Senator George Mitchell:

What I would say to them, I have said many times. This cannot be forced from outside. Even if I had the skill and knowledge to do so, which I do not, I could not write up a plan and hand it to leaders in Northern Ireland and say "Here is the plan for you". It must come internally. That is the only way it can be sustained in any way, moving forward. What I would try to do, as I did in my opening statement here today, is to impress upon them the importance and significance of what they are doing. I would point out what their predecessors did 24 years ago, in circumstances far more difficult and challenging, vastly more so. Many of those present have lived through this, some in Northern Ireland, and they know what it was like during the time of the Troubles. It was a period of profound concern, anxiety and fear and there was great difficulty in leading a normal life. Nobody wants to return to that. The longer they go without solving the current problem, the more likely it is that something like that might happen - God forbid. I would try to impress upon them the importance of what they are doing, how it will affect millions of people, some not yet born, who they will never know but whose lives will be greatly influenced by their decisions. Once again, I would cite the courage, strength and vision of those in 1998 who faced circumstances far more difficult and complex, given the nature of the violence that existed then, than current leaders face.

I would begin with the assumption of good faith on the part of public officials. They want to do what is right for their constituency. They want to do what is right for the full society. All of the members are elected officials and they know the daily challenge they have is reconciling their commitments to their own constituency as opposed to the national interests. There is no limit to the capacity of human beings to rationalise their actions, but in the case of Northern Ireland now, the leaders face a decision that will not just affect them and their families but could affect generations to come. I would do my best to impress upon them the importance of moving forward and being willing to make whatever compromises are necessary.

This does not directly respond to the question, but every political party on Earth, without exception, has those whom I call "the hundred percenters". They have to have everything their own way. Any compromise is a sign of weakness. I experienced that myself over a long period of time, in particular in the six years I served as the Majority Leader of the United States Senate. The fact is that, in a democratic society, where there are inevitably differences and disagreements, there has to be a willingness to compromise. Compromise is not a sign of weakness; it is in fact a sign of strength. I refer to principled compromise that is trying to serve the greater good of the whole society as opposed to one's immediate constituents. That is the challenge, and I hope very much that they will be up to it.