'Ireland's hour has come: a time of peace, of prosperity, of old values and new beginnings'
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern addressing both houses of parliament at Westminster in London yesterday. Photo: Steve Humphreys
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Wednesday May 16 2007
LAST week's restoration of devolved government at Stormont marks "the dawning of a new era" for the island of Ireland and for Anglo-Irish relations, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern told British parliamentarians yesterday.
Mr Ahern became the first Irish head of government to speak at the Palace of Westminster as he addressed a joint session of both Houses of Parliament in the Royal Gallery.
The Taoiseach said that, after centuries characterised by division, conflict and resistance, this must be "the last generation to feel the pain and anger of old quarrels".
He looked ahead to a "partnership of peace" between Britain and Ireland, which he said would bring economic growth and prosperity, north and south of the Border.
Prosperity
And he told the gathering of MPs and peers: "Ireland's hour has come. It came, not as victory or defeat, but as a shared future for all.
"Solidarity has made us stronger. Reconciliation has brought us closer. Ireland's hour has come: a time of peace, of prosperity, of old values and new beginnings."
"This is the great lesson and the great gift of Irish history. This is what Ireland can give to the world."
Mr Ahern's visit to London comes a week after the May 8 restoration of devolution, which saw former foes in the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and Sinn Fein take up ministerial positions alongside one another in a power-sharing government at Stormont.
It comes after the Taoiseach last week welcomed the new First Minister of Northern Ireland, DUP leader Ian Paisley, to the site of the Battle of the Boyne - an event that Mr Ahern called "an act full of the symbolism of new days of hope and promise in Ireland".
"It is surely a miracle of our age that the undisputed leader of Ulster unionism can meet with the leader of the Irish Government, on that battlefield, in a spirit of friendship and mutual respect," he said.
The Taoiseach stressed that those who died during the Troubles, from all parts of the community, should not be forgotten and nor should a veil be drawn over the blood-stained history of Britain and Ireland in the light of the new, more cordial relations.
But he pleaded: "Now let us consign arguments over the past to the annals of the past, as we make history instead of being doomed to repeat it . . .
"Violence is part of our shared past that lasted too long. Now we close the chapter, we move on, and it will remain there as it was written."
The Good Friday Agreement had "delivered peace and promise to Ireland by accommodating the rights, the interests and the legitimate aspirations of all," he added.
Looking back to the events of last week, Mr Ahern said: "Tuesday, May 8, in Belfast was a day when we witnessed events that will truly define our time and the next.
"Shared devolved government, commanding support from both communities and all the parties in Northern Ireland, is now in place.
"Now at last the full genius and full potential of the Good Friday Agreement will unfold in the interests of all the peoples of these islands."
The Taoiseach said that, as an Irish republican, it was his "passionate hope that we will see the island of Ireland united in peace".
But he vowed he would continue to oppose "with equal determination" any effort to impose unity through violence or the threat of violence.
He said Irish republicanism was "inherently democratic" and sought to unite Catholic, Protestant and dissenter in their common interests. He stressed that none of what had been accomplished in Northern Ireland in the past decade could have happened without "the most beneficial transformation" in British-Irish relations in over 800 years.
Relations
The relationship between Britain and Ireland, was, he said, "a partnership of people first and foremost". He said no two nations and no two peoples had closer ties of history and geography, of family and friendship.
On Ireland's immigrant past, Mr Ahern said there were over 100 members of the British parliament with an Irish background. "And there are millions more like them in Britain who have gone on to new levels of success with each new generation," he added.
He singled out Mr Blair, who he described as a "true friend to Ireland" , for particular praise.
"The contribution of Prime Minister Blair has been exceptional," he said. "This was not a task he had to take on and not one that promised quick or easy rewards. He took it on simply because there was a chance that a great good could be achieved.
"Tony Blair has been a true friend to me and a true friend to Ireland.
"He has an honoured place in Irish hearts and in Irish history."
Gene McKenna
- Gene McKenna
