Principles of democracy
A chairde,
Surely it is time for all genuine Republicans to say
clearly that history demands that acceptance of the
Mitchell Principles must inevitably mean that the
current peace process can only be based on the already
proven wishes of the overwhelming majority of the
population of the island of Ireland.
The very first of the Mitchell Principles demands
`Commitment and adherence to fundamental principles of
democracy and nonviolence'. It is the very fact that
the Six County statelet was formed in a totally
non-democratic way which should be the first thing to
correct in order to give the peace process the
authority to proceed to other matters.
The United Ireland elections of 1918 (yes, Ireland was
`united then under British rule) gave Sinn Féin an
overwhelming majority democratically, and it was only
the refusal of settlers in the North Eastern counties,
backed by Britain and its armed forces, to accept this
democratic wish of the majority of the people of
Ireland, that led to the imposition of the artificial
Six County bastard statelet in the North-East of the
island. It was imposed by an ultimatum from the British
government - `accept the Treaty (of 1921/22) within
three days or there will be unlimited war'.
No `Treaty' imposed by military threats and rejection
of democratic election decision should be held
legitimate in International law - certainly it is not
acceptable on any moral basis.
Let all the Republican Movement state clearly that yes,
we accept the Mitchell Principles, or they demand that
the peace process must therefore start with the
re-instatement of the Democratic wishes of the Irish
people demonstrated in 1918, that is to say, a United
Ireland. Any internal `settlement' must be
automatically non-democratic, totally unacceptable, and
will not resolve the basis of the troubles - imposed
partition.
y refusal by the British government will show that it
is they who do not accept the Mitchell Principles.
Democrat,
Bristol.
Solidarity
Lios em chania, a chairde,
I would like to commend An Phoblacht and the Irish
Republican Movement for its continued coverage and
support of various political and ecological struggles
that share the common ground of opposing the same
imperialistic forces who temporarily occupy your
homeland.
Over the last few months that I have subscribed to An
Phoblacht I have been inspired at the solidarity
expressed towards oppressed peoples in Spain, Cuba,
south Africa, Bougainville and other places where there
exists indigenous resistance to forced assimilation.
Robert Allen's reporting on the Green movement also to
me expresses Irish Republicans' concern for
environmental issues that other political parties only
pay lip service to. Such recognition reflects the
awareness that many of our struggles are extensions of
a larger resistance to the same political and corporate
powers who see all the earth, culturally and
politically autonomous peoples as a resource to be
commercially exploited.
As an advocate for the rights of indigenous peoples,
animals and the one earth we all call home, I have
discovered that behind the mask of all of our
oppression often hides the same face. And that is the
face of the Invader who is responsible for the
slaughter of indigenous peoples struggling to defend
their families and way of life, be it in Northern
Ireland, on our reservations in the US or in the
jungles of Mexico, Central and South America.
d as is the case in many of our homelands, once
indigenous resistance is squashed, the way is cleared
for environmental destruction on the scale that
threatens the very existence of all life on earth.
The Irish Republican Movement has also been equally
effective in relating that no benefit from political
gains can be appreciated without also overcoming the
social degredation, especially against our youth, that
is caused by drugs in our communities. Such poisons
when capitalised on by a colonising army and police can
have just as much effect against us as bullets and
batons.
Additionally, in my homeland drugs and related gang
violence is the Invader's justification in using deadly
force and imprisonment against indigenous inhabitants
who might otherwise be our warriors had drugs and the
social ills that drive us to use them not been
prevalent in our neighbourhoods.
Since my own imprisonment for animal liberation and
indigenous rights activities, I have read much of your
long resistance to imperialism and believe that had
indigenous peoples in North America not been conquered
militarily, our current struggle for survival would
mirror that of contemporary Irish Republicans,
especially the IRA's. And just as our warriors were
labelled by the US and Mexican government and media as
``bloodthirsty savages'' and ``Red Devils'', so I see the
British establishment use with equal vehemence the
dehumanising terms ``Fenian Bastards'' and ``Terrorists''.
Be assured that I learn much from your struggle and
intend to incorporate examples of your own brilliant
mastering of diverse tactics to hopefully bring peace
and prosperity to my own Yaqui Nation.
My prayers are with your land and people as you
continue your noble quest for peace from those who have
mostly shown you the hand of war. May the British
Empire swallow their pride and bow out gracefully from
their use of state-sponsored terrorism and military
occupation in your country and immediately release all
prisoners of war. I am confident that all of your
sacrifices will shine light on the path that will
guarantee future generations of Irish women and men a
life free from the tyranny and oppression that has been
your fate for far too many centuries. Lios em chiokoe
uttesia.
Rod Coronado
FCI Unit SW
Tucson
Arizona
International contact
A chairde,
Last December Tony Blair met Gerry Adams and Martin
McGuinness in his home in Downing Street. I've always
condemned how superficially and partially most of the
Italian press discuss the British occupation in the
north-east part of Ireland, so I bought a few
newspapers just to see how they would report the
Downing Street event.
Obviously most of the conservative newspapers talked
only about the result, in terms of deaths, of the IRA
campaign during the years, hiding the conflict's total
number of deaths and the absolute responsibility of the
London government in the development of a highly
planned ``ethnical deportation'', held back and limited
by the courageous reaction of the Republican Movement
(in defence of the most elementary human rights).
Only one newspaper gave the right prominence to the
Downing Street appointment, by reporting a Gerry Adams'
interview: this was ``L'Unitá'', the Left Democratic
Party's official newspaper, Italy's first party. The
interview was titled ``The day of a united Ireland will
come'' and was partially published on the front page.
I think that's a good result: in fact our (republicans)
goal in Italy and generally in Europe should be to
break the axis between the London and international
press.
I agree with Gerry Adams when he says that the one that
judges the British occupation in Ireland just by
reading and listening to the London interpretation of
the facts is just like the one who wanted to be
informed realistically about apartheid in South Africa
just by hearing what Pretoria said about it.
If it's true that a great ally of the Republican
movement would be European public opinion (and I think
that's really fundamental) it's also true that this
purpose can be reached only by building new links
between the Republican Movement and the international
press, by trying to establish new relations between
Sinn Féin and the European parties who are sensitive to
the problem of Irish self-determination.
As an active member of the Left Democratic Party, I'm
personally involved in the project of establishing a
new preferential channel with Sinn Féin; I don't hide
the difficulties of this policy, but it is worth the
trouble. It's time to build a new, solid and deep link
between Sinn Féin and Italian republicans; Italy and
Ireland have surely one common point: they both have
had to react against occupation. German for Italy and
British for Ireland. No doubt the second one also will
be over soon.
Davide Perniche,
Rome.
Concessions
Sir,
Loyalist prisoners were out on Christmas leave, same as
Republican prisoners (excluding Roisin McAliskey and
her baby, both uncharged by the Crown). Loyalist
parties are at Stormont without having decommissioned
any weapons, same as a certain Republican party. The
Prime Minister saw Loyalist representatives who are not
MPs, but who have been convicted of `terrorist crimes',
before he saw Gerry Adams, MP, convicted only of trying
(unsuccesfully) to escape from prison when he was held
there without charge.
London has 15,500 troops in Northern Ireland
maintaining a Union with Britain that Republicans
oppose but Loyalists demand.
What do people actually mean when they say that the
present structure of concessions favours Republicans
over Loyalists?
Thomas Hutchison McFadden
London
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