Republican News · Thursday 31 January 2002

Embassy dinosaurs still fighting Thatcher's war

BY RITA O'HARE

Gerry Adams, Richard McAuley and I have just returned from another exhausting, frantic and highly successful trip to America. Gerry and Richard travelled on to Canada for another two days of meetings and events. It was hugely rewarding both terms of political contacts, spreading our message and fundraising for our party's work.

This is to put in context the rest of what I am going to say. In advance of and during Gerry's visit, a campaign of black propaganda was waged against Sinn Féin, right across the USA but concentrated in New York and Washington. While overtly this was coming from the UUP's representative in Washington, it was clearly emanating from the British embassy and its consulates. It consisted of accusations that Sinn Féin is "anti-American" because of our position on the war against Iraq. Aengus Ó Snodaigh's speech in Leinster House was quoted, without any mention that we hold much the same position on this issue as most of the other parties in Ireland.

Paul Bew, described as a 'Professor of History', was frequently quoted without mention of the fact that he is a senior advisor to David Trimble. Bew's comments had Sinn Féin describing America as an "evil empire" and claiming Sinn Féin had called Secretary of State, Colin Powell, a "warmonger".

The British Embassy's missives extensively quoted the Daily Telegraph's rantings about "IRA hitmen in Palestine" without quoting the source, admitted by John Reid as a British security source.

As well as the big guns of the British Information Service, the disparate voices weighed in, ranging from Anthony McIntyre to Ed Moloney. In the same article, British security sources were quoted with the above to make the same point, without realising (or caring) that one criticised Adams for seeking peace while the other cast doubt on whether he wanted it.

What must be noted is the contradiction between the British government - the elected government of Tony Blair who meets openly with Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness and which has acknowledged their credibility - and the consistent campaign against the peace process from the British government's representatives in the USA. The common thread is, of course, that "permanent government" epitomised by the NIO and the securocrats.

Writing in the Irish Voice last week, Niall O'Dowd tellingly wrote: "The British Information Service appears to be fighting a war that has been over for at least a decade." They "rattle around Washington pushing their exclusively Unionist agenda" and have "done more to stymie the peace process than almost any government institution", he wrote.

The fact that the Sinn Féin message is not only sought but is also listened to in America is clear. The fact that we have powerful enemies is also clear. But the question must be asked, who speaks for the British government in America?

I remember being asked about three months after I took up the job in America, "what is your impression of the British Embassy?". My reply is the same now four years later. "They still think Maggie Thatcher is Prime Minister."

One of the papers that willingly swallowed the British Embassy's spoon feeding was the New York Post. It is owned by Rupert Murdoch, so hardly a surprise. It printed an editorial directed against Gerry Adams entitled, "Osama's Soul Brother" and repeated the Palestinian hit man story as "IRA booby traps" in the "West Bank". The outrage was so great from New Yorkers that the Post's entire letters page was taken up with letters rejecting the propaganda.

In spite of all this, Adams had a very positive meeting with US Representative Richard Haass, spoke to 1,000 people in a packed dining room in New York City and was guest of honour at an extraordinary event with the Governor of New Jersey and 300 guests at his home.

We all felt the unwavering support of people thoughout our visit and returned to Ireland with renewed enthusiasm and determination.