For Shinners, the past is not over or past

The biggest question is, is Sinn Féin fit for government in the Republic? asks Michael Clifford

THERE was good news about Sinn Féin this week. The party is on the right track. An assessment by the British government of paramilitary activity in the North concluded that the party’s armed wing is no longer engaged in political violence.

At this rate, Sinn Féin will eventually come to resemble all other political parties in structure, focus and operation. Unfortunately, a reading of the assessment leads to the conclusion that that time has not yet arrived.