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a life time stuck in silence
Earlier this year I met four year old Billy Cairns from Dundalk. Like all children of his age he is friendly and smart. And he is hugely courageous. Billy is also profoundly deaf. I mention Billy...
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acceptable behaviour?
Last week the Finucane family buried their mother Kathleen. She died without the closure on the murder of her son, human rights lawyer Pat Finucane that had been promised by the British and Irish...
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Lethal Allies by Anne Cadwallader
Collusion: Getting rid of unwanted members of the publicLethal Allies by Anne CadwalladerThe use of collusion by the British state in the north of Ireland is a well-established fact. The historical...
View ArticleThe past cannot be an obstacle to the future
Friday - November 8th was the anniversary of the 1987 Enniskillen bomb attack in which 11 people were killed in an IRA bomb attack. Just before I left Belfast to travel to the USA I was interviewed for...
View ArticleDemanding the right to collective bargaining
Last Friday I attended an event in New York to celebrate the hard work, diligence and activism of 100 Irish American trade union activists. It was a very special occasion. It was held in the Sheraton...
View ArticleThe Troika may be leaving but the mind-set remains
Yesterday the Minister for Finance Michael Noonan told the Finance Committee in the Dáil that the issue of a decision on whether or not the state needed a precautionary credit line following its exit...
View ArticleUnshackling the Past
US diplomats Richard Haass and Meghan O Sullivan are currently conducting intensive and inclusive negotiations to deal with outstanding aspects of the Good Friday and other Agreements. These include...
View ArticleThe MRF - taking out unwanted members of the public
The BBC Panorama programme on the Military Reaction Force shines a light on the one aspect of Britain’s dirty war in Ireland. The existence of the MRF has been known for over 30 years but John Ware’s...
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The Sagart
Clonard is a place of pilgrimage. They came in their thousands this week to say a final goodbye to a good priest, a close friend, a gentle and kind hearted man, and as courageous and humble a human...
View ArticleGovernment decision on Symphysiotomy overdue
The decision by the government to appoint Judge Yvonne Murphy who will assist in finding closure for women who have been left traumatised, and physically and mentally scarred by the barbaric practice...
View ArticleThe Smithwick Inquiry Report
Eight years after it was established the report of the Smithwick Tribunal was finally published on Tuesday evening. I want to commend Justice Smithwick for his hard work of many years. I am very...
View ArticleWhat I said reflects what is recorded by Justice Smithwick
Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams TD commenting on criticisms of his remarks on the Smithwick report said:“I am very conscious that at the heart of this issue are two bereaved families. I did not need...
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Comrade Madiba - Nelson Mandela
I want to extend to the family of President Mandela, to President Zuma and to the people of South Africa, my sincere and heartfelt condolences at the death of Madiba on my own behalf and that of Sinn...
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Nelson ‘Madiba’ Mandela – Freedom Fighter
Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams TD speaking in the Dáil this evening on the death of Nelson ‘Madiba’ Mandela said: “Madiba was a leader who by his courage demonstrated that it is possible to reconcile...
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The Downing Street Declaration -
The Downing Street Declaration was 20 years old last Sunday. The first draft of this document was written two years earlier by John Hume as part of secret talks between us aimed at developing a...
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Saying goodbye to Comrade Madiba
Madiba's Guard of HonourThe green rolling grasslands of Qunu were coming alive in the early morning dawn light as we climbed down off the bus last Sunday morning. It had been a three-and-a half-hour...
View ArticleHaass Talks: Agreement is Possible
Many people will be disappointed that the all-party talks broke up without agreement for Christmas. Sinn Féin shares that disappointment.However, it is our view that progress was made and that...
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Death of Leo Wilson
Leo Wilson Leo Wilson died today. On behalf of Sinn Féin I want to extend my condolences to Leo’s wife Maureen, to his sons and daughter Fiona, Cormac, Paul, Gearoid, and Padraic and the entire Wilson...
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Leo Wilson - Saying slan to one of the good guys
Yesterday I gave the oration at the graveside of Leo Wilson in Milltown Cemetery. Leo died at the weekend at the age of 91. Hundreds of people attended his funeral. In my oration I said:“Leo Wilson was...
View ArticleUlster Says NO to Haass!!
The Good Friday Agreement marked a historic shift in politics on the island of Ireland and put in place a firm foundation from which it is possible to continue building the peace process. For the first...
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