Ire: Talks Must Proceed -- Irish PM Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit source - News from the Wire Services Re: Ireland & the Irish PA 02/03/98 15:18 Talks Process Must Succeed, Says Irish Pm PA 02/03/98 11:25 Terrorists Must Not Stop Democratic Process ****************************** Talks Process Must Succeed, Says Irish Pm PA 02/03/98 15:18 Copyright 1998 PA News By Chris Parkin, PA News Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern tonight insisted the multi-party negotiations on Northern Ireland were still on course, despite "intense pressures". He said there was now a widespread consensus that the talks process had to succeed because "there is no viable alternative if we want to see peace, stability and reconciliation". Mr Ahern, speaking at debate in Dublin's Trinity College university in favour of a motion maintaining that the present joint British-Irish paper on Northern Ireland represented the best chance for agreement, conceded there were a formidable number of issues to be resolved. He added: "The parties taking part in the talks have their political opponents, including small para-military groups who are prepared to kill in order to upend the process. "Those who are in the talks need to be able to demonstrate definite progress and show that the talks are capable of reaching a successful conclusion." The Irish premier said events of the last month showed that instability still existed. He stressed that any resolution emerging from the talks would be "an all-Ireland agreement, as well as a British-Irish one". Mr Ahern said that if all aims were to be achieved, sacrifices would have to be made for peace. "Outworn ideology must be replaced or brought up to date. We must accept that the unionist people have real rights, that we cannot force or browbeat them in the direction of a united Ireland against their will, any more than they can force or browbeat nationalists into accepting the permanence of the Union." ****************************** Terrorists Must Not Stop Democratic Process, Says Iris PA 02/03/98 11:25 Copyright 1998 PA News By Chris Parkin, PA News Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern today highlighted the danger of Northern Ireland's freelance terrorists. He also told the Dublin parliament that the current wave of incidents was aimed at "creating fear". Underscoring condemnation of the latest rash of threats of violence directed at political and other figures on all sides in Ulster, Mr Ahern said: "There have been threats from known as well as unknown organisations. The extent to how real they are, I cannot be sure." Dealing with a series of Dail questions on Northern Ireland issues, the Irish premier added: "Some of the threats may be bogus, but it is dangerous enough to believe that. "Apparently, there are a number of younger members of these organisations who are freelancing to quite an extent -- and that is a concern." Mr Ahern said: "All of these incidents have the effect of and are designed to heighten tensions and create fear and disharmony and are trying to undermine what people are involved in. "We all have to do all we can to declare against these people, they cannot stop the democratic process." Mr Ahern said some of the terrorist activity that had gone on recently in Northern Ireland was not unfamiliar. "It is the same strategy that has been followed since the 1920s. "At certain times tension is heightened to create these situations. It is a single ploy used by different sides on occasions. It is wrong to say it has just been on one side over the years. "Despite these people, we must try to move the process forward." Mr Ahern also told the Dail that any final settlement plan to emerge from the current multi-party talks on Northern Ireland that contained an element of fudge would not "be capable of being put to the people" in a referendum. And he urged a concentration of effort on the part of the talks' participants to resolve the issue as there could be difficulties in retaining the full involvement of both the British government and the international community if the process were "dragged out indefinitely". Mr Ahern said: "I believe we have to concentrate our minds on this." Jay Dooling (jdooling@worldnet.att.net) Irish Aires - 90.1FM KPFT in Houston http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Irish_Aires/homepage.htm Dooling & Mabe, CPA http://www.doolingmabe-cpa.com/ ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytire-02.04.98-09:31:51-21117