Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh na cuairteoirí sa Ghailearaí. Gabhaim buíochas leis an Tánaiste as ucht an díospóireacht seo a shocrú. In welcoming the families to the Gallery this afternoon, it is important that we remember and thank them for their work. One of the things that has struck many of us has been the dignity of the families concerning Bloody Sunday and the way in which they have campaigned with absolute integrity. Former British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, spoke on the anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement about how we cannot necessarily forget the past but we can also not let it decide the future. That is why it is important, at the beginning of my contribution, to thank the Tánaiste for the work he has done and is doing. It is imperative we acknowledge that work.

Some of the commentariat make comments about my party’s position regarding the North of our country, but the Tánaiste has been very firm, very clear and very focused in building bridges and engaging with people there. In some cases, he has done that in a very quiet manner that nobody is aware of. He has opened up doors and, on occasion, firmly communicated the viewpoint of the Irish Government. I state that as somebody who has canvassed in the North for members of the Social Democratic and Labour Party, SDLP, and the Alliance Party, and as someone who has forged friendships with members of both parties. In my own case, when I was a seminarian in Maynooth, friends of mine were living in the heart of west Belfast and in other parts of the North. There were many regular visits to the North of our country and engagement with the issues there.

Some 20 years later, the Good Friday Agreement is a living agreement. As the former US President, Bill Clinton, said, the Good Friday Agreement is a priceless gift that has inspired the world. There is a duty on all of us, North and South, east and west, and green, white and orange, to live up to that document and to make the most of it. We can all have different viewpoints on the reports that have come out in recent weeks and we can express our disappointment at the decision to prosecute just one soldier, soldier "F", in regard to Bloody Sunday. We can also talk about other issues and other tragedies and travesties of justice. However, it is ultimately about dealing with the legacy issues, giving justice to the families seeking it and recognising the past.

I watched a documentary on Bobby Sands with a number of people recently. There were three different viewpoints among the people in the room and we all watched the same programme. We were all very strong in our views. In my case, I have always been an incrementalist in what I have tried to do in my political life concerning social change and bringing people with us. That is why it is important we have this debate in the House today. This issue is, ultimately, about truth and reconciliation. As Senator Feighan said, this is about this shared Ireland and this shared vision we all want.

I do not want to be adversarial or disparaging in my remarks, but the Tánaiste was right when he called out the leader of the Sinn Féin Party for marching behind that banner on St Patrick’s Day. That is not leadership. That is playing to one side of an argument. I am not being adversarial in stating that and I do not mean to be in my remarks. This is about all of us coming together and working to achieve what many of us and many of the family members in the Gallery want. That is answers. We can only do that by talking and by engagement and not by polarising and being divisive. I refer to both sides in that respect. We can use the excuses of there being no Assembly in the North or the Democratic Unionist Party, DUP, and its engagement with Brexit. If we talk to the ordinary people in many parts of the North of our country, however, they want what we want here in the South. They want to be able to live their lives in peace, have a family, see it grow up, see it reared and have prosperity in whatever shape or form that arrives in.That is why there must be continuing outreach by all of us to engage. Senator Craughwell is right. There are hurlers on the ditch on social media and in other places who have never been beyond the Border. They have never had an interest in the North other than singing rebel songs after a couple of hours wherever. It is about the exchange of ideas. We had the Lord Mayor of Belfast in the Chamber and she gave a fine contribution. When I was Chairman of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health we travelled north and met our counterparts in the Assembly in the North.

Senator Craughwell and Senator Conway-Walsh spoke last week about working with women in healing division. That is the ultimate point. It is about healing division.

The Tánaiste referred to the Government continuing to engage. That is imperative for both Governments so that victims and survivors can access whatever truth and justice is possible in their cases. It is vital to support the achievement of a reconciled society in Northern Ireland. I cannot put it better than that.