Sir, - Vincent Browne seems to be under the impression that by signing the Anglo-Irish Agreement, the Irish Government acknowledged Northern Ireland's constitutional position within the UK (Opinion , November 26th). I attended with the McGimpsey brothers the Supreme Court hearing of their constitutional challenge to the Anglo-Irish Agreement. One of the grounds on which they challenged the constitutionality of that agreement was that it did indeed acknowledge Northern Ireland's position within the UK.
During the court hearing counsel for the McGimpseys was challenged to say where in Article 1 of the Anglo-Irish Agreement was the status of Northern Ireland defined as being lawfully within the UK. The answer to the question is of course that nowhere in that Article is the word status defined at all. If, as Vincent Browne contends, the Anglo-Irish Agreement did in fact acknowledge Britain's sovereignty over Northern Ireland, the McGimpseys would surely have won their case.
The only legal status that any Irish Government can accord to Northern Ireland while Articles 2 and 3 remain in our Constitution is that it is part of the national territory. The presence of those Articles in our Constitution also dictates that no Irish Government can reach an agreement with London on the problem of Northern Ireland, unless such an agreement is pursuant of the Constitutional imperative that Articles 2 and 3 represent.
I do, however, agree with Vincent Browne when he contends that Articles 2 and 3 should not be used as a bargaining counter in negotiations with London and the unionists. The territorial claim by the Republic on Northern Ireland is contrary to EU Law. The Articles are also at variance with the concept of respect for unionists and the need for their consent to any agreement. - Yours, etc.,
From Anthony Moriarty
Shanid Road, Dublin 6W.