BY CELIA PUGH AND ANNE HOWIE
DUBLIN, Ireland - More than 1,000 delegates, observers, and visitors gathered at the annual Ard Fheis (national conference) of Sinn Fein here April 18-19. A large international press contingent came to cover the republican movement's response to the "Good Friday Agreement," the document produced April 10 after multi-party negotiations on the future of Ireland. Sinn Fein negotiators did not sign the agreement, but initiated a discussion of all party members. The Ard Fheis was preceded by discussion in local cumann (branches), and the delegates voted to continue that process until a reconvened conference makes a final decision in early May.

In his presidential address Gerry Adams said, "The talks process has not settled centuries of British interference in Ireland. Major issues remain unresolved.... Britain will never have any right to be in Ireland." Adams continued, "While the agreement is not a settlement, it is the basis for advancement. It heralds a change in the status quo and it could become a transitional stage towards reunification."

Referendums on the agreement will be held in Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic May 22. In the Republic, the agreement will most likely be packaged with a proposal to amend Articles 2 and 3 of the Irish constitution, which currently lay unconditional claim to the whole island of Ireland. The proposal would read that "a united Ireland shall be brought about only by peaceful means with the consent of a majority of the people, democratically expressed, in both jurisdictions in the island."

In his address Adams pointed to contradictory aspects of the agreement, which "on the one hand upholds the Unionist veto over the constitutional position of the north, and on the other hand it reduces the British territorial claim...while it compels Unionists to accept key and fundamental changes involving all-Ireland dimensions to everyday life." He said, "Sinn Fein will subscribe to what we view as positive in the agreement, to those aspects which contribute to moving us towards our overall objectives. Some critics will say; `You can't do that! You have to buy into it, all or nothing!' But they are wrong. We can do and will do whatever we are mandated to do."

Prior to a second round of discussion on the agreement, the Sinn Fein leadership invited Thenjiwe Mtintso, deputy secretary general of the African National Congress, to describe the experience of South African fighters when they entered negotiations with the racist apartheid regime. Mtintso described how she had been a commander in Umkhonto We Sizwe, the ANC's armed wing, and had initially opposed talking to the government.

Mtintso stressed the similarities in the two situations. "The regime had concluded that it couldn't rule in the same old way. They had tried every means of repression." The key thing, she said, was not to see negotiations as a substitute for the broader struggle, but just another terrain. "We saw negotiations as a space which we needed to occupy." Whatever position Sinn Fein decided to take on the agreement, the ANC leader said, "don't lose sight of your strategic goal."

Long queues of delegates waiting to speak snaked the hall as soon as the discussion opened. Overwhelmingly they expressed confidence in the Sinn Fein leadership. Many said that they had not expected an end to British colonial rule from the negotiations but saw the gains won by Sinn Fein negotiators as a product of decades-long struggle, which pointed to the future.

`For nationalists this is just a start'
Councilor Pat McNamee from Newry and South Armagh asked the party to weigh whether the agreement could be used to advance the fight. "Whatever is necessary for republicans to do to advance our struggle, that is what we will do," he said "and whatever we do we must do it together."

Referring to the weakness and disunity of pro-British Unionist parties, Glen Mac Bradaigh from Belfast said "For unionists this is as good as it gets.... For nationalists it's just a start."

A number of delegates raised reservations about the agreement, or said it should be rejected. Eoin O Brun, a leader of Sinn Fein Youth (SFY), described most youth he had talked to as "angry at the weakness of the section on the Royal Ulster Constabulary [RUC]." The agreement provides for the setting up of a commission to "inquire into policing in Northern Ireland" and make proposals on how it should be changed. Earlier in the day O Brun had described how the RUC has recently "mounted a concerted campaign against youth," harassing individuals as well as targeting political activities. SFY, he said, currently has 10 court cases pending as a result. Sinn Fein calls for the disbanding of the RUC.

Another point of debate was the proposed deletion of the Republic of Ireland's constitutional claim to the territory of the six counties of Northern Ireland. A number of delegates said they thought this weakened nationalists, guaranteed the Unionists' veto on change, or accepted the partition of the island. Other major points of discussion were whether the stated two-year time frame for the release of all political prisoners was too long, and whether Sinn Fein should support or participate in the proposed elected assembly in the North.

In his talk, Adams said that the Sinn Fein leadership had "called on all republicans to examine the document in great detail. While this is probably a necessary exercise, it is not enough to read this document on its own.... It needs to be examined in the context of strategy and struggle. And in preparing for the next phase we need also to examine the positions and strategies of our opponents and enemies."

Summing up the discussion, Adams said, "This wasn't about two weeks of negotiation but about 30 years of struggle, which goes on. Our business is the business of revolution, of national reunification, independence, and building a real democracy on this island of Ireland. You people are the struggle. We are not verbalized republicans who wrap ourselves in the flag. We are people who do." He added, "We don't reduce the struggle to a negotiating strategy, to a closed room perspective," and explained that the struggle was also on the streets, in the ballot boxes, and in the mass movement.

Calls for release of prisoners
Over the two days delegates described the continued resistance. Sinn Fein Youth member Colleen Gildernen from South Tyrone said, "We will continue to struggle for a united Ireland. No amount of RUC and British army harassment will stop us."

Calls were renewed to speed up and extend the release of political prisoners. Targeting the British government, Derry City councilor Cathal Crumley said, "We are either in a conflict resolution situation or we are not. If we are, all political prisoners should be freed.... The British government can do this at a stroke of a pen. Failure to do so will be seen as bad faith." A number of political prisoners were granted special parole to attend the Ard Fheis. One of the nine prisoners freed by the Irish government the week after the agreement read a message on behalf of Irish Republican Army (IRA) prisoners in Portlaoise supporting the Sinn Fein leadership. It called on republicans not "to be distracted by those who cry sellout without offering realistic alternatives."

Gerard Magee, an H-Bloc prisoner on temporary release from Belfast, paid tribute to the Sinn Fein leadership for keeping the prisoners issue at the top of the political agenda during negotiations.

Eoghan Mac Cormac, Sinn Fein Ard Chomhairle (Executive Committee) member and chair of the political prisoners campaign Saoirse, appealed for continued campaigning. He asked people to join Saoirse rallies, pickets, petition, and post card campaigns. In the last week, he reported, three women had been strip-searched at Maghberry prison, a humiliating procedure used for decades under colonial rule.

Executive Committee member Francie Molloy appealed for Sinn Fein members and others to respond to calls for solidarity action from residents of Catholic communities during the sectarian loyalist parades in the coming months. The Ard Fheis reiterated Sinn Fein's view that these pro- British marches should be rerouted unless there is consent from the residents of the areas they pass through. Neither British minister Majorie Mowlam nor RUC chief Ronald Flanagan should have the right to make these decision, Martina McIlkenny from Belfast explained.

A new section was added to the Sinn Fein constitution recognizing Sinn Fein Youth as the official youth section of Sinn Fein open to those between 16 and 25 years old. O Brun said that since its founding last year, 30 groups have been established in the north and south with around 400 members. "We aim to get young people to be protagonists of struggle," he said. Many delegates noted the impact of Sinn Fein youth on the whole conference, leading in the political discussion, as well as organizing the bookstall, fund- raising, and other conference events.

The conference debated resolutions and reports on a range of other issues, including Irish language rights, the minimum wage, homelessness, and defense of immigrant rights. A resolution submitted by women of Maghberry prison supporting the right to choose abortion was voted down.

Anne Howie is a member of the Transport and General Workers Union in Manchester, England. Celia Pugh is a member of the Amalgamated Union of Electrical and Engineering workers in London.  
 
 
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