President Clinton lavished praise on the Taoiseach for his role in bringing peace to the island when he addressed a reception for the social partners in the College of Surgeons in Dublin at lunchtime yesterday. "Peace literally would not have happened, in my judgment, if it hadn't been for him."
Mr Clinton urged the people of Ireland to continue to be a model for the world in responsible citizenship - in working for peace and for an open economy where people work together instead of fighting each other to increase wealth, employment, opportunity and social harmony.
Opening the proceedings, Mr Ahern spoke of the day being another milestone in the journey of partnership between the peoples of Ireland and the US. Gathered together were many who contributed so much to building a better Ireland, economically and socially. In the past 10 years Ireland had been transformed by the process.
"There now exists a widespread acceptance that growing a small economy and creating a more equitable society requires a pooling of energies in the pursuit of shared goals."
No words, he said, could convey the sense of sorrow and outrage at the Omagh bombing. "But I pledge here today: no actions of any organisation will quench the Good Friday candle of peace. The Irish, British and United States governments are rock solid in our shared commitment and determination to achieve a lasting peace on this island."
Senator George Mitchell and Ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith had made a vital difference over the past six years. And one reliable constant through the search for agreement and peace had been Mr Clinton and his administration. When President Clinton rose he first asked for a moment of silence to reflect on the tragedy of the Swissair crash. Then he continued: "I can't say enough about the role of the Taoiseach in making this Irish peace process come to fruition . . . You can be very proud of his leadership, as well as your own overwhelming vote for peace a few months ago. I'd also like to thank Ireland for setting a good example by building bridges to other nations by being such an open economy, by encouraging business ventures from around the world and by working together here at home."
Ireland, Mr Clinton said, had the highest growth rate in Europe because all elements of society worked together to draw out strengths and minimise conflict. He hoped it would continue because the success of the Irish story could be a model throughout the world. He thanked the Irish people for achieving peace, a peace he said that literally would not have happened if it hadn't been for Prime Minister Ahern.
"He led a campaign sometimes under great personal duress. His pleas for peace began early in his service. He has been fair and open. He has been terrifically effective in working with Prime Minister Blair and all the parties in both communities. There are many people from many backgrounds who deserve a lot of credit for this peace, including George Mitchell . . . but none more than Bertie Ahern. And I thank him for that." The tragedy of Omagh and of the three small boys in Ballymoney showed that there would be "those who want to test the peace, who do not want to move into tomorrow, who are literally trapped in the patterns, the hatreds, the mind-set of yesterday.
"I think the most important thing that Hillary and I saw in Omagh yesterday was that even the people who have suffered the most from the testers of the peace don't want to go back; they want to summon their strength and courage and lean on their friends and neighbours and go forward.
"So the most important thing I can say to you here today is I hope you will continue to be a model for the world in responsible citizenship . . . I hope you will continue to labour for peace here - because if we can complete this peace process, as I said to the citizens of Armagh yesterday, you can't imagine what it will enable the United States to do in trying to stand up for peace in other parts of the world where people have fought over their religious, their racial, their ethnic, their tribal differences. I can always then say, `no, no, no, look at Ireland', when they tell me it can't be done."