Brian Leddin (Limerick City, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I am proud to be a member of a 32-county party. I am also proud that my primary sport is a 32-county sport, which is the sport of rowing. Many Members might have thought I would say rugby as I am from County Limerick but that is my second sport. On Good Friday 1998, I was with the Ireland rowing squad in Enniskillen on the River Erne in County Fermanagh. I was rowing with young lads my age from throughout this island. I remember at night we stayed on an island on the River Erne near Enniskillen. We stayed in dormitories at an activity centre there. Young lads from the North, who were rowers like me, were there. Each night, they would crowd around the radio to listen to the proceedings from Stormont. For me, as somebody from Limerick, I did not quite understand the significance of those talks that weekend but I talked to them about it. Interestingly, two of those lads who were listening to the progress at Stormont on the radio at night-time were from either side of the community in the North. The sport of rowing, much like many sports in this country, has shown that the two communities can work together.

The Good Friday Agreement is the political manifestation of the possibility of our communities being able to work together. The year 1998 was also the year of Drumcree and the Ormeau Road. You could be forgiven for thinking we would never have peace on this island but we have substantial peace now thanks to the efforts of many Members of this House, and the efforts of members of the two communities in Northern Ireland and the British Government at the time. There can be no going back because to do so is going back to a very dark and horrible place. We should remember that peace is not just about the absence of death or injury. It is also about prosperity. If we are to have a prosperous country, we need to build on the Good Friday Agreement. We need to show all our citizens and every member of all communities in this country that prosperity is only possible through peace. It behoves us to reach out to unionism in particular to show unionists have nothing to fear and everything to gain from continued peace on this island and working together.

The story of Ireland, in many ways, is a sad one. Going back many centuries, it is a story of stagnant economic development, emigration, bitter politics and poor local government. All these things are linked to sectarianism and the lack of peace that has existed. For the past quarter century, we have managed to substantially shake off the shackles of the past. For the next quarter century, half century and beyond, we need to build further because with that peace will come incredible prosperity for this country. We have huge ability as a people and if we work together, we will realise that.

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