     IRISH NEWS ROUND-UP
     http://irlnet.com/rmlist/
     
     Weekend 14/15 February, 1998


1.   Sinn Fein to fight expulsion bid
2.   Sinn Fein win prompts change in Omagh
3.   Feature:  Support for all-Ireland waste strategy
4.   Book review: Atlas of Irish History
5.   History: The Pope's Brass Band


_____________________________________________________________


>>>> Sinn Fein to fight expulsion bid
     
     
     Attempts to push Sinn Fein toward Ireland's political
     margins was being resisted this weekend after 
     unionists, British military figures and southern 
     reactionaries joined forces to try to have Sinn Fein 
     barred from peace talks.
     
     The prospect of a sudden and dramatic setback in Irish
     peace efforts loomed yesterday following statements by
     Dublin premier Bertie Ahern which indicated he may
     yield to unionist pressure to have Sinn Fein expelled
     from the talks.
     
     Fear has mixed with disbelief among nationalists that
     Republicans could be forcibly prevented from
     participating in the negotiations due to resume at
     Dublin Castle tomorrow.   The unlikely arbiter of Sinn
     Fein's participation in peace talks has been RUC police
     boss Ronnie Flanagan, who last week orchestrated a
     heavy media spin campaign to blame two recent killings
     on the IRA but refused to present any evidence to back
     the claim.
     
     No organisation has yet claimed responsibility for the
     shooting of loyalist gunman Robert Dougan or
     drug-dealer Brendan Campbell last week.  In newspaper
     reports today, British sources have admitted that there 
     is no ballistics evidence to link the killings to the 
     IRA -- and only slim and contradictory identification 
     evidence regarding four men charged with the killing of 
     Dougan, despite RUC statements about "IRA suspects" being 
     held. 
     
     Meanwhile, the Ulster Unionist Party has supplied the
     political leverage for Sinn Fein's expulsion, with
     threats to walk away from the talks table if
     Republicans are not removed.  The ejection of Sinn Fein
     would delight UUP leader David Trimble who was under
     heavy pressure to end his party's boycott on talks with
     Republicans. Unionists also see a clear path in
     negotiations for securing a peace settlement favourable
     to their side if nationalist ranks are depleted in
     Dublin this week.
     
     David Trimble said there could be "only one conclusion
     and one outcome" tomorrow, urging that Sinn Fein be
     permanently barred from peace talks. In the South, old
     political fault-lines have reappeared, with right-wing
     elements calling for the internment without trial of
     Republicans and a new push to suppress Sinn Fein's
     political analysis.
     
     Nationalists have pointed out that Britain's governor
     in Ireland Mo Mowlam herself required "incontrovertible
     evidence" before expelling the loyalist Ulster
     Democratic Party from the talks last month.   The UDP is
     currently awaiting the all-clear to return to the
     negotiating table after the associated Ulster Freedom
     Fighters group owned up to a campaign of random
     sectarian murder.
     
     John Hume of the nationalist SDLP, expressing growing
     frustration with the increasingly fragile peace
     process, insisted today that this standard of evidence
     again be presented before another party is removed.
     
     The focus has now fallen on Irish Prime Minister Bertie
     Ahern, who is under pressure to maintain the inclusive
     nature of the talks in Dublin tomorrow despite lobbying 
     from the unionist parties and pro-unionist elements within 
     the British military establishment.
     
     Mr Ahern admitted his government had received only
     "tentative information" from the RUC. But he said: "If
     the facts are such that the IRA are involved, then it
     is a very serious matter -- and the process is fairly
     clear."
     
     Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams MP, speaking prior to a
     meeting of the party's leadership yesterday said there
     were no grounds for the governments putting his party
     out of the talks -- "and the governments know that," he
     said.
     
     "All of the pressure to expel us is coming from the
     Ulster Unionist Party and other unionists who have
     seized on these two recent killings and are attempting
     to bully the governments into breaking their own rules.
     It is clear that [UUP leader] David Trimble will not be
     satisfied until he has destroyed the possibility of
     bringing about the type of change which is required for
     a truly democratic peace settlement."
     
     
     MANDATE
     
     Mr Adams pointed to his party's historic commitment to
     peace negotiations and its substantial mandate in
     recent elections.  He said speculation that his party
     was happy to leave the talks was "absolute nonsense".
     
     "Sinn Fein have worked the process which from our
     republican perspective is flawed in many ways. We have
     worked for and achieved a substantial mandate.  I have
     disavowed, called for and worked for an end to all
     killings.   Yet on foot of an assessment from the head
     of a discredited RUC paramilitary force we [may be]
     expelled."
     
     
     DOUBLE STANDARDS
     
     Meanwhile, relatives of nationalist victims have
     angrily accused the RUC of "blatant double standards" in
     pursing their investigations after failing to find
     those responsible for a sustained loyalist killing
     campaign.
     
     After three men were arrested in a Republican area
     within hours of the murder of Robert Dougan, the widow
     of a Belfast man gunned down last March said her
     husband had been ignored as "just another Catholic" by
     the RUC.
     
     Martha Slane, whose husband John was gunned down by
     loyalists who burst into his home as he prepared a
     bottle of milk for his twin baby daughters, said the
     investigation into her husband's murder was in stark
     contrast with inquiries into last week's shootings.
     
     She said: "It appears that there is double standards.
     John was just another Catholic and it didn't seem to
     matter," she said.
     
     Mr Adams angrily complained that loyalists had been
     treated with kid-gloves while his party was being
     ousted in contrived circumstances.
     
     "Over 100 people have been shot in the last 20 months
     by  loyalists. Where are the forensics, evidence and
     assessments  in all of this.   I think it is time that
     this double standard of continually putting Sinn Fein
     to the test at the behest of the unionists is put to
     one side."
     
     "Sinn Fein are in the talks on the basis of our
     mandate.  We don't and have never said we represent the
     IRA . Any attempt to draw a comparison between Sinn
     Fein and the UDP is entirely bogus.  Just as any
     attempt to draw a comparison between the expulsion of
     the UDP and the attempt to expel Sinn Fein is bogus.
     Sinn Fein have not broken any commitments which we have
     made and  I defy anyone to present evidence to the
     contrary."
     
     
     QUESTION FOR AHERN
     
     Responding to questions on whether the party will
     challenge to attempt to expel them from the talks
     legally, Mr. Adams said any expulsion would take place
     "within the jurisdiction of an Irish government under
     rules which are British legal rules".
     
     This would be "a big political question" for the Irish
     Taoiseach, he said, noting that Mr Ahern had not made
     any definitive statement on the controversy.   He
     asked:  "Is an Irish government, led by a party which
     has indeed made a contribution going back some time to
     build this peace process, expelling the representatives
     of people, especially in the north, on the assessment
     by the RUC and at the behest of the Unionists?"
     
     He warned his party would not accept the imposition of
     a brief expulsion as an expedient sop to unionists.
     "The governments may decide with political expediency
     that they will put Sinn Fein out for a week, two weeks,
     three weeks and keep the unionists satisfied in an
     attempt to silence us and then bring us back in again.
     We and our voters and supporters refuse to accept that
     type of strategy."
     
     Asked if there was a possibility that Sinn Fein won't
     return to the talks if they are expelled, he said the
     short answer was "I don't know".
     
     "I am very angry that we  have to deal with this
     ongoing campaign to marginalise the people who we
     represent but we haven't discussed what we will do if
     we are put out.  We won't even consider what we will do
     until we have exhausted every challenge to ensure that
     we stay in those talks representing and being part of,
     as we have been so far, the constructive effort to
     bring about a settlement."
     
     
_____________________________________________________________
    
     
>>>> Sinn Fein win prompts change in Omagh
     
     
     
     Simm Fein's recent win in the Omagh by-election --
     which means they are now the largest party on Omagh
     council -- has led to a sudden change in outlook
     by the rival nationalist SDLP.
     
     On 3 February, Sinn Fein councillor Sean Clarke was
     elected vice-Chair of Omagh District Council with SDLP
     votes and that of the lone Labour member.
     
     The position, which had lain vacant since the death of
     Ulster Unionist Party councillor Desmond Anderson, had 
     been expected to be filled by another UUP councillor given 
     the ten year old pact between the SDLP and UUP to rotate 
     the top posts.
     
     Clarke, nominated by Michael McAnespie and seconded by
     Patsy McMahon won by 12 votes to 7 against UUP nominee
     Alan Rainey. Solitary Alliance member, Ann Gormley,
     voted for the unionist candidate.
     
     After his election Clarke pointed to the powerful
     message voters had sent in the Mid-Tyrone by-election a
     fortnight ago.
     
     "I welcome what I hope will become the first step along
     the road to equal recognition for Sinn Fein on this
     Council. We wish to also signal that Sinn Fein will not
     settle for anything less than equality and this will
     mean a chairmanship of this Council within the next
     three years."
     
     Clarke, strongly criticising the previous SDLP/Unionist
     pact, added, "I hope that 'exclusive' pacts on this
     Council are things of the past because they have been
     bad for Omagh and they have caused a lot of resentment
     among local people. I pledge to give my best to all of
     the people of the District."
     
     The SDLP's John McLaughlin said that "if there is ever
     to be a coming together, then everyone, including Sinn
     Fein, must be treated equally."
     

_____________________________________________________________
     
     
>>>> Feature:  Support for all-Ireland environment strategy
     
     
     ---------------------------------------------
     Earthwatch, Friends of the Earth and NI2000 spoke at a
     major Sinn Fein conference in the environment last
     week. 
     --------------------------------------------
     
     
     
     The foyer of the Royal Dublin may have had a jazz band
     and the hotel bar may have been packed with rugby
     supporters in varying states of sobriety, but inside
     the O'Connell Hall a much more interesting and vital
     spectacle was underway than the dull fare that was
     being served up on the dual widescreen televisions.
     
     Sinn Fein members together with invited
     environmentalists deliberated on the party's new
     discussion document titled Environmental Waste
     Management in Ireland.
     
     The analysis of the document was positive and
     welcoming. However the presentations from the invited
     speakers highlighted just how difficult and challenging
     are the problems that confront us all.
     
     Joining Sinn Fein speakers were Brendan MacSherry,
     managing director of NI2000, Saibh O'Neill of
     Earthwatch in Dublin and Dr Robin Currie and Cathy
     Maguire from Friends of the Earth in Belfast.
     
     Saibh O'Neill emphasised the international nature of
     the problem and how local and domestic solutions would
     have to be matched with an international approach to
     waste management.
     
     The policy proposals in the document which will be
     voted on at the forthcoming Ard Fheis [annual
     conference] include a commitment to oppose the building
     of a waste-to-energy incinerator in Ireland.
     
     Brendan MacSherry whose NI2000 group co-ordinates
     recycling activities in the Six Counties offering
     information and aid to groups setting up recycling
     projects also welcomed the document, but made the valid
     point that it was not made from recycled paper.
     MacSherry outlined the difficulties and costs faced by
     recycling groups in the Six Counties.
     
     Robin Currie, welcoming the new Sinn Fein documents,
     also called for an amendment in the proposals part of
     the environmental waste management document. He argued
     that there will always be a certain amount of landfill.
     His own presentation dealt with the waste management
     hierarchy highlighting the need to concentrate on
     eliminating inputs into waste creation.
     
     Cathy Maguire's contribution on the health and
     employment consequences of choosing incineration as a
     recycling option provided a remarkable insight into not
     only the incineration problem and the mindset of those
     who promote it.
     
     She showed that for every 1,000 tonnes of waste burned
     in an incinerator there is up to 400 tonnes of ash that
     has to be disposed of, probably in landfills.
     
     Maguire also exploded the acceptable level of emissions
     argument. She cited US and international data and
     figures which showed that there are in reality no
     tolerable levels of emissions for toxins and dioxins.
     
     On the jobs and costs issue Maguire showed that
     incineration produced less jobs than a straight
     recycling programme and that it was industry who stood
     to gain most from the incineration plants being built
     as they could earn significant fees in the construction
     phase and then in maintenance of equipment and
     machinery.
     
     All of the speakers made reference to incineration and
     there was a consensus that it should not be the chosen
     option for dealing with Dublin's growing waste
     management problems.
     
     As the discussion session drew to a close Micheal Mac
     Donnacha who works alongside Caoimhghin O Caolain in
     Leinster House suggested that as Caoimhghin is now on
     the Environment and Local Government Committee the
     speakers could make a presentation to the committee and
     highlight to them the concerns they raised at the Sinn
     Fein conference.
     
     The end result was that Irish rugby might have
     collapsed predictably but Sinn Fein has taken an
     important step in promoting debate on environmental
     issues.
     
     
>> You cannot partition the environment
     
     
     -------------------------------------------- 
     An edited version of Sinn Fein Vice President Pat Doherty's 
     address to the environment conference
     --------------------------------------------
     
     The reason we are here today, the reason that this
     document is being launched is a simple one. We are here
     to take a small step in recognising that we as a
     society, as producers and consumers are producing too
     much waste.
     
     We are producing waste needlessly. We are producing
     toxic and dangerous wastes. The accumulation of these
     wastes in landfill sites, in our lakes, our seas and
     the very air we breath has reached crisis proportions
     which we as a society cannot ignore anymore.
     
     This is not a crisis just in Dublin, Belfast, Cork, in
     the Six or 26 Counties. You cannot partition the
     environment in Ireland, in Europe or globally. This is
     an issue that is peculiarly local and global. The
     solutions then must also follow this path.
     
     The failure of the leaders of the industrialised world
     to face up to the realities of a damaged global
     environment at the recent Kyoto summit on the
     environment is a great shame. Ultimately it has
     diminished all our lives and that of future
     generations.
     
     How do we create a situation where industrial output
     and human consumption can happen without creating
     secondary outcomes of a polluted environment and
     mountains of waste?
     
     
     
     Sustainable Development
     
     One glaring answer is a commitment to the principle of
     sustainable development. This is simply a situation
     where the economic activity of today does not have
     negative consequences for tomorrow.
     
     The document presented here says sustainable
     development means we "should meet the needs of the
     present without compromising the ability of future
     generations to meet their own needs."
     
     Our current way of life is causing serious erosion of
     the earth's capital. What is the point in having a
     booming growing economy now if that growth will lead to
     more economic problems in the future. We need to break
     the cycle of second rate solutions.
     
     
     
     Breaking the cycle
     
     Breaking the cycle of failed economic policies and
     ideologies that characterise our national and global
     economies is a not insurmountable task.
     
     It means tackling the North-South global economic
     divide and providing transnational funding and
     collaboration to tackle problems like rain forest
     devastation, ozone depletion and carbon dioxide
     emissions.
     
     What is needed is a fundamental re-examination of how
     and why we do things and for that we need some guiding
     principles. A good starting point provided in the
     document are the Valdez Principles. The principles were
     drawn up in 1989 in the aftermath of the Exxon Valdez
     oil spill disaster.
     
     
     The role of the community

     Perhaps the most unforgivable flaw in the waste
     management legislation introduced in Ireland and
     Britain is the way it overlooks the communities and
     households who play a huge role in consuming the waste,
     but also have a role to play in ensuring its safe
     disposal. Yes industry has a role to play but who is to
     say it should be the dominant one?
     
     The campaign for a safe environment to live and grow in
     has not been led by the companies that pollute, it has
     been led by the communities who suffer the pollution of
     their environment.
     
     Of all the steps that must be taken to address the
     problem of waste management the first must be that
     communities must be involved in the discussion, the
     planning and running of waste management projects. They
     should have access to the funds and resources. Only
     then can we be sure we have taken the first faltering
     steps away from crisis and pollution.
     

_____________________________________________________________
     
     
>>>> Book review: Atlas of Irish History
     
     
     
     Edited by Sean Duffy 
     Published by Gill & Macmillan
     Price #9.99 (#12.99 hb)
     
     
     
     Mapping our past and present
     
     By Aengus O Snodaigh
     
     Every picture tells a story, goes the saying and as a
     believer in that little gem of truth I was heartened by
     the new glossy Atlas of Irish History edited by Sean
     Duffy of Trinity College Dublin. He is definitely not
     in the Roy Foster mould.
     
     The style of writing by the various contributors, the
     layout and the use of colour maps, tables and graphs,
     photographs and sketches to illustrate the various
     chapters (each about 500 words long) of Irish history
     make this a lot more accessible than Ruth Dudley
     Edwards' book of the same title.
     
     With 49 chapters this is no lightweight book. The
     chapters, usually only two pages long, include: nine on
     Ireland before the English invasion; seven on the
     invasion and the Late Middle Ages; eight on the
     Reformation to Restoration; ten from the Penal Laws to
     the Famine; and sixteen on topics since then to the
     present day. A four-page chronology is provided and a
     two-page further reading list.
     
     While this is no republican interpretation of Irish
     history, it is not bad. Where it is deficient is in the
     chapters dealing with modern history after 1950.
     
     The authors (Maynooth, UCC, St Pat's Drumcondra and
     Bristol University lecturers) should be congratulated
     for succeeding in such few words, with the aid of the
     wonderful maps, to narrate to the reader the
     intricacies of our history without complicating it
     further.
     
     A worthwhile buy for a visitor or a beginner.
     

_____________________________________________________________

     
     
>>>> History: The Pope's Brass Band
     
     
     John Sadleir, a nationalist MP and a leading member of
     the Independent Irish Party, betrayed the Tenant Right
     League during the early 1850s at the height of the
     agitation for land reform.
     
     Saldeir, who was born in County Tipperary in 1815,
     became a prominent member of the `Irish Brigade' and
     later of the Catholic Defence Association. Founded by
     George Henry Moore, the Irish Brigade, which became
     known as `The Pope's Brass Band', because of its close
     association with the Catholic hierarchy, included about
     24 liberal MPs, among them John Sadleir and William
     Keogh (who as a judge, was to preside over the Fenian
     `State Trials' during the 1860s), who came together in
     1851 in order to oppose the Ecclesiastical Titles Bill.
     
     In August 1852, the Tenant Right League, established by
     the Young Irelander, Charles Gavan Duffy and Frederick
     Lucas two year previously to secure improvements and
     protection for tenants suffering from the effects of
     the Great Famine, (1845-'49), entered into an alliance
     with the Brigade and formed the Independent Irish
     Party.
     
     Following the agreement between the Irish Brigade and
     the Tenants Right League, Sadleir, Keogh and other
     members of the Independent Irish party took a pledge
     not to accept government office. The new party had
     immediate success at the polls. At the general election
     later in the year, forty out of forty-eight of its
     candidates were elected.
     
     The success of a national party, however, was to be
     short lived. After the election, when the government
     offered only part of what the Tenant League was
     fighting for, Sadleir and Keogh reneged on their
     pledges and accepted office in Lord Aberdeen's
     government. Roundly condemned by nationalists, for
     their perfidy, the Independent Irish Party
     disintegrated during the following years.
     
     Sadleir became Lord of the Treasury and in 1853 and was
     elected MP for Sligo. With his financial affairs in
     ruins and having embezzled over a million pound from the
     Tipperary Joint-Stock Bank, which he owned, he
     committed suicide in 1856. Keogh, the infamous judge
     during the Fenian trials of 1865-'67, became mentally
     unstable and took his own life in 1878.
     
     John Sadleir committed suicide on 17 February, 1856,
     142 years ago this week. 



                 --------------------------------
                 --                            --
                 --    From RM_Distribution    --
                 --  an Irish Republican news  --
                 --  and information service.  --
                 --                            --
                 --  http://irlnet.com/rmlist/ --
                 --                            --
                 --------------------------------
                 
      
                 


RMD980215062504p8
