‘Objective Is To End British Rule In Ireland’

By Gerry Adams, The Militant, Vol.60 no.26, 1 July 1996

The following are excerpts from the speech that Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams would have delivered in Belfast had his party’s delegation been admitted to the all-party talks.

Our objective is to end British rule in Ireland, Adams states. We want to see a society on this island which reflects the diversity of our people. This is not therefore a northern issue only. Partition effects all of us. Irish freedom, democracy, and peace are in the interest of all the people on the island. Sinn Fein seeks national self-determination, the unity and independence of Ireland as a sovereign state....

Our vision foresees the unity of the people of this island. East with west, north with south, urban with rural, Catholic with Protestant and dissenter. Our vision is for the redistribution of wealth, for the well-being of the aged, for the advancement of youth, for the liberation of women and for the protection of our children. Our vision rejects forced emigration and unemployment, the destruction of the environment, cultural oppression, sexism and inequality.... Our vision embraces education. It embraces democracy. It is economic, as well as political. Our vision is for a free Ireland and for a free people. It is for an end to war.