“Republican Leadership is a match for anyone”

national | rights, freedoms and repression | opinion/analysis Friday March 27, 2009 15:31 by Irish Republican Youth - Ógra Shinn Féin

By lifelong republican Mickey Collins

There should not be a British Army barracks in Antrim, no more than there should be one in Ardee or Athlone. The question for Irish Republicans is how do we get rid of them?

Most times in our history when Irish people exercised their legitimate right to engage in armed struggle against the British, it ended in glorious defeat. Only twice did Republicans get an honourable draw.

The first time, in the period 1916—21, when, to paraphrase Connolly, constitutional measures were used in ordinary times (by-elections and the 1918 British general election) and revolutionary measures were used in extraordinary times (the Easter Rising and the Tan War), our leadership was ideologically weak and divided. Collins and the dual monarchist Griffith were no match for Lloyd George and his negotiating team. This led to the disaster of partition and two deeply conservative states, one ruled by a Protestant parliament for a Protestant people.

The second time was in the recent conflict, when republicans again espoused the spirit of Connolly the British did their damndest to crush Republicanism but the IRA dragged them kicking and screaming to the negotiating table. This time the Republican leadership is a match for anyone.

Let’s examine what Republicans have achieved so far. One party Unionist rule, the Orange State, is gone and, despite the wishful thinking of Jim Allister and Mark Durkan, it ain’t coming back. The RUC, too, has gone. In its place we have a far from perfect PSNI. It would be churlish indeed not to acknowledge the sea change in policing in the Six Counties. 75% + of PSNI officers were never in the RUC and carry no emotional baggage for the old, sectarian force. When the time comes, they will merge seamlessly into an All- Ireland police service.

True, the British are still here and our country is still divided, but reunification is a work in progress.

Anyone who is genuinely interested in winning the Irish Freedom Struggle should stand shoulder to shoulder with Sinn Féin, who are working day in day out, north and south to achieve that goal. The way forward in 2009 is to build political—including electoral—strength, to make strategic alliances and to reach out to all our people, most particularly that section of our Nation that describes itself as Unionist.

We have been less than brilliant in the past at explaining that when we say “Brits Out”, we don’t mean them. Here in Newry and elsewhere, many ordinary, decent people from a Unionist background use our excellent constituency service and are made very welcome in our offices.
That is Outreach.

Anyone who is concerned about the direction the Republican Movement is going, whether they are former activists who have drifted away and do not have their finger on the pulse or people who may feel inclined to sympathise with the micro groups should come and talk to us, in a friendly and comradely way.

Finally, I would appeal to young people in particular who may be attracted by militarism for its own sake. They should remember that the real militants and hard liners are those who are working for Freedom, Peace and Justice and have a strategy for achieving it.

They are to be found in Sinn Féin and nowhere else.