It is a time for restraint, for cool heads and calm deliberations in Northern Ireland. As plenary discussions resume at Stormont this morning, the political parties must be aware of the precipice at their feet and of the painful compromises and courageous decisions which will be required to effect an understanding and make peace between the two communities. A third sectarian murder in Northern Ireland within 48 hours has emphasised the fragility of the talks process and the determination of extremists on both sides to destroy any hope of a democratic settlement.
Nobody need be surprised by the upsurge in violence. Black days had to be expected. In this divided community it was predictable that groups opposed to the peace process, such as the INLA and the LVF, would attempt to destroy it through campaigns aimed at fostering a breakdown in the ceasefires of the IRA, the UDA and the UVF. The murder of Billy Wright in the Maze Prison by the INLA set in train the present spiral of violence. The murder of four Catholics by the LVF followed by yesterday's two killings in Belfast have cranked inter-communal tensions up another notch. The organisations involved may be small and unrepresentative, but their actions appear to have drawn tacit approval from members of other, larger organisations.
And there is no denying that these groups have the capacity to tilt the situation towards widespread murder and mayhem. Last Sunday, as word spread of the murder of Fergal McCusker in Maghera, a spokesman for the Progressive Unionist Party, Mr David Ervine, said he was in no doubt that the Loyalist Volunteer Force was trying to provoke the IRA into violence and to destabilise the talks process. Yesterday's killing of prominent loyalist, Mr Jim Guiney, in Belfast by the INLA had a similar motivation and was designed to put pressure on the UDA and the UVF to break their ceasefires. Mr Seamus Mallon of the SDLP commented: "There are those outside the talks who are prepared to use acts of violence against the whole political process."
The latest atrocities coincided with a meeting in London between the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, and a Sinn Fein delegation led by the party president Mr Gerry Adams. The talks arose from Sinn Fein's rejection of the proposed heads of agreement tabled last week at the Stormont talks by the Irish and British governments, on the grounds that they represented a retreat from the governments' previously stated positions and a response to unionist tactics and loyalist killings. This was vehemently denied by both governments. Following his meeting with the British Prime Minister yesterday, Mr Adams spoke of the need for an all-Ireland dimension in any comprehensive settlement and for a broader talks agenda which would include the ending of British rule. But the ending of British rule is not a realisable prospect at the Stormont talks; what is on offer is a three-stranded political settlement based on consent and parity of esteem between the two communities. To return to republican rhetoric at this stage is an abdication of political responsibility. Serious negotiations are required if the chance of an agreed, democratic settlement is not to be lost. The politicians of all parties must not allow the gunmen to set the agenda.