Brian Hayes (Fine Gael)

On behalf of the Fine Gael Members in the House, I welcome Mr. John Hume, MEP and MP, to the Seanad. I thank him for his inspirational address to the House.

Mr. Hume knows the level of respect he has commanded in this country. This State owes him a great debt of gratitude in particular because of his stance and his dogged determination to end violence in Northern Ireland over the past 35 years. His voice has remained consistent throughout. He has doggedly opposed the terrible physical force tradition that unfortunately exists in Irish and British nationalism. He has transformed Irish nationalism like no other person I know of over the past 100 years or so. Too often we forget that the constitutional, parliamentary route of Irish nationalism has as much emphases and means as the other more dangerous physical force tradition. Mr. Hume epitomises the constitutional, moderate way forward, the nationalism that listens to people and which understands from where they are coming. He has dramatically changed Irish nationalism for a generation by means of his contribution over the past 35 years.

One of the great accolades any politician can hear from an ordinary person on the street is a statement of for what the politician stands. Some people find it difficult to say for what any politician stands. If one asks an ordinary person in the street what John Hume has stood for, the simple and consistent answer one will get is that he stands for peace. His analysis of the problem in Northern Ireland, and the problem between Britain and Ireland, is not only the analysis of every constitutional party in this Republic, and of every mainstream party in the United Kingdom, but also the analysis of our people. That is a tremendous success and a tremendous accolade to Mr. Hume for what he has achieved over the past 35 years.

Ordinary people now understand that the British-Irish problem is one of three sets of relationships because Mr. Hume spoke about that 35 years ago. It is a problem to do with a lack of respect for the British in Ireland and the Irish in Britain, and all the other relationships which go with that. The fact that virtually every political party in this Republic now in effect holds the SDLP position is a tribute to Mr. Hume's doggedness in his persuasion over many years. On behalf of every politician in this country, I compliment him in that regard.

I agree with Mr. Hume that the two current outstanding issues are ending paramilitarism and getting the Agreement back up and running with an inclusive government. Has Mr. Hume given consideration to a suggestion I made, and which the SDLP also made just two weeks ago, about bringing Nationalist Ireland together once again, a little like what happened in the New Ireland forum in the mid-1980s, in all its shades and varieties, North and South, to speak with one voice on the remaining problem facing the successful implementation of the Agreement, namely the ending or paramilitarism once and for all and the ending of the physical force tradition which has bedevilled this society for 300 years? Would Mr. Hume now see it as important that Nationalist Ireland would come together again through the Forum for Peace and Reconciliation, so ably chaired by Senator Hayes, to speak with one voice and to say to the paramilitary parties, in particular Sinn Féin, that it is time to move on, to take the responsibility seriously on all these matters, so that we can put this terrible period of suffering behind us forever? It is a great honour to hear Mr. Hume speak in this House today. I welcome him to the Seanad on behalf of my colleagues and I thank him for his address.