Watching the political machinations of Northern Ireland may well be by turns fascinating, disturbing and frustrating. Being part of it can range from inspiring, to depressing, to surreal. But no-one can deny that there has been real progress in recent months and that the peace process has shown that it can be robust, mature and sustainable. The new question is how do we make it secure?
The SDLP is a nationalist party which wants to see a united Ireland. However, our sense of Irish identity is not exclusive. We do not have a vision of a nation where our ethos dominates all others. Our vision is of a nation where all democratic political outlooks can find expression, not a nation where a single political outlook can assert domination.
The SDLP is internationalist. We are pro-European. We regard the exclusive arrogance of ‘ourselves alone’ as foreign to our belief system. Our sense of Irish identity – our ‘New Nationalism’ – is grounded in the principles of freedom, equality and opportunity for all people.
9As the Good Friday Agreement makes clear, the achievement of reconciliation, tolerance and mutual trust go hand in hand with the protection and vindication of human rights for all. Through the Agreement, the SDLP will lead the charge towards the creation of the new all-Ireland Charter of Human Rights. As we do so we will have nothing to hide and nothing to fear, because we have always stood up for human rights. Other parties may have more difficulties in signing, and we know that the cause of human rights cannot be furthered without addressing the hard issues: hard issues like policing. We have always insisted on a new beginning to policing. We know that the new politics in the North of Ireland cannot survive without it. It is not enough to have laws made by consent – they must also be enforced by consent. That requires a police service that is accountable, representative and working with the community. In short, it requires the Patten report.
We have now embarked upon our new beginning to policing. The strong new institutions that we have insisted upon to ensure that new beginning – the Policing Board, the Police Ombudsman and the Oversight Commissioner – are taking effect. As they do, we can expect them to reveal real problems in respect of policing. But we argued for these new institutions precisely because we knew that there were such deep-seated difficulties. And we knew that only through strong accountability mechanisms would they be uncovered and dealt with. ‘
We will also work for a new beginning to criminal justice. The SDLP welcomes the publication of the British government’s response to the Criminal Justice Review. But we are disappointed with key parts of its content:
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the lack of targets and timetables for implementation suggests a lack of commitment;
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the scandals of the past justify the creation of a new prosecution service, and not a re-working of the old;
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there must be greater emphasis on a modern and reflective judiciary.
While the Agreement is a real vindication of the SDLP’s analysis and approach over so many years, the achievement does not fulfil our mission as a party.
The Agreed Ireland Forum in Westminster recently asked me to elaborate on ‘the vision of a nation where Nationalism and Unionism rhyme’ which I referred to in my first speech as SDLP Leader. The vision I have of Nationalism and Unionism is to rhyme to the beat of equality. It is to see North and South in rhyme. It is to see Britain and Ireland in rhyme, it is to banish bigotry and fight sectarianism still so blatant in our society, and to deliver the Good Friday Agreement in all its facets in letter and in spirit. That Agreement now provides Unionists and Nationalists with a common platform from which to work, to evolve, and to grow together.