Gerry Adams speaking at his party’s Ard Fheis last weekend.
By Anthony Neeson
Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams has led a blistering attack on his Fianna Fáil counterpart.
Speaking during his party’s Ard Fheis in Dublin on Saturday, Mr. Adams said that Micheál Martin is negotiating to put Fine Gael back into power.
“In nasty little soundbites, which would make the DUP blush, the Fianna Fáil leader in particular, proclaimed that this party, that the people in this convention center, and more importantly those citizens who vote for Sinn Féin, were not fit for government.
“He also said he would not put Enda Kenny back into government.
“But putting Fine Gael back into power is exactly what he is negotiating. That’s not in the national interest.
“Fianna Fáil voters did not vote to give Fine Gael another term.”
Mr. Adams said the duty of any future Irish government is to achieve Irish unity.
“That means promoting all-Ireland cooperation and building relationships between our people,” he said.
“It means enlisting international support for all these objectives.
“Of course, from a republican and democratic perspective the British government has no right to be in any part of Ireland.
“But from a unionist perspective all has changed, changed utterly from the days of a one party state where nationalists were excluded from power; denied equality in housing, employment and voting rights; and where expressions of Irish national identity were criminalized.
“Now a peaceful and democratic route to Irish unity exists.”
Mr. Adams said there was a difference between Sinn Féin and the other parties.
“We are not Fine Gael or Labour. We are proud of the men and women of 1916.
“We are not Fianna Fáil. We are equally proud of the men and women of the H-Block and Armagh and of the 1981 hunger strikers and of the patriot dead from our time.
“We remember them all here tonight.”
Adams is in New York this week for the Friends of Sinn Féin 1916 commemoration event being held over two nights, tonight and tomorrow (Wednesday and Thursday) at Cooper Union in Manhattan.
Adams is one of the listed speakers for Thursday evening.
Details at https://www.facebook.com/FOSFUSA/?fref=ts
