Sight
of journey to come explained lack of euphoria The sweet magic of the Belfast
Agreement was lacking, but it was history in the making for all that, reports
Frank Millar
From IRISH TIMES November 30th, 1999
Much is made of the purr of the waiting ministerial cars, the lure and aggrandisement
of office. But this is overly cynical. And, while it might characterise
the motivation of some individuals, it will not be the basis on which unionism's
final dispositions are made. It also remains to be seen how Mr Robinson
and Mr Dodds will play their promised role as "ministers in opposition"
- and for how long this system can tolerate them in the Executive but not
at the Executive table. We should not, however, expect Mr Trimble and Mr
Mallon to be in any rush to remove them. Moreover, it is clear that "the battle for the soul of unionism" which matters is not between the DUP and
the UUP, but that still being fought within Mr Trimble's own ranks.
Some of the more publicly vocal doubters may well have looked shame-faced
yesterday, as the DUP put them to the test. But others found voice to cry
"Hypocrite" as Mr Robinson rehearsed his own terms for taking office. And
there is within the Ulster Unionist Party, on all sides, a real and deep-seated
feeling that they have had to endure the pain of the attempt to negotiate
a future for Northern Ireland, while ambitious men within the DUP hope to
experience the gain. In crude terms, there is no disposition there to take
lectures from the DUP. That said, there is a growing disposition within
the UUP to bring the whole edifice down if the IRA does not deliver on decommissioning.
Sir Reg Empey emerged before the waiting cameras to declare: "The twin issues of devolution and decommissioning haven't gone away, you know." For the
pessimists it was a reminder of how drastically the whole thing can still
go wrong. For the optimists, it was simply a challenge to see still more
history made. |
