Bishop makes plea over 'neglect' of cross-border communities

The ongoing economic and social neglect of cross-border communities must be urgently addressed to begin the process of building a united society in the wake of the IRA’s end to armed struggle, it was claimed today.

Dr Joseph Duffy, the Bishop of Clogher, said the IRA’s statement last Thursday - in which it declared an end to using violence to achieve its political goals - was an essential first step towards the long-term goal of a normal united society.

Dr Duffy, whose diocese covers Fermanagh and Monaghan, as well as parts of Tyrone and Donegal, said the declaration by the IRA had to be welcomed by all shades of opinion on both sides of the border.

He said the statement would now have to be backed by actions and it would take months or even years to understand its full significance in the process of building a lasting peace.

“The immediate value of the statement is to draw attention to the extreme urgency of continuing to address the legacy of the conflict, to renew our resolution to healing the scars of generations.

“How best to build openness and trust within, and between, divided communities – where the opposite has become a deeply-embedded way of life – is the essence of the task.

“There is so much work to be done to encourage mutual understanding, strict and self-critical fair play and a genuine sense of interdependence on all sides,” he said.

The Bishop said the issue of building an interdependent society in which there were not winners and losers, but only winners, was especially critical in the cross-border communities.

“The ongoing economic neglect of these communities on both sides of the border over the years is an obvious and urgent need, crying out for immediate and vigorous attention, to be addressed as intrinsic to the overall social health of the country, north and south.”

But he said economic neglect was not the full answer to the current problems.

“Time and again, particularly in private conversation, we get glimpses into a hidden Ireland out there that expresses itself in sectarian terms, that condones crime on one’s own side while deploring it on the other and this approach seems to ignore basic tenets of truth and morality when it comes to matters of public service and responsibility.

“In our more honest moments we may admit this to ourselves, but surely the time has come to face the implications in whatever practical ways we can, and this can begin with our neighbours in our own parish and area,” he said.