New voice in Leinster House
SF TD will vote for Bertie Ahern
``solely on basis of peace process''
BY MICHEAL MacDONNCHA
The entry of newly elected Sinn Féin TD Caoimhghin O Caoláin into
Leinster House will mark an historic change for that assembly.
While as yet there is only a single Sinn Féin TD the role of the
party in the struggle for Irish freedom makes its presence there
of special significance.
Caoimhghin O Caoláin's will be a new voice in the House in
several senses. He represents an all-Ireland party, the only one
with parliamentary seats on both sides of the border and the only
one with a wide spread of local authority representatives in both
states and in rural and urban areas. He represents an independent
republican party of the left. All these things distinguish the
Sinn Féin TD from other deputies.
The arrival of Sinn Féin in Leinster House comes at a crucial
time in the effort to rebuild the peace process. The disastrous
role of the last British government was compounded by the
failures of John Bruton as Taoiseach. It is acknowledged that the
contribution of Bertie Ahern and Fianna Fáil has been more
positive.
It is for this reason that the Sinn Féin Ard Chomhairle at its
meeting on 24 June mandated Caoimhghin O Caoláin to vote for
Bertie Ahern as Taoiseach when the question is put before the
house on 26 June.
This support in the vote for Taoiseach is critical and qualified.
It rests on the peace process alone. On the wide range of social
and economic issues Sinn Féin is opposed to the policies of
Fianna Fáil and the Progressive Democrats who will be forming the
new government. From the opposition benches the Sinn Féin TD will
be representing the interests of his constituents and
articulating the case for real change. The failure of the
previous government to ensure that the benefits of the `Celtic
Tiger Economy' are shared by more than a privileged few is set to
be continued by the new administration. The participation of the
Progressive Democrats in particular does not augur well for the
disadvantaged sections of society. For its part Sinn Féin will be
working for the elimination of poverty, real tax reform and the
reversal of rural decline.
The Sinn Féin TD will also be articulating the republican case
for Irish unity and independence. Leinster House has been a forum
in the past for empty rhetoric about the national question. More
recently a cosy consensus has often kept the issue off the
agenda. But the presence of a party with both a proven work
record and a large mandate in the Six Counties will be of great
significance. The voice of republicans nationwide will be heard
and nationalists in the Six Counties will have a more effective
advocate than ever before. The Dublin government will be
challenged with the need both to uphold nationalist rights and to
develop, in common with other nationalist parties, a strategy for
national unity and reconciliation.
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