Sir, – Una Mullally manages to write a whole article on the Irish unity debate without once mentioning the unionists, apart from one revealing aside: "let's just forget about the DUP for the moment" ("Taoiseach's bland nothings on united Ireland fail us all", Opinion & Analysis, March 29th).
She accuses the Taoiseach of kicking the unity issue into touch with his Shared Island initiative. What he is actually trying to do with that initiative is to build on the Belfast Agreement by increasing the level of practical, mutually beneficial cooperation with the North, in the knowledge that this is the only way significant elements of unionism can be persuaded to look at all-island solutions to our problems.
Micheál Martin is the leader of a Government facing the real world of difficult political choices. Una Mullally is a newspaper columnist who can simply ignore issues that don’t suit her argument: for example, that the great majority of unionists continue to be adamantly opposed to unity.
She is thus the latest in a long line of nationalist politicians and commentators – stretching back over 100 years – who think they can achieve unity by ignoring the unionists. The Taoiseach, on the other hand, believes that you have to persuade, not force, browbeat or ignore these difficult people. As the late Seamus Mallon said: “the key imperative for nationalists is to address how we accommodate and reach agreement with unionists to live together on this island. That is now the real search for peace, justice and stability in Ireland.” – Yours, etc,
ANDY POLLAK,
Rathmines,
Dublin 6
Sir, – Una Mullally is disappointed with the Taoiseach’s approach to a united Ireland. If she thinks that Sinn Féin’s bull in a china shop approach is going to be a more successful means of getting moderate unionists to engage in discussions on the topic, then all I can say is God bless her innocence! – Yours, etc,
OLIVER HAYES,
Castleknock,
Dublin 15..