
next step."

*********************

http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/breaking/2007/0114/breaking10_pf.html

SF To Consult Grassroots Over Ardfheis

Sun, Jan 14, 2007

Sinn FEin will begin consulting its grassroots members as
they move towards a historic party conFerence where
republicans will be asked for the first time to support the
police.

Meetings will be held both in public and private with
senior party officials, those afFected by the Troubles and
the public.

Gerry Adams also said the consultation would include what
he called victims of bad policing and patriots.

Debates, open to everyone, are also planned for town halls
around Northern Ireland, Mr Adams said.

The move comes after his party's Ard Chomhairle, the
national executive, voted to hold an Extraordinary Ard
Fheis where they will seek support for a motion asking
rank-and-file members to back the Police Service of
Northern Ireland.

After five-and-a-half hours debate, and every member of the
56-strong Ard Chomhairle given time to air their views, Mr
Adams secured more than the required two thirds majority.
It is a massive shift in policy for Sinn Fein and a radical
change in republicanism..

The Ard Fheis will be held on Sunday January 28 in Dublin,
and while a venue has yet to be chosen it is likely to be
the RDS.

By going ahead with the plan to let grass roots Sinn Fein
members debate policing, pressure will mount on the DUP to
confirm it will share power.

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and British Prime Minister Tony
Blair welcomed the move to hold the special Ard Fheis to
vote on the policing motion

c 2007 ireland.com

*********************

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2091-2546412,00.html

UVF States Plan To Lay Down Arms

Liam Clarke

SENIOR loyalist sources say UVF decommissioning is likely
if the current political impasse is broken.

The paramilitary group has drafted a statement of intent to
decommission and to end its operations, but it will be
issued only if there is agreement between the DUP and Sinn
Fein. David Ervine, the leader of the Progressive Unionist
party (PUP) who died last week, played a pivotal role in
achieving the draft declaration.

Although the UVF had broken off contact with the
Independent International Commission on Decommissioning
(IICD), Ervine met the group several times in recent
months.

There are hopes that the UDA, which has been in talks with
the UVF on the issue, will also decommission its weapons if
the political situation improves.

It is likely that, if political stability is maintained,
the UVF and the Red Hand Commando (RHC) will appoint a new
representative to liaise with the IICD in February. The RHC
has its own command structure but shares weapons with the
UVF, so neither group can decommission without the other's
approval.

The UVF supports power-sharing as the best way forward for
unionism and a means of securing Northern Ireland's future.
Its main Fear is that Sinn Fein and the DUP will not reach
agreement and that a system of joint rule, the so-called
Plan B, will be instituted instead.

Last August, Ervine warned that Plan B could lead to
loyalist violence. He had privately been advising the UVF,
however, that Plan B was unlikely to be put in place and
that there was no further role for loyalist terror groups.
He argued that keeping open the option of using violence
could only hinder progress. A source close to Ervine said:
"David was at the forefront of bringing people to that
statement of intent, which is now prepared. It all hinges
on the political vacuum at Stormont. If there was a clearer
signal coming from that, I have no doubt that (the UVF)
organisation would be at the forefront."

Senior DUP sources are predicting that a rapprochement will
be reached with Sinn Fein, provided it delivers on policing
and there was no IRA violence.

An MP said: "The Doc (Paisley) is serious about this. I am
surprised how positive he has been in private. He has taken
criticism from friends because of the stance he has taken,
yet he has not budged from it."

Hardliners are mustering opposition to Paisley and are
preparing to field candidates against him under the Voice
for Democracy (VFD) banner if an election is called in
March. VFD has circulated all DUP-elected representatives
and many evangelical clergy with leaflets denouncing the
current drift of party policy.

Robert Campbell, a VFD spokesman, described it as "a
support group for those who are resisting the DUP trying to
get into power with terrorists against their maniFesto
promises".

He said the membership included DUP members,
representatives of victims' groups and members of the loyal
orders. They intend lobbying DUP candidate-selection
meetings starting tomorrow in Banbridge.

*********************

http://www.sundayliFe.co.uk/news/article2152661.ece

PUP Party Members' Invite To McCord Report

[Published: Sunday 14, January 2007 - 09:01]
By Stephen Breen

Senior members of the PUP were last night invited to attend
the publication of the Police Ombudsman's report into the
controversial killing of Raymond McCord Jnr.

The ofFer was made by the UVF murder victim's father,
Raymond, following the sudden death of PUP leader David
Ervine.

The campaigning father invited the east Belfast MLA last
December to attend the report's publication, but received
no response on the ofFer. Although the PUP's executive has
yet to decide on who will now lead the party, Mr McCord
hopes one of the UVF linked party's leading figures will
attend the publication of the eagerly awaited inquiry.

The report - which focuses on the killing of the young
north Belfast man, the activities of the UVF in Mount
Vernon and the role played by top spy Mark Haddock in the
terror group - will be unveiled on Monday, January 22. Mr
McCord expressed regret that David Ervine was unable to
attend the publication of the report.

Said the north Belfast man: "I am not in the business of
bad-mouthing people who are no longer with us, but it's a
shame David Ervine wasn't around for the publication of Mrs
O'Loan's report. I extended the invitation last year, but I
got no response. I met David Ervine on a Few occasions and
I had hoped that he would have been able to assist me, but
he never did. He never once called on the UVF to expel the
killers of my son.

"I've no doubt David Ervine did great work for his
constituents and I Feel for his wiFe and sons, but I would
have liked him to have done more for my family.

"The report into my son's murder is massive and I would
like a senior member of the PUP to be present so that they
can outline their thoughts to the people of Northern
Ireland."

We attempted to contact senior PUP woman Dawn Purvis, but
she was not available for comment.

But former PUP MLA Billy Hutchinson said he did not know
who his party's new leader would be, adding: "This is a
matter for the executive and I don't know what will happen
or who will be the party's new leader."

c Belfast Telegraph

*********************

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/northern_ireland/6260373.stm

Premiers Welcome Sinn Fein Move

The decision by Sinn Fein to hold a conFerence to decide
whether to support policing has been welcomed by Tony Blair
and Bertie Ahern.

Around 2,000 party members will attend the event in Dublin
on 28 January.

Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams recommended the date at a
meeting of senior members in Dublin on Saturday.

The DUP's Jeffrey Donaldson also welcomed the move but said
his party would need to see support by Sinn Fein translated
into action on the ground.

A former Sinn Fein election agent and brother of the
murdered INLA leader, Dominic McGlinchey, said he will
stand as an independent republican, if the assembly
election goes ahead in March.

Paul McGlinchey said Sinn Fein's stance on policing was "a
step too far" for him and he wants to give republicans an
opportunity to have their say on the policing issue.

Mr McGlinchey, who left Sinn Fein last month, was released
from the Maze prison in 1985 after serving almost ten years
for arms ofFences.

Speaking on the BBC's Politics Show, Mr McGlinchey said
republicans who opposed the Sinn Fein move hoped to stand
candidates in at least 13 constituencies.

Jeffrey Donaldson said the DUP "would not be found wanting
in its response" if Sinn Fein delivered on "supporting the
police and the rule of law, and an end to criminality and
terrorism".

"It is essential that if we are to make progress and move
towards the restoration of the institutions at Stormont
that Sinn Fein make these moves and continue and build on
what has happened today," he said.

The Sinn Fein conFerence had been in doubt after the party
accused the DUP - its potential power-sharing partner - of
not responding positively to calls for it.

The DUP denies Sinn Fein claims that it reneged on a deal
on devolving policing and justice powers by May 2008.

Prime Minister Tony Blair and Irish Premier Bertie Ahern
have identified Sinn Fein support for the Police Service of
Northern Ireland (PSNI) as being crucial to persuading the
DUP to share power in a devolved government with Sinn Fein
by 26 March.

Mr Adams needed two-thirds of the 46 voting members to
agree to hold the conFerence at the end of the month.

Last month, Sinn Fein backed calls for the special
convention or ard fheis to be held, on the basis of a
positive response from the British and Irish governments
and DUP leader Ian Paisley.

When the words of approval they expected from the DUP
leader did not materialise, republicans began to cast doubt
on whether the special Sinn Fein conFerence on policing
would take place.

Mr Paisley said he had made no commitment which went beyond
recent public statements.

However, as he prepared for Saturday's meeting, Mr Adams
accused the DUP leader of reneging on a deal which would
have seen him use an agreed form of words in his New Year
statement responding to Sinn Fein's national executive
decision.

The DUP denied that it had made any commitment to Mr Blair
and Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Hain, particularly on
the issue of the transFer of policing and justice powers by
May 2008.

"I am not in the business of saying one thing in private
and another in public," Mr Paisley said.

Mr Adams said he would be urging his national executive to
judge everything in the round.

"In my presentation I will put to people that we still need
civic policing, we still need to have an accountable police
service and we still need to get the power-sharing
institutions in place," the West Belfast MP said.

"We cannot allow others to dictate the pace of change."

Story from BBC NEWS:
Published: 2007/01/14 09:51:55 GMT
c BBC MMVII

*********************

http://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/?jp=CWSNMHMHIDKF&rss=rss

SF Move Puts Pressure On Unionists

14/01/2007 - 11:28:13

The North's Secretary of State Peter Hain today shifted the
onus for restoring devolution in Northern Ireland onto Ian
Paisley's Democratic Unionists as he praised Sinn FEin's
advance towards an historic endorsement of policing.

Even though the party leadership exposed itself to
potential splits by agreeing to press ahead with a special
conFerence to consider overturning a policy of opposition
stretching back generations, London and Dublin believe the
shift holds the key to securing power-sharing and finally
achieving a lasting political settlement in the North.

With the DUP insisting it wanted to see proof of Sinn
FEin's unconditional support for Northern Ireland's police
service before agreeing to sit in a coalition government,
Gerry Adams faced warnings that some republicans appalled
by the strategy will stand against Sinn FEin in Assembly
elections due in March.

But Mr Hain heralded the decision, after tense discussions
in Dublin yesterday, to hold an Ard Fheis on policing on
January 28.

He said: "This is very good news for everyone who has the
interests of Northern Ireland at heart.

"By committing the republican movement to support for the
police in the clear and unequivocal terms that it has, Sinn
FEin has played its part in breaking the deadlock that has
paralysed political progress in Northern Ireland.

"The St Andrews Agreement made it clear that a lasting
settlement must be based on the twin pillars of support for
police and justice by everyone and power sharing on a fair
and equitable basis by everyone.

"Of course there must be delivery on both of these
commitments and there is absolutely no reason why we should
not be on course for the restoration of the Assembly and
Executive on 26 March and the devolution of policing and
justice by May 2008."

Sinn FEin will now begin to consult grassroots members in a
bid to head-off any damaging dissension or splits.

One former party election worker, Paul McGlinchey, claimed
it was a step too far to back the police.

The brother of murdered INLA terrorist leader Dominic
McGlinchey, vowed to be among the independent republicans
running in up to 13 constituencies at the planned Stormont
poll.

He told the BBC's Politics Show: "Because there's been a
lack of consultation out in the republican areas among the
ordinary republican voter on the policing issue, by me
standing and other individuals standing like me we have
given the republican people and the nationalist people that
voted for Sinn FEin an opportunity to say to Sinn FEin we
are not happy what you have done by signing up to policing.

Faced with possible discontent in some quarters, Sinn FEin
will hold private and public meetings.

With the consultation set to include what Mr Adams
described as victims of bad policing and patriots, open
debates are also planned for town halls around Northern
Ireland.

The move comes after his party's Ard Chomhairle, the
national executive, voted to hold an Extraordinary Ard
Fheis where they will seek support for a motion asking
rank-and-file members to back the Police Service of
Northern Ireland.

After five-and-a-half hour debate where every member of the
56-strong body had a chance to speak, Mr Adams secured more
than the required two thirds majority.

It represented a massive shift in policy for Sinn FEin and
a radical change in republicanism.

Doubts that the conFerence would go ahead had grown
following the DUP's muted response to the original decision
taken by the party executive last month.

Tony Blair welcomed the move, with his official spokesman
saying it underlined the British Prime Minister's view that
devolution can happen by March 26 and devolution of
policing powers by the following May.

As pressure switched to the DUP, the party stressed it was
ready to make a positive response to any endorsement of the
police service.

But Jeffrey Donaldson, the DUP MP for Lagan Valley, added:
"We have consistently made clear that it is essential for
Sinn FEin to give unequivocal support to the Police Service
of Northern Ireland and to the courts.

"The words of the motion, if passed, must then be
translated into efFective action on the ground with clear
evidence that Sinn FEin are encouraging local communities
to co-operate with the Police and courts in tackling crime.

"The sooner Sinn FEin delivers on their obligations as
spelt out at St Andrews, the sooner we can all move
forward."

*********************

http://www.sundayliFe.co.uk/news/article2152679.ece

Hain Has Delivered Nothing: DUP Chairman

[Published: Sunday 14, January 2007 - 09:32]
By Alan Murray

DUP chairman Lord Morrow rounded on Peter Hain last night
for labelling prominent members of his party 'begrudgers'
for not acknowledging moves by Sinn Fein to support the
police.

The DUP peer said the Secretary of State had delivered
nothing to the unionist community and accused Mr Hain of
pandering to Sinn Fein.

"I am unimpressed with Peter Hain's comments (in a BBC
radio interview) because he is desperate to please Sinn
Fein/IRA and doesn't listen to the views of unionists.

"He persistently falls in behind the views of Sinn Fein and
takes their side, so I heard nothing in his BBC interview
that made me sit up and take notice, it was hardly
riveting.

"What he needs to realise is that he isn't dealing with
David Trimble any more. This is the DUP not the pushover
Unionist Party," Lord Morrow said.

In the interview broadcast at lunchtime yesterday, the
Secretary of State launched an attack on some DUP
politicians saying it was make your mind up time in the
peace process.

He said he would welcome a more positive attitude "rather
than the begrudging attitude you get from too many DUP
politicians, most of them backbenchers, which doesn't
create the kind of climate in which everyone is trying to
move forward together rather than to snipe at each other".

But speaking before yesterday's meeting of the Sinn Fein
executive in Dublin the DUP chairman said: "We have heard
all the platitudes from Tony Blair this week about historic
decisions but in reality Sinn Fein has delivered nothing,
they haven't even held a special party conFerence to
discuss their problem policing issue.

"I am looking at the motion passed by the DUP executive in
November and not one of the conditions expressed in that
has been fulfilled by Sinn Fein, so what developments is
Peter Hain talking about?", he said.

Lord Morrow accused the Secretary of State of pursuing an
anti-Unionist agenda and ignoring their community's
concerns.

"Peter Hain doesn't see Unionists. He sees Sinn Fein's
concerns and expects everyone to fall into line behind
their demands.

"We will not be falling into that line," he said.

c Belfast Telegraph

*********************

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2091-2546232,00.html

Opin: Ahern Chats Up Sinn Fein, But His Heart Is Set On A
DifFerent Dalliance

Matt Cooper

There is growing intrigue surrounding Sinn Fein's likely
status in the republic following the May general election.
It is possible Gerry Adams's party could end up in
government, but much more likely it will hold the balance
of power. Sinn Fein may be able to wield substantial
leverage on a minority Fianna Fail government, giving it
far greater influence than its support in the south
deserves.

Sinn Fein involvement in southern government will be
distasteful to the majority of democrats, even though the
party's support in the republic is at its highest in more
than 80 years. Opinion polls suggest the party's growth is
slowing, but these surveys may prove unreliable, especially
if Sinn Fein's respectability is enhanced by involvement in
a northern power-sharing administration.

The passage of time has dulled the senses of many of those
who lived through the murderous horror of the IRA, the
armed wing of Sinn Fein, whose leaders were apologists for
the terrorist group's atrocities. A surprising number of
people have since been taken in by the victimhood in which
Sinn Fein excels and its skilled rewriting of history. The
party's standing is also raised when the likes of Tony
Blair eulogises Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness as being
among the bravest of political leaders, as the prime
minister did last week.

His comments were probably justified on the grounds he was
trying to provide more of the reassurance and flattery Sinn
Fein's leaders demand, but they came across as excessive
hand-holding in the battle to bring the party towards full
engagement in the democratic process. You won't find too
many people in the republic sharing Blair's generous
assessment of Adams and McGuinness.

Reluctance to put Sinn Fein's leaders on a pedestal has
much to do with political self-interest, of course. It is
capable of taking votes from all the southern parties and
has the potential to do even better once the Northern
Ireland policing issue is resolved.

Politicians in the republic are aware of the damage Sinn
Fein did to the Social Democratic and Labour party's
electoral standing in the north and do not want to sufFer a
similar fate.

There are also moral reasons for refusing to give Adams and
McGuinness a free ride. One of Sinn Fein's favourite
refrains concerns the level of corruption in the republic.
There certainly has been plenty of that, but, bad as it
was, it pales in comparison with the assault on democracy
the IRA engaged in with its campaign of violence.

That cannot be forgotten or excused just because Sinn Fein
has decided to behave in a civilised fashion. And that is
why the party is still considered toxic when the possible
combinations of a post-election government are discussed.

Sinn Fein's precise status in the electoral mix has become
an issue because Bertie Ahern has made it one. On RTE last
Sunday the taoiseach said he would not refuse votes from
the party when the Dail reassembles to choose a leader
after the general election.

Taken at face value, that seems reasonable. Ahern is not in
a position to stop any TD voting for him. Indeed, Sinn Fein
has voted for him as taoiseach in the past. There were no
deals done with Sinn Fein in 1997 when Ahern formed a
minority government with the Progressive Democrats, nor was
there anything on the table in 2002.

This year may be difFerent. Fianna Fail and the PDs look
certain to lose seats, and there may be Fewer independents
from the Fianna Fail gene pool prepared to ensure a
minority government's survival.

While coalition with Sinn Fein would be a worst-case
scenario for Ahern, the mere threat of an alliance could be
used to force Pat Rabbitte to change his mind about
allowing the Labour party to coalesce with Fianna Fail.
Because if Labour holds firm on its refusal to deal with
Fianna Fail, then a minority Ahern-led government relying
on Sinn Fein votes may be the only possibility allowed by
the Dail's arithmetic. Those Sinn Fein votes would
certainly come with a price, particularly if Adams's party
was seen to be behaving itself in a northern assembly.

Ahern dislikes, distrusts and Fears Sinn Fein as intently
as everyone else. There must be times when he resents the
thousands of hours he has spent nursing Adams's neediness
for attention. His decision before Christmas not to take
yet another phone call from that quarter was long overdue.

Ahern is shrewd enough to realise the damage Sinn Fein can
cause him, taking what might otherwise be Fianna Fail
seats. His own experience in Dublin Central is proof: Ahern
almost failed to bring in a running mate in 2002 because of
the Sinn Fein challenge. Now Mary Lou McDonald has been
parachuted into his backyard there may be greater problems
this time around.

Though the jury remains out on Ahern's self-declared
socialist credentials, the most successful prime minister
in the European Union also knows that Sinn Fein's brand of
populist economics would wreak untold damage on the country
if the party ever got a chance to implement its policies.

Despite these caveats, Ahern's lack of clarity on dealing
with Sinn Fein means he can probably pull off one of those
tricks that have become his trademark. He wants to retain
the votes of those supporters who despise Sinn Fein while
gaining valuable transFers from Sinn Fein voters. This is
something that none of the other parties, with their
hardline condemnations of Sinn Fein, can manage.

When other parties attack Sinn Fein, they sound like they
mean it. Fianna Fail ministers, on the other hand, sound as
if they're doing it because it's expected but that
political deals, if not full coalition status, can still be
agreed.

Many unionists, particularly the disafFected wing of the
Democratic Unionist party, must regard this southern
political posturing as deeply hypocritical. But there is a
significant difFerence between admitting Sinn Fein to the
government of a sovereign state with its own armed forces
and foreign policy, and giving it a share of the limited
power on ofFer in a devolved region of the United Kingdom
that remains subservient to Westminster. Because when all
is said and done, that is what's on ofFer.

Regardless, Sinn Fein as a partner in what passes for power
in Northern Ireland is a political necessity and one that
unionists are going to have to endure whether they like it
or not. Sinn Fein in power in the south is not necessary.
If the IRA continues to exist and Sinn Fein maintains its
desire to overthrow the existing structures of this
country, it is not desirable either.

Even though the main opposition parties have castigated
Ahern for his apparent wooing of Sinn Fein, I don't believe
he really wants to deal with the party. Indeed, the manner
in which he sidelined Adams & Co during the 90th
anniversary commemorations of the 1916 Rising showed how
determined he is to retain the mantle of republicanism for
Fianna Fail.

I suspect his comments last week were really directed at
Rabbitte, designed to present the Labour leader with a
perFect excuse to swallow his pride post-election and throw
in his lot with Fianna Fail should the votes fall that way.
Which they probably will. Whether Rabbitte will take the
bait is a question for another day.

*********************

http://www.sbpost.ie/post/pages/p/story.aspx-qqqt=NEWS+FEATURES-qqqm=nav-qqqid=20203-qqqx=1.asp

The Death Knell For Rural LiFe?

14 January 2007 By Nicola Cooke

The consequences of random breath testing by gardai led to
an occasionally controversial debate last week on the fate
of rural Irish pubs and their declining numbers of
customers.

While the general consensus was that random breath testing,
introduced last July, helped to bring the number of road
deaths in 2006to their second-lowest figure in 40 years,
there was much debate about how the new law has afFected
the liFeblood of the rural community: the local pub.

Publicans from rural areas all over Ireland said that
business was declining rapidly, while a number of TDs in
rural constituencies voiced concerns about the stringent
enforcement of the law by the gardai, particularly in the
mornings.

Gay Byrne, chairman of the Road SaFety Authority, said he
believed the demise of rural pubs was exaggerated. He added
that he had sympathy with the plight of rural drinkers, but
the chances of being stopped at a drink driving checkpoint
were ``pretty slim''.

Eamon O Cuiv, Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht
Affairs, is examining the possibility of a late night
extension to the rural transport scheme using money from
the rural development fund for some pilot projects
nationwide.

A spokeswoman for O Cuiv told The Sunday Business Post that
any late-night transport being provided would not be for
pub customers only, but also for those who might want to
travel to Mass or other events, such as bingo or card
games.

``The minister has been looking at this issue since last
November and, contrary to some reports, this transport
would not be just to Ferry people to pubs," the spokeswoman
said. ``Clearly, the pub is an important social outlet for
people who live in isolated areas, but it is not the only
one. A decision about this will be made before the
election.

``What has also been mooted is getting people who already
work on the rural social scheme, such as farmers or
fishermen, to provide the service at night as a complement
to their work during the day.

"Non-pensioners would have to pay for the service, and it
would apply only to very rural areas with no late night
public transport."

Fianna Fail TD for Galway East, Joe Callanan, the man
credited with conceiving the idea that prompted O Cuiv's
response, said that the problem became more evident over
the recent Christmas period, when rural customers stayed
away from pubs.

``People who have to drive to the pub are afraid to even go
out for a drink or two," said Callanan.

``If they had transport to pubs, most would certainly avail
of the service. The initiative should be piloted in some of
the Clar [a programme for designated rural disadvantaged
areas] as soon as possible.

``The drink-driving laws can't be changed and, even if
random breath testing saves just one liFe, it is worth it.
It takes an hour for the body to process each drink, but I
am not sure if people who sit in their cars to drive in the
morning are aware of this.

``But something has to be done to halt the decline of rural
pubs. Quite a Few pubs have closed in south Galway, around
Portumna, while others are quietly up for sale."

The Galway East TD said he did not think the rural
transport service would be costly, and added that it might
prevent people walking home from pubs on dark roads, a
practice he believes is putting lives in danger.

The Vintners Federation of Ireland has used the issue to
highlight the fact that 800 pubs have closed in Ireland
over the last three years, according to their records.

The organisation's president, Paul Stevenson, agreed with O
Cuiv that a late-night public transport system should be
extended to all social outlets in isolated communities.

``While all the talk might be about rural pubs and random
breath testing now, I think this was just the straw that
broke the camel's back," said Stevenson.

"The increased cost of insurance, county council rates,
refuse, electricity and heat, Sky Sports, entertainment,
alterations carried out to premises to facilitate the
smoking ban - these are just some of the factors that are
causing pubs to close.

``But this is not just about the death of rural pubs: it is
about the death of rural Ireland.

"First, it was the closing of Garda stations, then local
shops, followed by the post offices and a shortage of
parish priests.

``Soon, these communities will have nothing left to sustain
them. The new drink laws will bring huge social change, but
for a small cost, rural dwellers deserve to have access to
one of the only meeting places now available to them,''
Stevenson said.

However, the VFI president doesn't believe that publicans
should have to pay for a late-night public transport
service, as he thinks it should serve a community as a
whole.

If the rural transport scheme is not extended to a late-
night service, Stevenson believes publicans should receive
an incentive, such as a reduction in the price of
insurance, or the waiving of Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT)
to provide their own transport.

``Then, the publicans could rent or use the vehicles during
the day to bring people to matches, for example, or help
those who need transport for shopping or other needs. That
way, everyone could benefit," the VFI president said.

*********************

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2101-2541736,00.html

Ireland: The Unusual Suspect

Gabriel Byrne is bringing it all back home with plans for
an Irish-American cultural institute, says Jason O'Toole

Early last month, a group of Irish actors gathered in the
genteel shabbiness of a Dublin hotel for the first script-
reading of a film Brendan Gleeson will direct. Present were
many of the burgeoning A-list of Irish actors, among them
Colin Farrell, Cillian Murphy and Gabriel Byrne. Many were
meeting for the first time, drawn together by the challenge
of filming a book that has resisted screen adaptation,
Flann O'Brien' s 1939 novel, At Swim-Two-Birds (a German
version, made 10 years ago, is reputedly mesmerising in its
awfulness).

"It was such a special afternoon," says Byrne. "Everybody
around the table was really nervous doing the read-through.
It was just wonderful to have that meeting of generations,
where older actors and younger actors were brought
together. I didn't know Colin, I had never met him before,
and I was really impressed with him as an individual. And
Cillian as well, I had never met either. Both fantastic
blokes, really warm, down-to-earth, genuine blokes."

At Swim-Two-Birds represents a return to working in Ireland
for Byrne after a deeply disillusioning experience on a
project in the 1990s. Produced by Byrne's agent, Terry
Hayden, the film also represents another flicker of revival
for an Irish film industry moribund for years but gradually
showing signs of liFe again.

It comes after one of the most prolific years in Byrne's
career, during which he worked on four films and spent four
months in a Broadway production of Eugene O'Neill's A Touch
of the Poet. It also comes as he is preparing a report for
the government, due for delivery by the end of the month,
about a project that has quickly come to consume him, that
of an Irish-American cultural institute.

Having quietly marshalled a team of 20 business and
cultural figures, Byrne has worked quickly on the project,
winning the support of Bertie Ahern, the taoiseach, and
John O'Donoghue, the arts minister. "I started last October
and we are now so far advanced that it is exhilarating,"
says Byrne. "I am very, very passionate about it."

It's a busy time for Byrne, then, but he has always been an
actor with several projects whirring away in any given
year. In the 30 years since he walked into RTE's rural soap
The Riordans as the livewire young farmer Pat Barry, a role
that instantly elevated him to heart-throb status here, he
has acted in nearly 80 films and television series,
produced nine and even directed one. "Directing a picture
takes a good two years of your liFe," he says. "As I get
older, I have less interest in spending two years of my
liFe making a film. I'm much more interested in other
things. That's why acting suits me - I like to go in and do
a job and go home."

Born in Dublin in 1950, Byrne was 28 when he turned full-
time to acting, having worked as a teacher while developing
stage-skills as part of the Project theatre Ferment in the
mid-1970s. "It really was one of the happiest times of my
liFe," he says. "I never lost my love for ensemble acting,
which is why I love to go back to the theatre. When I look
back at those days and I think of the people who were there
at the time: Neil Jordan, Ciaran Hinds, Liam Neeson,
Stephen Rea, Colm Meaney, Johnny Murphy. U2 were practising
down the road and Temple Bar was just a series of
warehouses and unused buildings..."

One person he does not name in relation to the Project -
and the omission is a clue to his disillusionment with the
Irish film industry in the 1990s - is Jim Sheridan, who was
central to the theatre's emergence in the 1970s, before
going on to a Hollywood career. Byrne simply nods at the
mention of Sheridan's name. Byrne produced Sheridan's 1993
film, In the Name of the Father, and the two, previously
friends, reportedly had a falling-out during the making of
it.

Lacking the career-driven quality of many of his Dublin
peers, Byrne was initially diffident. "I never set out to
have a career in films," he says. "I wanted to get into the
RTE rep when I was a young actor. I summoned up the courage
and cycled down as far as Donnybrook, and I lost my nerve.

I turned around and I went back home, because I just hadn't
the nerve to go in and do the audition."

After his small-screen start as Pat Barry in The Riordans
and Bracken, he moved to London, where he worked with a
succession of independent-minded directors, including
Costa-Gavras. A thriller in which he appeared in 1985,
DeFence of the Realm, proved to be his calling card in
America, to where he moved.

"I was completely unknown in America except for DeFence of
the Realm, which was a cult film there. It was seen by the
Coen brothers, and they asked me if I would come along and
audition for a picture that they were doing, which every
major actor that I knew of, (from) Gary Oldman to Richard
Gere, wanted to do."

Miller's Crossing marked Byrne's entry into American film,
which he followed with a rich seam of work with other
independent directors, such as Jim Jarmusch (Dead Man) and
Bryan Singer (The Usual Suspects). After his marriage to
Ellen Barkin ended in an amicable divorce in 1993, Byrne
moved into big-budget Hollywood films for a period.

"I made four Hollywood pictures, one after the other:
Smilla's Sense of Snow, Stigmata, End of Days, with Arnold
Schwarzenegger, and Man in the Iron Mask. I had a great
time doing them (but) Felt isolated in Hollywood. I was 40
when I made my first American picture, which is ancient. I
made the same journey as Liam Neeson. We went to London
together, and ended up in LA together. I remember talking
to him one day about how isolated we Felt."

Even though immersed in Hollywood, Byrne avoided becoming
part of the velvet rope scene, uncomfortable in the public
glare. "I am not somebody who likes to be in the
limelight," he says. "I am uncomfortable with a lot of the
attention. I tend to stay away from red carpets and things
like that. I don't consider myself to be famous, I consider
myself to be well known to a certain extent.

"I've worked with more famous people and I have seen it in
action. I have seen people running for their lives because
they are being pursued by mobs. I worked with Leonardo
(DiCaprio) just before Titanic came out. It was like being
with one of the Beatles. That kind of fame is scary. I know
people who are completely addicted to it - they'll go to an
opening of an envelope. I don't want to do that either.

I have no complaints about it, really: my liFe is beyond my
expectation. I never had any expectations."

Byrne moved back to New York for family reasons - "I have
two teenage kids, so that's a full-time job in itself," he
says - and returned to the world of independent cinema, and
to the theatre. "As I get older, the idea of travelling to
work is not so interesting to me anymore, so I tend to
stick around New York."

When he travels, it is for projects that he is particularly
interested in. One film due for release soon is Leningrad.
"It's a gigantic Russian epic," he says. "Mira Sorvino and
myself are the only non-Russians in it. I play an American
journalist caught up in the siege of 1942. To make a
Russian film, in Russia, with a gigantic Russian crew and
budget was amazing. The government was involved, so the
film-makers got everything they wanted. When they wanted
tanks, they got them."

Another of his forthcoming films is Jindabyne, which has
bagged awards in Australia, where it was produced. Based on
Raymond Carver's short story So Much Water So Close to Home
(which Robert Altman adapted as part of Short Cuts) it
transposes events from America to Australia, and Features
Byrne as an Irishman who goes on a fishing trip with two
friends. They find the body of a woman but decide not to
report it until their trip is over.

"I am a huge fan of Carver," says Byrne. "He had a
tremendous ability to write about the most profound themes
in a very simple and accessible way, (yet) I wasn't a big
fan, to be honest, of Altman's film. The director of
Jindabyne is an Australian called Ray Lawrence; this is his
third film. He is a bit of a Terrence Malick: he only works
when he wants to."

Just as the rise of the Australian film industry has
allowed the country to tell its own stories (even through
the medium of a Carver adaptation), the decline of
Ireland's, says Byrne, has meant we are no longer telling
ours through cinema.

"I don't think what's happening in Ireland is reflected in
modern Irish films that reach America," he explains. "How
we are perceived, to a great extent, is through film. The
island has changed, even in the last two years. Immigration
has obviously made a huge difFerence. And there's certainly
an openness now in Ireland that there wasn't before."

The mooted Irish-American cultural institute Feeds into
this process, as Byrne envisages it as having screening
rooms and workshops for film-makers, along with rehearsal
spaces, a theatre and a gallery. "I see that as a cultural
bridge between Ireland and America, which at the moment
doesn't exist.".

So far, he adds, the government has made all the right
noises in terms of support.

"I would be very happy if it opened within the next five
years. It has to be a self-sustaining business, it can't
just be a woolly cultural idea. The moment is now, and I
don't want to miss this opportunity."

----
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