Republican News · Thursday 18 April 2002

Sinn Féin will win Dublin South West

Sinn Féin is a political party working on the ground in communities rural and urban around Ireland. It is the only all-Ireland party, the only party committed to building an Ireland of equals.

Sinn Féin is the only party offering real opposition to the corrupt and tired status quo in Leinster House. It is also the only party being reported negatively in the news media, especially in the papers run by Independent News and Media.

In recent weeks, the Irish Independent has published opinion poll surveys in key constituencies, all of which record a Sinn Féin vote substantially increased on the party's showing in the 1997 Leinster House elections.

This week, it was Dublin South West, where the Independent/IMS poll showed Sinn Féin at 15%, up significantly on its showing of 8.9% in 1997, where party candidate Sean Crowe narrowly missed out on winning the last seat in this constituency.

According to the Independent, these increased figures all point not to growing Sinn Féin voter support but to electoral failure. Why are they reporting this way? It is simple. They don't want the positive social change Sinn Féin would bring to Leinster House. They don't want to share the wealth.

There is almost no discussion about Sinn Féin's radical policies in the establishment media. Instead, we have unsustainable accusations about vigilantism and endless speculation about election performance.

Independent News and Media's papers vilified Sinn Féin in the past. They supported censorship of the party, opposed the Hume/Adams talks and the early stages of the peace process. Now, with nearly eight years of peace, they are still peddling the same anti-republican agenda. This is not news reporting. It is biased and self-serving.

The Independent was wrong about Sinn Féin, wrong about the peace process and will be proved wrong about the party's electoral performance in the May elections.

Sinn Féin will win new seats, will increase its vote and will take more steps towards the Ireland of equals that the Independent News and Media fears so much.