It comes as welcome news that Seán Rodgers has been co-opted onto Newry and Mourne District Council to replace the late, great Michael Cole.It has been somewhat of a silly season lately with by-elections being called at the taxpayer's expense for the purposes of political oneupmanship. Thankfully this hasn't been the case in the Mournes.Good luck to...
The Irish Times reports that 80% of households in the Republic will have freeview coverage by the end of 2009. The switch-over for the Republic is meant to take place in 2012. As well as RTE1, RTE2, TV3 and TG4 there will be four new channels to encourage people to convert to digital earlier - those channels are Dáil TV, Irish Film Channel, RTE3 (mostly archive material) and RTE1+1.The SDLP are lobbying for all the southern broadcasters to join the free-to-view platform in the North. They believe "the government has a duty to extend the scope of availability of Irish broadcasting in Northern Ireland"(1) under the Good Friday Agreement and when the recent funding for the Irish Language Broadcasting Fund was renewed, the SDLP said that there is a "huge opportunity to boost the Irish...
One of the main roles of Stormont Ministers is to act together as a collective in the form of the Executive. The whole point of this is to agree on the best way to do the job they were elected to do and to justify the rather large sums of money they get as Ministers.However, with the DUP and Sinn Féin refusing to meet, the process of government has ground to a standstill.As SDLP Social Development Minister Margaret Ritchie has said: The cancellation of Thursday’s Executive meeting is totally unacceptable.“I am outraged that amongst the many other important issues which are being held up in this logjam I am not able to progress my own housing agenda.“The people who elected us have the right to expect much better from the Ministers they entrusted with power.“This year I have set...
I was devastated to learn that SDLP Councillor Michael Cole tragically passed away this evening. Having had the pleasure to work with Michael over the past few years, and witnessed his year as Mayor of Newry of Mourne which drew to a close just a few weeks ago, I can say that he was a true gentleman and a thoroughly decent man.The people of Mourne, the GAA and the SDLP will miss Michael sorely, and my thoughts at this time are with his loved ones.Rest In...
After half a century of bile-spouting, it was going to take more than a few cheesy photos with Martin McGuinness to prove that Ian Paisley had finally seen the light. Actions speak louder than words, and Paisley's refusal to meet Eugene Reavey this week or apologise to him for the sickening accusations he levelled against the south Armagh man shows the departing First Minister's true colours.Mr Reavey's three brothers were slughtered in Whitecross by the brutal Glenanne Gang in 1976. In the immediate aftermath of these brutal killings, a short distance away ten Protestant workmen were killed in equally cold blood by the IRA. Under Parliamentary Privilege in 1999, Ian Paisley made the ludicrous accusation that Eugene Reavey "set up the Kingsmills massacre", despite the fact that he had...
The latest stunt by the DUP and Sinn Féin threatening to pull down the Assembly is a damning indictment of both parties and an insult to the people of the north, yet will conveniently suit both parties' self-serving agendas.With the new regime installed at the helm of the DUP, the party will want to move out of Chuckle Zone given the criticism from the TUV and others of Paisley's jovial relationship with Martin McGuinness of Sinn Féin over the past year. Of course, the DUP couldn't just manage this transformation back to the old-school style overnight without good reason- this 'crisis' gives them that good reason. It has created the perfect excuse to create the impression that there has been a chilling of the relationship. They even went so far as to appoint Jeffrey Donaldson as...
In
Gerry Adams,
Martin McGuinness,
Jeffrey Donaldson,
Jim Allister,
TUV,
Ian Paisley,
DUP,
Sinn Fein,
Peter Robinson,
Northern Ireland Assembly,
SDLP
This week's announcement by Education Minister Caitríona Ruane that she would be bringing forward new plans for secondary transfer which included an element of examination was interpreted in one of two ways: as a climbdown in an attempt to win support from the other parties, or a climbdown because she realised she couldn't follow through on her "exciting" plans to abolish the eleven plus.It's quite clear that Ruane is crumpling under the pressure- she doesn't know where she's going and has given no indication of what her plans are. If Margaret Thatcher was the Iron Lady known for not turning, then it's becoming apparent that Caitríona Ruane is the Tin Foil Lady. After all, her plans are shapeless and amorphous, lightweight, crumple under any pressure and are easily torn apart.And if...
In
Education,
Ulster Unionist Party,
Michael McGimpsey,
Chuckle Brothers,
Caitríona Ruane,
Eleven Plus,
Ian Paisley,
DUP,
Sinn Fein,
Stormont,
SDLP
Abstentionism in the past worked very well for Sinn Féin; it provided a brilliant change of approach after the December 1918 elections which consigned the tired Irish Parliamentary, rather unfairly in some respects, to the dustbin of post-1916 20th century Irish history. The unilateral declaration of independence and the setting up of a separatist assembly which soon became the legitimate parliament of the Irish people, the First Dáil, was a great success. That was then; how about now?Nowadays there is no alternative revolutionary assembly; just the Stormont Assembly in which Sinn Féin MLAs sit. This acceptance of British rule in Ireland marked a belated turnaround from the traditional SF policy of 'kill loads of people and ruin the economy' in order to somehow force the British from...
Bertie Ahern has handed in his notice to the President. And so comes to an end an era. Apart from Gerry Adams, who has effectively departed anyway, Bertie Ahern was the last of the Good Friday Agreement leaders to leave. He follows in the footsteps of Hume, Trimble and Blair.Of course, now begins a new era in Irish politics, north and south. Peter Robinson is to take over at the helm of the DUP and we already have Gordon Brown installed as British Prime Minister. The recent problems for the latter will undoubtedly raise questions about whether his two counterparts in Ireland will have similar problems following in the footsteps of such high-profile predecessors. It will be a while yet before we know, with no elections on either side of the border scheduled until next year. In the...
In
Sinn Féin,
Fianna Fáil,
David Trimble,
Bertie Ahern,
Gordon Brown,
Tony Blair,
John Hume,
President,
Brian Cowen,
Taoiseach,
Gerry Adams,
DUP,
Peter Robinson,
SDLP
A decade has passed since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, and things have changed utterly since then for the people of Northern Ireland. Of course, they could have changed a lot earlier had the extremists now in power endorsed the Sunningdale Agreement in the 1970s, but the track record of those slow-learners is now the stuff of the history books.I read Peter Robinson in the News Letter the other day pouring cold water on the Good Friday Agreement, claiming it was a failure. In reality, of course, today's Assembly and governmental institutions are based almost wholly on the 1998 document. The St Andrews Agreement was nothing more than a stage show, a mere poor imitation of the Good Friday Agreement organised at the taxpayers' expense to give the impression that the DUP and Sinn...
In
St. Andrews Agreement,
Good Friday Agreement,
Seamus Mallon,
Sinn Féin,
David Trimble,
John Hume,
Ulster Unionist Party,
Gerry Adams,
Ian Paisley,
DUP,
SDLP
It is becoming increasingly obvious that Zimbabwean dictator Robert Mugabe will stop at nothing to keep his greasy mitts on the levers of power in the cash-strapped African nation.The once bread-basket of the continent is now the basket-case, yet Mugabe's egomania continues to drive him to maintain his grip. Meanwhile, Zimbabwe's hyperinflation continues to paralyse the country.It was pretty obvious that Mugabe was going to rig last week's elections to ensure that the Movement for Democratic Change, who had previously received advice from Margaret Ritchie on policy and conflict resolution, didn't overthrow Zanu-PF by democratic means. However, after a week we still haven't heard the presidential results, which would perhaps indicate that Mugabe took more of thrashing than he expected.Now...
According to the reports about the memoirs of Tony's Blair former Number 10 aide Jonathan Powell, in 2006 Provisional Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams rang the then British Prime Minister to "express solidarity" over the latter's cash-for-questions problems. According to Powell, Adams rang Blair and amongst other things had the craic about the PIRA's campaign. The bearded one then, it is claimed, suggested to Powell that he and Blair should "seek political status" if they were arrested, and refuse to recognise the court.Oh dear. The reputed leader of the republican movement joking with the British Prime Minister, a man who has been known to hold his predecessor Margaret Thatcher in high esteem, about the key issue that inspired ten PIRA and INLA men to starve themselves to death is quite...
In
Ard Fheis,
British Government,
Little Room: Making Peace in Northern Ireland,
Great Hatred,
Jonathan Powell,
Seamus Mallon,
Sinn Féin,
Tony Blair,
Gerry Adams,
Northern Ireland Assembly,
SDLP
Today's Irish News published details of how highly sensitive information on school pupils and their families was found lying about in Camlough, Co. Armagh. The revelation was made by SDLP Newry and Armagh MLA Dominic Bradley, who had been passed the information.The highly sensitive material contained information on 120 people who were pupils quite a few years ago and included details about threadbare clothing on unwashed children and derogatory descriptions of parents. The files included details of of doctors' examinations, information on admissions to a psychiatric institution and prosecutions for non-attendance at school.One parent was described as a 'n'er do well'. Nice.However, rather than accept Mr Bradley's right as a democratically elected politician- nay, a citizen- to publicise...
In
Newry and Armagh,
South Down,
South Armagh,
Camlough,
Irish News,
personal data,
lost files,
SELB,
Sinn Féin,
Education,
Caitríona Ruane,
Dominic Bradley,
Northern Ireland Assembly,
SDLP
The SDLP, having weighed up what was on offer in the budget against its serious shortcomings, voted against it- fair play to them. Margaret Ritchie stood firm in the face of the DUP/ SF axis bullying tactics and managed to squeeze extra money from them for much-needed social housing. However, it remains an essentially right-wing, anti-community budget. There is of course the lack of detail on water reform and education, and by the recent performance of Nigel Dodds with regard to the abolition of relief for the installation of energy efficient measures, the two big parties cannot be trusted to deliver unless they spell out exactly what they are intending to do.Some people don't seem to be able to get their heads around the concept that the SDLP are in the Executive as a right, not because...
I must apologise for my irregular appearances on the blog of late- a new computer is winging its way to Áras an Bhlogador so with any luck my contributions will resume a somewhat more orderly rate of publication. As it transpires, Pól has been keeping a steady hand at the helm, guiding El Blogador safely away from being dashed on the iceberg of irrelevance.Today saw the current Assembly's first budget. After all the wrangling of recent months over who was getting what from the proverbial purse, Margaret Ritchie's department emerged as the 'victor', which in effect means that the people in our society who need help to get a headstart in life are the victors.Despite being bullied and harrangued by the DUP/ Sinn Féin axis, Margaret has stood firm on a range of issues such as the...
In
El Blogador,
Department of Social Development,
budget,
Sinn Féin,
Ulster Unionist Party,
Michael McGimpsey,
DUP,
Peter Robinson,
Northern Ireland Assembly,
Margaret Ritchie,
SDLP
I attended an interesting debate in Queen's Students' Union last night which pitched political representatives against each other under the chairmanship of Jim Fitzpatrick. The event was part of the union's 'Political Activism Week.'South Belfast DUP MLA Jimmy Spratt was booked as one of the speakers, but we were informed upon arrival that he had pulled out as MEP Jim Allister had been added to the bill. Spratt was replaced by his unsuccessful fellow Stormont candidate Christopher Stalford. Making up the rest of the line-up was John Barry from the Greens, Carmel Hanna from the SDLP, Basil McCrea from the UUP, David Ford from Alliance, and Sinn Féin's Alex Maskey (who arrived 25 minutes late- no jokes please about Sinn Féin always being behind everyone else).Issues discussed included the...
In
Belfast,
Green Party,
Alliance Party,
Reg Empey,
Arlene Foster,
David McNarry,
Jim Fitzpatrick,
Basil McCrea,
Queen's University,
Sinn Féin,
Jeffrey Donaldson,
Jim Allister,
DUP,
UUP,
SDLP
I was shocked to hear about the failure of the Sinn Féin group on Belfast City Council to back a motion tabled at the monthly council meeting last night which asked councillors to support the suffering of the people of Burma and their democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991.The images are fresh in our memories of the brave people of Burma standing up to the brutal regime there. It's only right that the people of the world back their struggle for justice, democracy and freedom. Sinn Féin, however, appears to disagree.SDLP councillor Carmel Hanna had asked the Belfast councillors to agree that it would be a fitting tribute to Aung San Suu Kyi to consider offering her the Freedom of the City of Belfast. The proposal was supported by UUP, Alliance and...
In
Carmel Hanna,
Belfast City Council,
Myanmar,
Nobel Peace Prize,
Aung San Suu Kyi,
Burma,
Alliance Party,
Sinn Féin,
DUP,
UUP,
SDLP
On a cold, wet night in November, you would expect most people in Ireland to be tucked up at home in front of the TV with the fire blazing. But that wasn't the case last night in Cullyhanna in south Armagh, where there was a massive turn-out of local people to back the family of Paul Quinn's campaign for justice. There quite literally was standing room only in the community centre.This was a gathering of ordinary, decent people who have simply come together to agree that they've had enough. A number of people in the crowd spoke of the years of intimidation they have received at the hands of paramilitaries. They talked about how they kept quiet about the beatings that their family members had received for fear of further reprisals. They spoke about the fact that they were sick of living...
In
Conor Murphy,
Provos,
Paul Quinn,
Jim McAllister,
Cullyhanna,
Quinn Support Group,
Shaun Woodward,
South Armagh,
Sinn Féin,
Fianna Fáil,
Bertie Ahern,
IRA,
Dominic Bradley,
DUP,
SDLP
You've got to hand it to Martin McGuinness- for someone without RADA training it must have taken some skill to keep a straight face yesterday when he described the SDLP and UUP as the "problem parties". Clap, clap, clap. Bravo.Perhaps Mr McGuinness suffers from amnesia (probably useful given his past), but if he casts his mind back just a decade, then he will see what real problem parties were, including his own- on one side we had Sinn Féin advocating the resurrected campaign of terror being waged by the IRA and refusing to condemn provo killings, and on the other we saw the DUP refusing to entertain the idea of sharing power with nationalists and displaying just about every sectarian cliché in the book. The only problem with the SDLP and UUP for Sinn Féin and the DUP in the current...
In
Reg Empey,
Sinn Féin,
Michael McGimpsey,
Martin McGuinness,
Ian Paisley,
DUP,
UUP,
Peter Robinson,
Northern Ireland Assembly,
Margaret Ritchie,
SDLP
With the ongoing debate and needless politicisation of the Irish language issue by the DUP, I hope I'm not barking up the wrong tree by showing this video as a lighthearted example of how an ability to speak both English and Irish is a good thing. There's nothing fishy about the idea of an Irish Language Act- it will help secure and enhance a linguistic heritage that belongs to everyone on this island, and will promote a greater understanding of where we have come from as we look at where we are going. The DUP and other politicians such as David McNarry may throw dog's abuse at the Irish language and its supporters, but that will not deter those who believe that an act is necessary....
In
dog,
cat,
Irish Language Act,
fish,
Edwin Poots,
David McNarry,
Sinn Féin,
DUP,
UUP,
Northern Ireland Assembly,
SDLP
I’ve recently been having an argument debate on Wikipedia over whether the SDLP is an Irish republican party- I say it is; others disagree. I pointed out that the SDLP has described itself as a republican party, but others seem to think that it depends on the perception which people have of a party which counts (an altogether less tangible measurement).So what is the definition of ‘republican’? Well, as an adjective one tends to find explanations such as “a person who favours a republican form of government” and “having the supreme power lying in the body of citizens entitled to vote for officers and representatives responsible to them or characteristic of such government.” As a noun, we find “One who favours a republic as the best form of government.” Clearly the SDLP...
I didn’t post on the brutal killing of Paul Quinn as I knew that the issue was liable to descend into petty political point-scoring. As it transpires, that is exactly what has happened, with various sides warping the truth for their own ends. However, having spoken to people on the ground and listened to the rubbish being peddled from a number of directions, I decided it was time to speak out on the killing.Firstly, Lord Laird’s claims made under parliamentary privilege were wide of the mark- if he’d bothered to talk to people in the area who know the situation on the ground rather than taking advice from a known crank, then perhaps he would have been more accurate in his claims.However, Laird’s ramblings are nothing compared to the provos’ sickening efforts to blacken the name...
In
Geraldine Donnelly,
Lord Laird of Artigarvan,
Conor Murphy,
Provos,
Paul Quinn,
Jim McAllister,
Cullyhanna,
South Armagh,
Sinn Féin,
Gerry Adams,
IRA,
SDLP,
Newry and Mourne District Council
In the last week two PSNI officers have been shot by what are termed dissident republicans but who might be more accurately be described as non-subscribing Provisionals. Thankfully, though badly wounded, neither officer was killed. The Real IRA claimed responsible for the attack in Derry and a group styling itself the Irish Republican Liberation Army admitted the shooting in Dungannon. (Where do they get their names? Is there an Irish National Republican Army out there too?) The worrying thing is that these attacks will continue and, worse, escalate.The RIRA issued a statement about their attack which readers of a certain age will recognise as coming from An Phoblacht circa 1979: “As the Crown forces member travelled along Bishop Street towards the city centre, two IRA volunteers...
In
PSNI,
RUC,
Crossmaglen,
Derry,
Real IRA,
Dungannon,
Sinn Féin,
John Hume,
Martin McGuinness,
DUP,
Margaret Ritchie,
SDLP
News came today that former SDLP MLA and councillor John Fee has died. John had been sick for a while, but nonetheless the announcement of his passing will come as a blow to the people of south Armagh and his party colleagues.John stood up for his principles, despite being under serious threat from those who happened to disagree with his position. Indeed, John suffered a serious physical beating in the early 1990s after he dared to criticise an IRA attack. Despite this, he continued to work for the people of his area and fight for a better, more peaceful Ireland.John may be gone, but his legacy lives on in the form of an Ireland where the peaceful route is recognised as the only road to progress.Rest In...
I would like to send my hearty congratulations to Newry Sinn Féin Numero Uno Brendan Curran who has finally reached the top of the greasy pole by becoming Chair of the area's District Policing Partnership. Maith thú, Breandán- another strike for the republic, eh?Of course, the provo press release hailing Brendan's great achievement doesn't quite explain why he and his colleagues couldn't have done all this six years ago when the SDLP got involved in the new Patten policing arrangements.What Brendan does say though is: "Policing with the community needs to be the core function of any civic policing service and we want to ensure that will happen. Sinn Féin local elected representatives sitting on the DPPs is another step along that road... The District Policing Partnership is charged...
After weeks of unfounded media speculation, the record has been set straight on the future of the SDLP by its own membership- an all-Ireland working group will be established to look at all the options available to the party. And then, once all the issues have been teased out, the membership will decide on the best way forward based on the evidence they will have at their disposal. The party will be engaging with all of the main southern parties and anyone else whom it deems necessary.The private debate at yesterday's conference session saw many salient points being madeby members from across the island . I was extremely hungover after having argued with southerners until nearly five o'clock in the morning, fuelled by Guinness, but thankfully I didn't have to take to the stage as there...
SDLP Leader Mark Durkan slammed a statement issued this evening by the DUP's Peter Robinson. Mr Durkan accused Robinson of prejudging the Executive meeting scheduled for tomorrow and of seeking to reshape events to suit personal political priorities.Robinson claimed that Margaret Ritchie "rushed to make her statement without keeping the conditions set out by the executive."He added: "Before she made her statement the minister was warned by officials she would be breaching the ministerial code but chose to dismiss the advice. Under the new ministerial code every minister is bound by executive decisions and must act in accordance with those decisions. The ministerial code has statutory authority. The DSD minister has therefore breached the ministerial code."However the Leader of the SDLP...
I would like to congratulate the Minister for Social Development for standing firm against the UDA, despite attempts by elements from within and outside the Assembly to undermine her. It is quite clear that the UDA should not get their grubby fingers on a single penny of public money.Of course it comes as no surprise that the DUP threw their toys out of the pram upon hearing the Minister's statement. What exactly do they want- a continuation of funding for those who refuse to decommission? Funny how they didn't display the same attitude in relation to the IRA in recent years. Hypocrisy of the highest order, methinks.Sinn Féin weren't much better. In the Assembly today they repeatedly asked the Minister the wholly pointless question: "Have you been funding the UDA?" Sinn Féin and...
SDLP Leader Mark Durkan MP MLA has today responded to An Taoiseach’s announcement that Fianna Fáil is to establish a new committee on all-island strategy:"The SDLP was the architect of the Agreed Ireland which has now at last come to pass. We have always said that this new Ireland would bring realignment and exciting change in Irish politics, both between North and South and within the North. With many of the institutions finally up and running, the flux that we have predicted is now beginning to appear."We are a party that plays its role in response to the public needs of the time. For decades, we worked in the national interest to secure peace. In recent years, we have continued to take on the real issues of the day, North and South, not least through our ‘North-South Makes...
In
Northern Ireland,
Dáil Éireann,
Dermot Ahern,
Cumann,
Mark Durkan,
Derry,
Fianna Fáil,
Bertie Ahern,
Northern Ireland Assembly,
North South Makes Sense,
SDLP
Over the course of the past few months it has become clear that the tight grip of power that Ian Paisley once had on his 'flock' is loosening. Just last week it was revealed that he will be stepping down as leader of the church he founded, and now eight DUP councillors on Coleraine Council have backed a move to oppose DUP Minister Arlene Foster's plans for the Giant's Causeway.The councillors in question supported a proposal by SDLP Councillor John Dallat backing the original government plan for the development of the Giant’s Causeway. The proposal was seconded by the DUP mayor Maurice Bradley.The proposal reads: "This council supports the original government backed planning application for the Giant’s Causeway lodged in 2002 and conveys our concerns to the Minister for the...
In
coleraine,
John Dallat,
Seaport Developments,
Giant's Causeway,
Free Presbyterian Church,
Seymour Sweeney,
Arlene Foster,
Ian Paisley,
DUP,
Northern Ireland Assembly,
SDLP