Labhrás Ó Murchú (Fianna Fail)

The apology the British Government will issue today to the family ofGiuseppe Conlon and, hopefully, Annie Maguire is welcome. Giuseppe and Gerry Conlon were both innocent and imprisoned. Giuseppe Conlon was a sick man and died in prison. Annie Maguire was innocent, but her life and that of her family was wrecked. These are but a few cases of the many miscarriages of justice perpetrated by the British justice system against Irish people.

We owe a debt of gratitude to the campaigners who through the years against all the odds continued to seek justice for people who were helpless and vulnerable. Credit is due to people like the solicitor Gareth Pierce and Niall Andrews and others who were consistent. If we are to show our gratitude for the work they have done, we must be ever on the alert in the future. We must be wary of trial by silence.

It is important we also protect and uphold the right of due process. I said previously that I believe friendship has grown and strengthened between Ireland and Britain as a result of the peace process. Some obstacles still exist. We must ensure there is closure on the many other cases, including that of the Guildford Four. People are campaigning at the moment on other outstanding miscarriage of justice cases and it is important that we would also become proactive on their behalf. At the end of the day the only hope we have is that we are able to bring closure to the past and that we would have hope for the future.

I am still hopeful that in the very near future all parties and groups can once again sit around the table and continue the good work that has been done. It is very easy at present to forget the progress we have made but nobody wants to go back to the type of life we had on this island ten years ago, to the fear, suspicion, lack of hope and helplessness that existed politically, particularly in the North of Ireland. We will need the same leadership, commitment, patience and persistence that existed heretofore to bring this process to a closure.