Sinn Fein News, March 5, 2005
Gerry Kelly opens session on Policing
at the 2005 Sinn Féin Ard Fheis
Sinn Féin spokesperson on Policing and Justice Gerry Kelly MLA
speaking at the 2005 Sinn Féin Ard Fheis this morning:
Republicans have put policing at the "very core of negotiations with the British".
Full Text:
For generations now the police force in the North has been an instrument of
political repression, counter-revolution and terror. It has been a partisan,
political, protestant and paramilitary force, which has been used in the
main against Catholics, Nationalists and republicans.
For any conflict resolution process, or peace process or political process
to succeed in Ireland then all the above has to change so radically that the
old regime will be unrecognisable in the new beginning to policing that
republicans are striving for.
Republicans put policing at the very core of negotiations with the British
for that reason.
I'm not going to go over all the history of those very protracted and
ongoing negotiations except to remind people that instead of having one
Justice Act and one Policing Act, Sinn Féin had to push for and achieve a
further Act in each case because the first Acts simply reflected the
securocrats trying to arrest change as opposed to implement it.
Let us also remind ourselves that those who scream the loudest for Sinn Fein
to join the present policing arrangements are the same individuals and
political parties who worked with the RUC and the judicial system at the
worst periods of oppression of Nationalists during the last 35 years and
longer. Indeed some of the political parties in the 26 counties introduced
and enacted repressive legislation against republicans that would have made
Maggie Thatcher or for that matter Attilla the Hun look like Florence
Nightengale.
So where are we at, at our 2005 Ard Fheis? We have made very substantial
progress. We have a Police Act, which more fully reflects the 175 Patten
recommendations.
Critical to a new beginning to policing and justice is the issue of transfer
of powers to Ireland through the local Assembly, the Executive and hence
into an all-Ireland context through the all-Ireland institutions. But
transfer of powers is also crucial because it is the only way that control
of policing and justice can ultimately be wrested out of the hands of
British securocrats in London and the NIO who have run policing as a
paramilitary force for generations. Without transfer Policing and justice
will remain unaccountable and a tool of repression.
Other outstanding issues, which remain to be resolved, include:
- A ban on the use of plastic bullets.
- In the meantime an accountability mechanism is required to deal with
plastic bullets, which are fired by British Army personnel.
- We have negotiated changes to the inquest system. We await the outcome to
see if the wholesale abuse of the past will cease.
- The British government has yet to repeal emergency legislation and
instead, has extended powers
- The inquiry demanded by the family of Pat Finucane is again being buried
through new legislation to prevent the truth coming out.
- The British Government must acknowledge state violence. And collusion and
dismantle the structures which perpetrated collusion.
Within the last year, a battery of new repressive legislation has been
introduced by the British government. The most recent proposal is a new
Prevention of Terrorism Bill which is reminiscent of anti-democratic laws
which prevailed under Apartheid in South Africa. The British government has
also revealed plans to change the role of MI5 in relation to policing in the
6 counties. These proposals will pre-empt the transfer of powers. Any
attempt to minimise the transfer of powers will be unacceptable to Sinn Féin
and we have said that to both governments. All of this vindicates the
position our party has taken in demanding to see the script for legislation
on transfer of powers.
Previous speakers have already laid out the potential comprehensive
agreement of last December. When the DUP bluff on power sharing was called
they collapsed the negotiations. The policing section in that was
essentially that in the context of: -
Agreement between the parties on the departmental model and the powers to be
transferred;
The enactment by the British government of the legislation to give full
expression to this transfer of powers on policing and justice away from
London; and
A DUP commitment to a short timeframe for the transfer of powers on policing
and justice.
Then the party president would propose to the Ard Comhairle that it calls a
special Ard Fheis to decide Sinn Féins position on new policing arrangements.
In other word because of our experience thus far on the efforts of
securocrats to hollow out legislation we wanted to see the parliamentary Act
after it was passed to make sure the British keep their word. On that basis
the Ard Comhairle and most importantly the rank and file in the party would
then have the opportunity to debate the very fundamental issues involved at
conference.
Let me repeat what I said at last years Ard Fheis. The job given to the
negotiations team was to achieve a new beginning to policing and justice. We
have made significant progress especially through new legislation. It is not
an impossible task and republicans need to be acutely aware that if the
Republican Leadership achieves the objectives set in this area then this in
turn will raise fundamental questions and problems for all activists. There
is a public commitment if we reach that point to then put a changed policy
to our membership and nationalism as a whole. While we are a substantial
distance from that point yet, activists need to realise that we can achieve
it and with achievement there is responsibility.
Now let me quote SDLP Chief Seamus Mallon. He recently said, "The people of
West Belfast, West Tyrone and South Armagh do not want policing because if
you have policing, you don't have criminality".
Try telling the people of New York, London and Dublin that good policing
means no criminality. You need policing because of criminality.
No one wants a new beginning to policing and justice more than the
nationalist and republican people of West Belfast, West Tyrone and South
Armagh. I commend all of those who work on the ground to create safer
communities through anti-car crime schemes; youth outreach programmes, and
especially, Community Restorative Justice projects. They are doing a greater
serviced to working class nationalist areas than the policing and justice
system has ever done.
Negotiations herald change. Change brings turmoil and soul searching. It
also means breaking moulds. If we accept that the political changes over the
last decade have caused massive upheaval for the Unionist and British system
which has misruled the North for so many years let us also accept that
Republicans have faced shibboleths and sacred cows as well.
Nobody said it would be easy. Here is the challenge facing us. As political
activists we must rethink strategically, debate strategically and decide
what is best for our party, for the cause we represent and most importantly
for the people we represent.
Policing and justice cannot be viewed in isolation from other key issues
such as the stability of the interdependent institutions, equality and human
rights, demilitarisation, the ending of discrimination, collusion and so on.
The militarised barracks, armoured vehicles, guns and plastic bullets do not
auger well. The force within a force, the continuing political raids, the
mis-policing of loyalists marches and the lack of action on sectarian
attacks and drug dealing makes it extremely difficult for republicans and
nationalist to envisage a radical new policing service in the future. But we
will pursue proper policing and justice with all out energy.
Last December in theory at least, we were within months of having a decisive
debate on this issue. Delegates need to go back to their areas and open up
the debate within Sinn Fein and their community.
Our opposition to the present policing arrangements is not a matter of
timing. It is not merely a question of tactics. It is a matter of integrity
and our inalienable rights.
It is a Justice and Policing system for the people we will achieve, not for
the privileged few or the brown envelope brigade. Hugh Orde needs to know
that he is not the justice minister in the North. We as Republicans will not
be part of the Police Force which is involved in collusion, we will not be
part of a Police Force which protects Human Rights abusers, or Drugs barons,
or Sectarian murderers simply because they are state agents. There will be
no force within a force when we are finished. We will create a new policing
service, which will serve the whole community throughout Ireland. We will
have a service, which is representative, accountable and free from partisan
political control.
I call on this Ard Fheis and activists to support us in this very
fundamental struggle for an enduring and All-Ireland Justice system.
