Building an Ireland of equals
Most ambitious Sinn Féin campaign ever
BY MICHAEL PIERSE
Sinn Féin will today launch its 18 candidates for the Westminster elections of 7 June, the first time the party has fielded a candidate in each of the Westminster constituencies.
The party will be entering the elections spurred on by a backdrop of increased nationalist confidence, a burgeoning Sinn Féin vote and the success of its peace strategy.
There is no doubt that the Westminster and local elections will make for an engaging and fascinating contest, but they are also a benchmark against which we can measure the extent of political change in the Six Counties. What is unfolding, above and beyond the cynical choreography of intertwined propaganda and spin, is a fundamental and historic transformation in the political environment of Irish society.
The fulcrum of this historic transformation has been Sinn Féin's peace strategy and the party's development as an increasingly potent political force. Even the fact that it will be, for the first time, fielding a candidate in each Westminster constituency, conveys that confidence in nationalist areas is at an unprecedented high.
The peace process, warts and all, is delivering substantial change, albeit not enough, Sinn Féin will argue on the election trail. Progress on the policing, demilitarisation and equality issues has been hindered, primarily due to David Trimble's resignation threat last week, his refusal to nominate Sinn Féin's ministers to attend North South Ministerial meetings, and the British Government's failure to stand up and defend the Agreement in the face of this. The recurring emphasis on decommissioning IRA weapons that are kept under lock and key is evidence of a British political agenda still influenced too heavily by the twin negative influences of the unionists and the securocrats.
Further growth in the Sinn Féin vote will mean a more effective base on which to counter David Trimble's and British intransigence. It will also mean better representation at local level, a greater momentum towards national unity and a firm challenge to the unionist and British hegemony of repression and inequality.
Trimble's resignation threat last week is an example of that hegemony at work. It is an attempt to rubbish the genuine efforts of Sinn Féin in trying to bring about the conditions in which progress on the issue of IRA arms can be achieved. It is also an attempt to win votes for the UUP by creating an issue on which unionists can pontificate and David Trimble can flex his muscles.
Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams this week expressed concerns at the effect on the republican base of Trimble's latest threat. A senior Sinn Féin delegation has already briefed the Taoiseach on the issue. ``This is a process, but what is clear is that David Trimble's latest move has damaged these efforts,'' a spokesperson said. ``There is no doubt that Sinn Féin is committed to making this work.''
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