John Perry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)

I thank Deputy O'Dowd for sharing time. I am delighted to speak on this important motion. Looking back at the 20th century, when Fine Gael stood for a united Ireland, going back to Arthur Griffith, we have a long history of campaigning for that great ideal.

All of us have been inspired by the courage of Robert McCartney's family, its bravery in standing up to the hoods and rejecting intimidation. That has been a turning point in the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The family has shown a persistent unwillingness to accept double-speak or lame excuses and is committed in its quest for justice. It is hard for us to fathom the family's ability to pursue this objective so relentlessly in light of the immense grief it has suffered. However, the family has secured one objective which thousands have failed to achieve previously. It has shown that the IRA can be shamed into adopting the standards of behaviour accepted in every normal decent society.

It is shameful that it took the IRA nearly a month to respond and that its members and supporters played such an instrumental role initially in destroying evidence and intimidating witnesses. For far too long, the IRA and its political suits have managed to evade, avoid and subvert through the clever use of evasive language and the constant portrayal of their members as victims. What the McCartney murder has shown is that in this instance the real victims of the Troubles in Northern Ireland are the very communities the IRA claims to protect. The savagery and brutality inflicted on Mr. McCartney display a sick and psychopathic mindset. It is hard to see how people could be held in such high esteem in any so-called army of justice when they can so coldly and callously butcher a defenceless man and leave him to die. Even more disturbing has been the way the republican movement in Belfast was able to orchestrate a riot when police sought to investigate the crime and how it expertly disposed of the forensic evidence in the immediate aftermath of the atrocity.

Sinn Féin cannot use the words freedom, truth and justice as long as the killers of Robert McCartney remain at large. Any organisation which objects to or frustrates the investigation of this crime by the police and the prosecution of the wrongdoers by the courts can play no part in the normal political processes. Such organisations should be shunned and excluded until they clearly demonstrate an understanding of the basic requirement of transparent accountability for such wrongdoing.

What has also been inspirational about the McCartney women is that they have refused to accept spin or prevarication. They have also laid out their objectives very clearly and will not rest until they have been achieved. This is one of the few occasions where I have seen the slick Sinn Féin PR machine cough and splutter. It is also a rare event to see the IRA humbled and humiliated to the extent that it had to issue two statements and go through the charade of expelling three volunteers.

The McCartney killing must bring home to us that it is time to end all the charades including the one that the IRA is the legitimate army or that it deserves to be recognised as having the various organisational elements associated with the Irish Army in this State. There is no place for the IRA or its structures in modern Ireland and the sooner it closes camp and removes the cloud of shame that must hang over some of its elected members in this House, the better.

The impact on the southern six counties has been huge. There has been a considerable impact on the potential for economic development across the Border and the opportunities which peace would bring to the whole island, particularly to the six Border counties. It is regrettable that when the opportunity for peace is there, the level of criminality which exists across the Border has such an impact on so many institutions of the State. This is a watershed. Sinn Féin must stand back from the criminality of the IRA and embrace the democratic process. We are going to move on and we cannot have two armies in the State. The McCartney sisters have put it up to Sinn Féin-IRA that people will no longer tolerate the situation. What was covered up was entirely regrettable and would not have been revealed but for the sheer determination of the McCartney sisters to seek justice. There is now no place for the IRA. That has impacted on the economic development of Sligo and all the Border counties. Fine Gael has had a long history campaigning for a united Ireland and it is regrettable that thousands of people lost their lives for no gain. Punishment beatings, the recent bank robbery and racketeering have diminished Ireland's reputation abroad but I hope prosecutions will follow. The cover up that took place in Belfast with the removal of forensic evidence is regrettable but I am confident witnesses will come forward and the people responsible will be brought to justice and serve their time. This is an important motion and it is important that Sinn Féin-IRA should get the message. We have a solid mandate to debate this issue, as have the people of Ireland. It is time Sinn Féin-IRA listened and took heed.

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