“We must look at the unity of Ireland as an opportunity and without fear.”. This has been the two-voice message brought to London by the first 'nationalist' chief minister of Northern Ireland, Michelle O'Neill, and the president of Sinn Fein, Mary Lou McDonald, convinced as they are that a referendum can be called. “in this decade” (from now to 2030).
“The possibility of a popular consultation is contemplated in the Good Friday Agreement and 26 years have already passed,” stressed Mary Lou Donald, 54 years old.. “Many things have happened in this time and few foresaw that we could have a Republican chief minister.”. But here we are, and the atmosphere of change is immense.”
“My election speaks volumes about the desire for change in Northern Ireland,” said Michelle O'Neill, 47, daughter of a former Provisional IRA prisoner, Brendan Doris, who made the leap into politics. as Sinn Fein councilor. “My parents and grandparents never believed that a moment like this could come. “I can't ask people to forget the past, but I can ask them to move forward together into the future.”
However, Sinn Fein's political ambition is currently crashing against the wall of public opinion.. Only 30% of Northern Irish people are in favor of reunification and 50% are against, with 20% undecided. On the other side of the border, where the nationalist party is also the most voted force, support for the unity of the island is majority (more than 60%).
“We have a hard job ahead of us, but our idea is to open a national conversation, just like we did with Brexit,” says Mary Lou McDonald. “At that time we created forums that were joined by farmers and citizens from across the political spectrum.. “Our great test will be whether we can communicate a message of hope and convince Irish people of the economic, social and political opportunities of unity.”
“We are in a moment of enormous historical significance,” emphasizes Michelle O'Neill, who has assumed the helm of the Northern Irish Government with a unionist (Emma Little-Pengelly) in the co-pilot seat.. “I aspire to be the Chief Minister for all Northern Irish people and deal with urgent day-to-day issues.”. But I belong to the new generation of the Good Friday Agreement, where the possibility of a referendum was already foreseen.”
The 'border poll' of the peace agreement
The 1998 peace agreement does indeed contemplate the so-called 'border poll', but leaves the initiative in the hands of the British Government and only in the event that “there is an apparent majority of voters expressing their desire for Northern Ireland to cease to be “part to be part of the United Kingdom and be part of a united Ireland”.
The Secretary for Northern Ireland, Chris Heaton-Harris, has warned that these conditions do not exist today and has even hinted that they may never arise.. Michelle ONeill has publicly accused him of having “the mentality of ostriches, burying his head in the sand.”
“All the certainties of the past have been falling,” emphasizes O'Neill, who received a similar message from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak two days after his appointment: “Forget about the referendum and attend to day-to-day matters.” “. The chief minister replied, during her time at the Foreign Journalists Association (FPA), that women are experts in 'multitasking' and that they can deal with the present and the future at the same time.
Despite the triumphalism exhibited these days, after two years of political vacuum caused by the rejection of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) to the Brexit agreements, Michelle ONeill has accused the British Government of leaving Ireland in “a political limbo”. North and having allowed the serious deterioration of public services due to lack of funds.
Finally, we asked Sinn Fein leaders about the “lessons” they can draw from the 2014 referendum in Scotland, where they lost independence by 10 points with turbulence that persists after a decade.. “What happened in Scotland leaves many questions open and the first lesson is that you have to prepare thoroughly and have a very clear plan,” responds Mary Lou McDonald. “And the second lesson is that you have to try to involve everyone and make it an inclusive debate.”
“Gaza cannot become the graveyard of international law,” warned Sinn Fein president Mary Lou McDonald, as she passed through London, three weeks after joining the pro-Palestinian demonstration in the British capital.. “We cannot allow Israel to continue acting with total impunity and continue with this collective punishment that has claimed the lives of thousands of children and women.”
“The Hamas attack was an atrocious act, but Israel cannot respond with more atrocious acts claiming the exercise of self-defense,” added McDonald, who has called on the Government of the Republic of Ireland to join South Africa's lawsuit for genocide. before the International Court of Justice.
“Our own experience speaks powerfully for us,” added the Sinn Fein leader, in direct reference to the Northern Irish conflict and the peace process since the Good Friday Agreement in 1998.. “The violence has to stop now. “If we want a diplomatic solution, there has to be an immediate ceasefire.”
“We have been very direct on this issue in our meeting with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and in our communications with American politicians,” declared the nationalist leader, who extended her criticism of the European Union for its condescension towards Israel.
“For generations, Palestinians have been subjected to oppression and apartheid, and now they are fighting for their own survival under bombardment in Gaza,” McDonald concluded.. “The international community can no longer ignore the daily violation of the most basic rights. Palestinians deserve freedom and self-determination… The children of Gaza, Ramallah and Tel Aviv deserve a future free of hatred and violence , a life of peace and equality”.