Fianna Fáil has moved to distance itself from Mr Dermot Ahern's upbeat remarks about future Sinn Féin participation in government, saying that the party has major steps to take before it can be seen as a coalition partner. Chief Political Correspondent Mark Brennock reports.
The Government yesterday issued a statement outlining the Taoiseach's view that paramilitarism must end, decommissioning of weapons must take place, and private armies eliminated before Fianna Fáil would "review" its current opposition to Sinn Féin participation in government.
This statement followed remarks by the Minister for Education, Ms Hanafin, with the authority of the Government, that Sinn Féin had "a long, long way to go" before it could be in government.
These Government statements, that Sinn Féin still had major hurdles to overcome followed the remarks of the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Ahern, on Tuesday that it was "only a matter of time" before Sinn Féin was in government in the Republic.
Speaking to reporters at Hillsborough, Mr Dermot Ahern said Fianna Fáil's view that Sinn Féin should not be in government would change if circumstances changed. "I hope that happens in the future," he said.
While no Government spokesman or source disputed the content of Mr Ahern's remarks, several set out to water down the optimistic tone. Fine Gael and Labour questioned whether Mr Ahern was setting out, with the authority of the Taoiseach, to prepare public opinion for a possible Fianna Fáil/Sinn Féin alliance. Government sources denied this, saying Mr Ahern's remarks were made unprepared, and in response to reporters' questions.
Speculation that Fianna Fáil was leaving open the option of a coalition with Sinn Féin follows a period of considerable expressed optimism from some Government sources that a deal could be done in the North soon. However yesterday it was apparent that there is considerably less optimism in Dublin now about an imminent deal involving the ending of IRA activity, the decommissioning of weapons, and the restoration of the North's powersharing institutions.
The Irish and British governments may publish their proposals next week designed to surmount the remaining difficulties, but there is little hope of an early conclusion of talks.
Yesterday's Government statement gave the content of remarks by the Taoiseach to a Fianna Fáil parliamentary party meeting last week when he was asked about the issue. "He made it clear that there are issues which still need to be resolved before this matter will be reviewed by Fianna Fáil," the statement said. "There has to be an end to paramilitarism, we must see decommissioning of weapons and there can be no place for private armies."
Ms Hanafin said yesterday that she could not see Sinn Féin participation in government "for the moment ... I think they have a long way to go in their background, in their activity that they are involved in and in distancing themselves from the past, and I can at the moment see absolutely no circumstances in which their policies for the economy and for the future of this country would tally with mine."
Ms Hanafin was speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland programme with the authority of the Government. Asked again if she could see Sinn Féin around the same Cabinet table as her, she said: "I certainly can't see that for the moment."
The Fine Gael leader, Mr Enda Kenny, said yesterday that there should be "a very clear space" between the end of the IRA and the acceptance of Sinn Féin as a party of government in the Republic.
Asked could he see Fine Gael in government with Sinn Féin, he said: I don't see it under any circumstances." The Tánaiste, Ms Harney, remarked in the Dáil that "in addition to their links with the IRA, I think their economic policies would destroy the country".
A Labour Party spokesman said Mr Dermot Ahern's remarks "would appear to indicate a shift in the Fianna Fáil position". He claimed the remarks suggested that Fianna Fáil was now preparing public opinion for an attempt to sell an FF/SF deal because "Fianna Fáil now acknowledges that it cannot be re-elected to government depending on the PDs alone".