Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin has attacked Sinn Féin, claiming the party is engaged "in a deeply sinister attempt to misuse the respect which the Irish people have for 1916".
Speaking at the party’s annual Arbour Hill commemoration, Mr Martin claimed Sinn Féin “remains unfit for participation in a democratic republican government”.
Mr Martin said: “We cannot and we must not let these people succeed in their campaign to claim the mantle of republicanism. They are not republicans. They put their interests and, without fail, their movement first.They reserve the right to decide what rules they follow. They do not accept that in a republic we are all bound by the same laws.”
Responding to Mr Martin's comments, Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams dismissed the remarks and said the claim that his party "is not fit for democratic government is a matter which the electorate will decide".
Mr Adams said: “Sinn Féin has a mandate in both parts of this island. That is what drives the hysterical rant by Micheál Martin about Sinn Féin at Arbour Hill today. His remarks are a clear sign of desperation at the growth of Sinn Féin and the stagnation of his own party.”
Martin’s address
In his address Mr Martin said that “[republicans] are no longer as a movement engaged in murdering people, and this remains a great achievement for democratic parties that worked to get them to stop the killing.
“But what they have refused to do is acknowledge that they were always wrong. By claiming legitimacy for their campaign they refuse to acknowledge the right of the Irish people to oppose and reject them.”
As the political parties begin to set out their general election stalls, Mr Martin’s address focused on the party that potentially poses the greatest threat to Fianna Fáil, claiming that republicans “refuse to acknowledge that they fought against this State. They killed servants of this Republic and worked to destroy its institutions.
“Sinn Féin today sells t-shirts with ‘IRA - Undefeated Army’ and talks about ‘volunteers’ and ‘Óglaigh na hÉireann’. Its members, the old faces and the newer ones alike, never deviate one bit from this.”
The Provisionals, Mr Martin said, were never Óglaigh na hÉireann. The Fianna Fáil leader stated that Óglaigh na hÉireann was and is the army of this free, independent Irish Republic.
Mr Martin said: “Even though [republicans] have worked hard to hide the full details of their crimes, the core immorality of their intimidation and actions is stark. To brutally murder a mother of 10 and still protect those involved 40-years later is depravity.”
“To still describe this as a legitimate act of war shows that Provisional Sinn Féin has contempt for the settled and repeatedly expressed view of the Irish people that it was no legitimate war.”
Mr Martin said Sinn Féin read the Proclamation at their events. “They hear the demand for honourable behaviour and service of the people before the movement and yet they keep going.
“No member of the Provisional movement has yet lifted a finger to address the widespread abuse of children by their members and the systematic covering up of it to this day. They shot children in the streets for defying them and they turned a blind eye to the abuse of children.”
The Fianna Fáil leader said: “And let us not fall for the line that this is about the distant past when there was a so-called war on. The covering up of abuse, the protection of abusers from legal and public justice continued well after the ceasefires and happened on both sides of the border.
“It is also something which the leader and deputy leader of Sinn Féin have confirmed they knew about. Both have said that it is ‘unfortunate’ and that the Provisional IRA was ‘not suited’ to carry out this policing role, but that it was inevitable because of the circumstances.”
Mr Martin said that “in spite of their call for people to come forward with evidence, yet again no one has. Just like when dozens of Sinn Féin members refused to give evidence of who killed a man in front of a full public bar. A movement renowned for its discipline in everything cannot persuade them to come forward and give justice to their victims”.
‘False’ 1916 connection
Speaking on 1916, Mr Martin said: “The political party which carries the name Sinn Féin has aggressively been promoting the false claim that they have some connection to 1916 and to the volunteers who fought then.
“This is part of their wider agenda of trying to falsify recent Irish history and claim legitimacy for the sectarian campaign of murder and intimidation which they carried out for 30-years.
“Let no one be in any doubt, Provisional Sinn Féin and the Provisional IRA have no connection with 1916. To claim otherwise is a dangerous and cynical lie.”
Mr Martin also claimed the Government has underestimated public interest in the centenary of the 1916 Rising and the allocation for support for local commemorations is completely inadequate.
“Irish people have shown time and again that 1916 is a cherished part of their identity. On the streets of Dublin and in commemorations throughout the country, they continue to demonstrate their respect and gratitude.”
The Fianna Fáil leader said that the time had come for the 1916 battlefield, particularly in the area of the GPO and Moore Street to be comprehensively marked and developed “as an integrated centre which would provide a place where people could go to pay their respects and to learn about the decisive move for Irish freedom”.
In his response, Mr Adams said: “Micheál Martin is clearly facing huge internal and external pressures over his leadership and the failure of Fianna Fáil to make any headway with the public in recent years.
“His speech majors on negativity and invective but offers no message of hope or policy proposals which could build a better future.
“Micheál Martin clearly sees Sinn Féin representing a genuine republican alternative to which citizens are turning in ever greater numbers, and his remarks must be seen in this context.
"For our part, Sinn Féin is focused on bringing about a united Ireland and a real republic based on the ideals of social justice and equality."
