Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail)

In seconding the motion, I commend the Leader for its wording and for providing the opportunity for Members on all sides of the House to put on record their reactions to the momentous events in recent weeks. We are going through living history as I mentioned in an Order of Business contribution following the historic meeting of Mr. Gerry Adams and Dr. Ian Paisley recently. That event resonates even today.

I was privileged to be a member of the Irish delegation to meet the US congressional delegation. Part of the proceedings was a luncheon hosted in Iveagh House, which is dripping with history, by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Dermot Ahern. The Minister was absent for the early part of the luncheon. He had been delayed at Farmleigh, with Mr. Michael Collins, the newly appointed Ambassador to Washington, who will be taking up office in July. Mr Collins has been at the coalface in North-South discussions over the past six years, as personal adviser to the Taoiseach. They came back from Farmleigh, where, along with the Taoiseach they had been meeting Dr. Paisley who was making an historic visit to Dublin. The Minister reported that the meeting had gone exceptionally well. One of the aspects to emerge from it was that a commitment has been entered into whereby the Dublin Government will establish bilateral relations with the DUP, irrespective of and apart from the formation of the Executive. This is an extraordinary development in light of all that has happened over the last 40 years, especially with that party and its leader.

Senator O'Rourke is right in her tracing of the peace process to date. Modesty prevents her from mentioning the role of her late brother, former Deputy Brian Lenihan. The first public impact of the initiatives undertaken by the Taoiseach at the time, the late Deputy Charles Haughey, in his discussions with Mrs Thatcher, then British Prime Minister at the famous Dublin Castle meeting was when Deputy Lenihan referred to what he called "the totality of relations between Britain and Ireland". It was the first time there was an acknowledgement from the so-called Iron Lady to the effect that the Republic of Ireland had a right to real and proactive involvement in the affairs of Northern Ireland. It is right and proper that all of the Taoisigh referred to by Senator O'Rourke should be acknowledged in the manner in which she did. I will not repeat her words but I fully endorse them.

It is right and proper, too, to put on the record of the House the courageous stand taken by Mr. Gerry Adams and Mr. Martin McGuinness. These were two people to emerge from the northern conflict who had supported actively militant republicanism. Mr. McGuinness admitted during the Bloody Sunday inquiry that he had been an active commander and leader of the IRA in Derry during that period. What a remarkable transformation it is that both of those gentlemen are now elected public representatives and one of them will be sitting in Government and working with the man who, for the South, personified all that was dangerous and wrong as regards North-South relations and the relationship between Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland.

A biography on Dr. Paisley, written in the late 1970s, referred to an event in the Ulster Hall, an interview carried out by the author with an Ulster unionist supporter of Dr. Paisley. It described that following a closed door meeting in the Ulster Hall, which was revivalist in its atmosphere and content, he came out of the room and the first thing he wanted to do was to kill a Catholic. Such was the malevolent impact of Dr. Paisley and the poisonous effect he had on Northern politics and on North-South relations over many decades. It is right to put that on the record as well, along with the condemnation that was expressed in both Houses of the Oireachtas and throughout Irish society as regards the murderous campaign of the IRA throughout the 30 years. It is right to repeatedly acknowledge the 3,700 innocents who died as a result of a particular ideology. Despite this, we are where we are now. It is right we should acknowledge how far the main protagonists have come. However, enormous challenges lie ahead. It is comfortable for the media to have matters wrapped up in simple packages to present to their audience that everything is rosy in the garden and we are all happy campers. Senator O'Rourke was right to add the caveat that choppy waters could lie ahead. The underlying sectarianism that sadly still exists between the two communities in Northern Ireland will be the challenge for the new Executive and the rest of us on the island of Ireland.

In one sense, I am disappointed that the creation of the new Northern Ireland Government and Assembly will put off the day of an all-Ireland soccer team, especially as the Northern Ireland team is doing well in the international arena. This is particularly apt when one considers the two recent sporting achievements which solidified the common theme of Irish people on the island of Ireland, irrespective of the Ulster-British aspect. The common theme that Wolfe Tone spoke about was exemplified recently when everyone supported the Irish rugby and cricket teams. These two teams are representative of the entire island of Ireland and its two traditions. It was a wonderful display of co-operation and how people of good will can achieve when they come together. That is the wish I make today for the Northern Ireland Executive.

I acknowledge the outstanding contribution the United States has made to the peace process. Even the hallowed US President, John F. Kennedy, never achieved what Bill Clinton, George Mitchell and those on today's US congressional visiting delegation achieved. They are worthy heroes in the pantheon of Irish patriots. All nine members of the congressional delegation have parents or grandparents who were born on this island.