The siege of Stormont
Brian Campbell was among the press at Stormont when the Unionists
sat down with Sinn Féin for the first time
``Did you shake hands with Mr Trimble?'' asked a foreign
journalist. ``No, but I would have. I have abnormally long arms,''
Gerry Adams replied.
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As the participants in Tuesday's talks drove out of Castle
Buildings past the colonial splendour of Stormont they would have
noticed a placard under the statue of Carson, the founder of
modern Unionism and the Six County state. It read: ``David
Trimble, Northern Ireland's de Klerk: A Traitor''.
d judging from Trimble's behaviour as he faced the press after
his `showdown' with Sinn Féin, he is all too aware of the rising
cries of `sell-out' from inside and outside his own ranks.
While all other talks participants exuded calmness as they joked
and bantered with the press, Trimble's body language betrayed a
man under tremendous pressure. His clipped, mincing stride, his
clenched jaw and his jerky hand movements verge on the comical.
But they show a man boiling with anger and frustration.
On Tuesday he ended his press conference in abrupt fashion when
he refused to take a question from Downtown Radio journalist
Eamon Mallie.
Significantly, Trimble and the Ulster Unionists did not go to
Stormont on Tuesday with the representatives of the loyalist
death squads, the UDP and PUP. They walked in with them last week
but it caused such a furore among Unionist supporters that the
UUP dared not repeat it. It was yet another debacle in a Unionist
strategy which seems not to look more than a couple of days
ahead.
There was a general feeling that Tuesday was about going through
the motions. The Unionists arrived, refused to talk to the press,
presented their `indictment' of Sinn Féin, gave a truncated press
conference and went home. No-one believed they would succeed in
having Sinn Féin thrown out of the talks and it was clear that
the Unionists themselves knew it was a hopeless pursuit.
But even as a media stunt, it was all rather lame and
embarrassing. The press were bored. They knew Wednesday was the
big day and, like everyone else, they wanted the Unionists to
begin the real business.
Trimble's performance apart, this historic day was relaxed and
uncontroversial. The media are camped outside the gates of the
talks building and they are developing their own siege mentality,
fated to spend long winter months living off the scraps thrown to
them by wary politicians. There are better jobs.
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