McDonnell: 2012 must be year of reconciliation
In his New Year message SDLP Leader Alasdair McDonnell called upon all with influence in our community to look beyond mere stability and make 2012 the Year of Reconciliation.
Sat 31st December
He said: "The Good Friday Agreement will soon be 14 years old and it is time we took stock, time we took a realistic look at what we all got out of it and more importantly, what we can expect to get out of it in the future.
"Our peace is stable and not even the dissidents could rock it now. But without active political commitment to reconciliation, to moving us forward as a united community, peace is only the absence of violent conflict and that can never be either safe or stable in the long term.
"The Agreement states very clearly that peace must lead to reconciliation. It states (quote): "....we firmly dedicate ourselves to the achievement of reconciliation, tolerance, and mutual trust …" and "…we will endeavour to strive in every practical way towards reconciliation and rapprochement …"
It could not be clearer – the parties which control and run our devolved institutions have a clear and specified duty to mend our divisions, to work actively for reconciliation. In 1998 the people of this island voted overwhelming, not just for peace but for reconciliation as well.
"There has been enough back-slapping about achieving the peace. Stability alone cannot be the goal,it is just the precondition for progress. It is now time to start delivering on the shared future which was a clear and explicit promise to the people.
"Peace alone does not guarantee progress. At the time of the first ceasefire in 1994 there were just nine so-called Peace Walls. Now there are more than 50, every one a testimony to the failure to live up to the mandate of 1998.
"We need to put the healing of division back at the heart of the political agenda and we need to do it this year."
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