Ahern finally flushed into the open

THE Taoiseach’s decision to recall the Dáil on Thursday for a six-hour debate on the looming war in Iraq is long overdue and smacks of too little too late.

But it should be welcomed as it will finally give the public a glimpse of where Mr Ahern and his

government stand on the use of Shannon Airport by American forces after the bombs begin falling on Baghdad.

Sitting on his hands for months, ducking, weaving and failing to give a straight answer to straight questions, Mr Ahern will finally be flushed into the open.

Not before time, the Taoiseach will have to address the serious moral, legal and political questions arising out of the impending decision by President George W Bush to declare war without the backing of the United Nations.

Having described a second UN resolution as a political imperative, it will be interesting to see how Mr Ahern justifies the use of Shannon in hostilities without approval from the UN Security Council.

Were it not for the persistence of Opposition parties in the Dáil and the nudging of some concerned Fianna Fáil backbenchers, the Taoiseach would prefer to keep his powder dry for fear of offending the Bush regime.

Seldom prepared to stand up and be counted, is it too much to hope Mr Ahern will finally pin his colours to the mast?

Labour leader Pat Rabbitte has condemned as reprehensible, and rightly so, the prospect of the Government formulating its policy on use of Shannon by military personnel on the basis of pragmatic considerations dictated by the US corporate presence in Ireland.

The Opposition parties are reportedly united against turning Shannon into a convenient transit base for US planes en route to and from the war zone.

But there seems little likelihood of any Fianna Fáil deputy voting against the Government on a point of principle.

Whatever about a revolt in Westminster over British Prime Minister Tony Blair's decision to march to the beat of the American drum, we can be sure there will be no rebellion within the ranks of the FF-PD Coalition. The whip will be out.

By giving America unfettered access to Shannon, the Government will be flying in the face of the vast majority of the Irish people, who perceive this looming war as replacing the authority of the United Nations with a doctrine based on the preemptive strike.

The contemptuous treatment of the UN by the Bush regime shows how the superpower will in future trample on the rights of the international community whenever it suits US interests.

The world owes a debt of gratitude to France for holding the line in the face of intense pressure insisting on the primacy of the UN Security Council in deciding how the tyrannical Saddam Hussein should be disarmed.

As well as getting their hands on Iraqi oil, the warmongers in the White House aim to achieve America's long-festering ambition to castrate the UN and establish US hegemony.

All the signs suggest war will be declared tonight.

So, before Dáil Éireann gets a chance to debate Ireland's role in the ensuing hostilities, the bombs will already be raining down on Iraq, slaughtering innocent men, women and children in pursuit of the warped vision of peace as seen through the terrifyingly perplexed eyes of George W Bush.