PAT DOHERTY, vice-president of Sinn Fein, said on RTE's Questions and Answers on Monday night that he abhorred "the politics of condemnation".
This was in answer to a straight question from John Bowman asking if he condemned the killing of Det Garda Jerry McCabe in Adare.
On BBC's Newsnight programme the same evening, Martin McGuinness, when asked the same question, also equivocated. He would not have swords put in his mouth.
John Bruton's dismay at such equivocation is expressive of a widespread sentiment. If Sinn Fein cannot condemn unequivocally a murder as brutal and shocking as that of Jerry McCabe last Friday, then how can we start to give credence to its declared acceptance of exclusively democratic and peaceful means, as required by the Mitchell report?
Abhorrence of "the politics of condemnation" is a set piece of Gerry Adams, and other Sinn, Fein leaders as well, when asked if they condemn a particular IRA atrocity.
Pat Doherty, Gerry Adams, Martin McGuinness, Mitchel McLaughlin and the rest of them who so regularly express such abhorrence of "the politics of condemnation" must have hated the Sinn Fein ardfheis on March 23rd and 24th last, almost every minute of it. Poor Martin McGuinness must have been retching with the "condemn" word being stuffed in his mouth every second minute.
The following are extracts from some of the motions on the clar of that ardfheis, in each instance beginning with "That this Ard Fheis" (except where otherwise obvious):
Motion 7: ..... unequivocally condemns the British government for its intransigence and failure to pursue the path of peace
Motion 9: .... . condemns the deliberate attempts by the British government establishment to undermine the efforts being made by the progressive forces on this island to secure a political settlement to the conflict".
Motion 10: ..... condemns the negative foot dragging of the British government". (Presumably, incidentally, positive foot dragging would be OK, or at least not so bad.)
Motion 11: ..... condemns the British government's renewal of the EPA (Emergency Provisions Act)."
Motion 14: ..... condemns those elements within the `main' churches, trade unions and others within Irish society who have made little or no contribution to the peace process."
Motion 15: ". . . condemn(s) the failure of the churches to address justice and equality issues."
Motion 25: ..... condemns the ongoing occupation of East Timor by the Indonesian government".
Motion 26: ..... condemns the French government for its continuance of nuclear testing in the Pacific".
Motion 29: ... condemns the economic policies of the Dublin government which have failed to address the problem of unemployment and which have allowed millions of pounds to be siphoned off by foreign multinationals".
Motion 32: ..... condemns the Dublin government's budget."
Motion 34: ... condemns the failure of the IDB and the DoE to provide the 1,700 jobs which Springvale was supposed to bring to West Belfast."
Motion 35: ..... condemns moves to reduce the ACE programme in the Six Counties as a means of cutting costs."
Motion 36: .... condemns the British government's 25 per cent cut in funding towards the ACE schemes."
Motion 38: ... condemn(s) water supply cutoffs.
Motion 41: .... condemns the use of the unionist veto by the British to stall the commencement of all party talks."
Motion 42. ... condemns the sectarian marches organised by the Orange Order through areas where they obviously cause great offence".
Motion 45: . .. expresses its... utter condemnation of the increase in fascist attacks, intimidation and abuse, including those directed against travellers.. and ... directed at lesbian and gay people".
Motion 51: ..... condemns the British government or their treatment of Irish political prisoners.
Motion 52: ..... condemns the Dublin government for their failure to release all political prisoners despite the peace process".
Motion 61: ..... condemns the 26 county government for the way they are, treating republican prisoners and their families.
THERE was another interesting motion on the clar which also indulged in the abhorrent politics of condemnation. This was Motion 70, proposed by the
Clancy/O'Callaghan Cumann in Limerick. This stated. "That this Ard Fheis condemns the threatened extradition to Britain of Nessan Quinlivan and Pearse McAuley." These are two well known members of the republican movement in the Limerick area, wanted on explosive charges in England.
Indeed, the same Clancy/O'Callaglian Cumann was also the sponsor of Motion 113 condemning the Garda for its "continued harassment of republicans". My attention at the ardfheis was drawn to this series of condemnations by a delegate who commented from the podium on the ubiquity of condemnations emanating from Sinn Fein.
For this reason I paid attention to how the platform party, which included Gerry Adams, Martin McGuinness, Pat Doherty and Mitchel McLaughlin voted on such motions. In each instance, they voted unanimously in favour of those motions, which indulged promiscuously in the "politics of condemnation". Martin McGuinness did not seem in the least discommoded.
There are probably both good and bad reasons for Sinn Fein equivocation over IRA atrocities. The probably good reasons include an anxiety to retain influence over the IRA and a desire not to split the republican movement a crucial part of the peace process must be to envelop an undivided republican movement within the democratic fold, finally and conclusively, and clearly this cannot be done if there is a split in the movement.
The probably bad reasons are an ambivalence on the part of Gerry Adams, Martin McGuinness Pat Doherty, Mitchel McLaughlin and others towards the use of violence anyway, and the justification of killing people in certain circumstances. Alternatively, that they feel so compromised as to be morally neutralised vis-a-vis the IRA, and that this situation will obtain indefinitely.
But please spare us the addition of hypocrisy to insult and injury in the claim that they do not engage in what they call "the politics of condemnation". Condemnation has become a cliche in the mouths of Sinn Fein, except in circumstances in which it might have meaning.