Mr Gerry Adams's decision not to testify at a US House committee investigating alleged IRA-Colombian links has prompted a chorus of criticism.
The SDLP asked what Sinn FΘin had to hide and accused the party of inconsistency, blaming it for using arguments adopted by the British government as reasons not to investigate further the killing of the solicitor, Mr Pat Finucane.
The Ulster Unionists called the decision not to answer questions from the powerful House of Representatives International Relations Committee today in Washington "an affront to the biggest democracy".
Mr Adams said yesterday he was prepared to meet the House committee next time he was in the US. A party official said no visit was planned before October.
The Sinn FΘin president said he would not attend today's hearings as it might prejudice the trial of the three Irishmen held on charges of assisting Colombian guerrillas. Mr Niall Connolly, Mr James Monaghan and Mr Martin McCauley were arrested in Bogota on August 11th while travelling on false passports. They had spent some time in a FARC-controlled zone in southern Colombia.
Following early denials, Sinn FΘin later admitted that Mr Connolly was a party representative in Cuba, a fact which Mr Adams said proved "acutely embarrassing to myself and the party".
Mr Adams yesterday restated the IRA claim that it had not sent the three to Colombia and, had he known of it at the time, he would have advised against it.
He confirmed his "instinct was to go" to Washington, as reported in yesterday's Irish Times. But he defended his decision, saying it was made to protect the peace process and to prevent any prejudice to the men's cases.
He also said the hearings were "only coincidentally about Ireland". He believed the issues were primarily the concern of the US and Colombia and stressed the IRA's claim that the organisation "has not interfered in the internal affairs of Colombia and will not do so . . . The IRA is not a threat to the peace process in Ireland or Colombia".
The Sinn FΘin decision was relayed to the House committee yesterday morning before it was made public in Belfast. In a letter to Mr Henry Hyde, Mr Adams praised the work of the committee he chairs. But he said he believed that those opposed to the peace process in Britain and Ireland were using committee hearings to damage it.
He informed Mr Hyde of his concerns about the arrests and repeatedly stated opposition to both illegal drug-trading and international terrorism.
He praised the roles of Irish America, leading political figures and Presidents Clinton and Bush for their assistance in the peace process and insisted his dealings in the US had been "open, honest and truthful".
"I have honoured every commitment I have ever made, privately or publicly," he added.
But he said: "Following legal advice in respect of the three men held in Colombia, I feel compelled to respectfully decline your invitation to testify".
He concluded his letter by describing the committee as "a stalwart supporter of the peace process in Ireland" and cited the Middle East as an example of the tragedy which can follow the collapse of conflict-resolution efforts.
The SDLP chairman criticised Mr Adams, accusing him of setting a dangerous precedent. Mr Alex Attwood said: "Sinn FΘin's argument that Gerry Adams should not attend an inquiry as it may prejudice the forthcoming trial in Colombia is the very argument that elements in the British government have also put forward in an attempt to prevent any inquiry into the Finucane case, who argue that a Finucane inquiry now would prejudice a future criminal trial later. The SDLP has rejected this argument".
The Ulster Unionists said if Mr Adams was not prepared to come clean in the US he should come clean at home.