Sinn Féin activists were looking forward to this weekend's
annual conference as an occasion for rallying support for the
party's campaign in the forthcoming general election in the
Republic.
The conference programme, adorned by a painting by the
artist Robert Ballagh, contains the traditional list of motions:
calling for a "32-county democratic socialist Republic";
supporting foreign groups, some of which are still actively
involved in terrorism; attacking the British government; and
calling for the immediate release of IRA "prisoners of war",
including the five men imprisoned for the manslaughter of Det
Garda Jerry McCabe.
The issue the party wished to see most closely covered,
however, concerns its electoral rise in both Northern Ireland
and the Republic and the prospects of it achieving sufficient
support in the next Dáil election to be in a position to join
another large party in coalition government.
Although it may remain unsaid, the clear thinking among
delegates will be that some day, Sinn Féin might be in
government with Fianna Fáil.
It is expected the ardfheis will reject proposals to take part in
Government here after the next election, but the way will be
left open for partnership in a future government.
The coalition motions, however, were placed before the
arrests of three Irish republicans in Colombia and, more
importantly, before the attacks in the US on September 11th.
The IRA has no known involvement with the Al Qaeda
terrorist group of Osama bin Laden, thought to be responsible
for the attacks in the US.
But it has been shown to have involvement with at least one
group that is high up the list of the US's foreign terrorist
enemies.
The IRA is now thought to have had close links with FARC in
Colombia since 1988 and may still have members working in
the Colombian interior with the guerrilla army. FARC is
heavily involved in the narcotics trade and is carrying out a
massive terrorist and kidnapping campaign aimed at
destroying the Colombian State. Earlier this week in Bogota,
FARC kidnapped Consuelo Araujonoguera, the wife of
Colombia's Attorney General.
The debating of Sinn Féin's possible involvement in coalition in
government in the next Dáil posits the question of what foreign
relations such a government might seek to pursue with
countries, including the US, that oppose FARC's terrorist
campaign.
The conference programme contains motions condemning the
Colombian government and the US's support for it. The
conference is also likely to support calls for Basque
independence in deference to the members of Euskal
Herritarok, the political wing of the terrorist group, ETA. It is
also likely to support calls for the withdrawal of US forces
from Puerto Rico.
The motions call for the lifting of sanctions again Iraq and
Cuba; support for the anti-government groups involved in
terrorist attacks in Turkey; and opposition to US support for
Israel.
These are alongside motions that could be proposed at any
party political conference, on the environment, health,
agriculture and social conditions. There are anti-nuclear,
pro-neutrality and ecology themes that are intended to place
Sinn Féin alongside the Green Party, as it did during the Nice
referendum debate.
The perennial thorny issue of abortion is dropped from this
year's conference programme even though it is set to become
a major talking point again in this State as the Government
seeks to legislate on the issue.
However, all these issues are somewhat academic given the
deteriorating political and security situation in the North and
the growing hostility towards Sinn Féin in the US in the
aftermath of the Colombia arrests.
In the aftermath of the revelations about the IRA's involvement
in terrorism in Colombia and in the absence of any significant
act of decommissioning, the notion of Sinn Féin's involvement
in government in the Republic in the immediate future is a
non-starter. In fact, if the IRA does not decommission
weapons in a significant way in the next few weeks, it is also
likely that Sinn Féin's involvement in government in Northern
Ireland may also come to an end as unionists threaten to
collapse the Assembly.
The presence of some of the foreign guests at the weekend
ardfheis might give rise to further "image" problems for the
republicans.
The IRA has had connections with ETA since the 1970s, and
it was through ETA that the IRA came in contact with FARC
in Colombia. The IRA helped FARC design and produce the
heavy mortar system known here as the "barrack buster".
It has also shown ETA how to manufacture the same weapon
and devices very similar to those manufactured in the Border
area in this island have been found in northern Spain.
In recent years, as the peace process in the North progressed,
the Sinn Féin ardfheis has been a magnet for Irish-American
politicians. Members of the US Senate and Congress have
attended.
Since the events in Colombia and September 11th, US
politicians may be less keen to be associated with Sinn Féin.
After the arrests in Colombia in August, some of Sinn Féin's
strongest supporters in the US were openly critical. Sinn Féin,
however, maintains the position that the arrests in Colombia
are "irrelevant".
The ardfheis starts this evening at the RDS and runs to
Sunday.
