Tom Clonan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses very much for coming to Dublin. It is lovely to meet them. I am very interested in hearing what they have to say. I heard a couple of recurring themes. One of them is about identity and the other was the use of the word "reunification". In terms of identity, I am from Dublin. In my family, on my mum's side we have people who ordered the execution of the 1916 leaders. On my mum's side also I have a grandmother who participated in the War of Independence. She was a schoolteacher by day and an arsonist and freedom fighter at night. If we look at the DNA of people in the Republic, Galicia is a very strong marker. There are also some markers from Norway and lots from Scotland.

When I was in the Army I went back to university and I had to do a module on culture and identity. The lecturer asked how I would describe my identity if a spaceship from outer space landed and an alien got out and asked me to describe myself in one sentence. He asked if I am a man, a parent, an Army officer or a brother? I said, "I am inedible." Culture and identity are things that shift.

Later, as a journalist, I went to one of the last British Army patrols out of Bessbrook Mill. What a celebration. The young soldiers and everyone else there were delighted to be going home. General Wayne Harber was the guy from Belfast who was in charge from Thiepval Barracks. He said: "We all want to see police cars back here. We want to see normalisation.” I was invited to the Royal Irish Regiment in Inverness the following year. That was a real revelation because in the section rooms the young soldiers of the Royal Irish Regiment in the British Army had Celtic flags, Rangers flags, shamrocks, shillelaghs, shenanigans and they celebrated each other's culture, so it is possible. How unlikely a place to find such harmony. I know the British Army wants them to fight. That is the thing about culture. I hope we can get to the point of celebrating our cultures and having the parades and so on.

In terms of reunification, as part of my military experience, I was in Bosnia at the end of that conflict. I do not think we are analogous to West Germany and East Germany. I do not think this is about reunification. We are more analogous to the former Yugoslavia and to Bosnia. It is not about reuniting, it is about how we live together. I agree with what has been said. That is why I am elected here. I reject so many parts of the Republic, such as the provision of healthcare and services for people with disabilities. There is a lot to be admired about the jurisdiction that the witnesses enjoy. I agree with Ms Grundle that we cannot plan for this without all the stakeholders, but when I talked about the past and identity, I am thinking about my 18-year old daughter, my 20-year old son, my 21-year old son, and my 14-year old son because they are going to have to live the next reality, whatever it happens to be. Even if we cannot plan for it, do the witnesses think that it is a good idea that we at least talk to each other and get to know each other? Most people in the Republic know very little about the amazing traditions - intellectual and artistic - and the cultural history and struggle of the unionist community. That is the question. Should we talk? How can we talk? How can we facilitate those conversations? I am happy to come any time and visit any of the witnesses if they want to invite me and to put up with my stories. It is about getting to know each other and having the conversation.