Irish Examiner view: Stop using the past as a distraction

Sinn Féin Leader Mary Lou McDonald. Sinn Féin’s past is the never-ending distraction that all too often diverts attention from today’s policy promises

Though it seems unlikely that Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tánaiste Leo Varadkar have agreed on a good-cop-bad-cop routine in how they might debate Sinn Féin, this week’s events hinted at such an arrangement. 

There were sharp Dáil exchanges when Mr Martin suggested that Sinn Féin needed to be more accountable about its finances, describing some of its funding as “a shady enough transaction that would make even a stockbroker blush”. 

Unsurprisingly, Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald, said his remarks were “pathetic”. How she might have reacted had Mr Martin reminded her about how Noraid helped to fund terrorism here is predictable too, especially in a week when her party supported advertisements in American newspapers calling for our Government to prepare for a united Ireland.

The appropriateness of, in 2021 rather than 1921, involving organisations like the Ancient Order of Hibernians, the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians, the Brehon Law Society and the Irish American Unity Conference in the internal affairs of this country is questionable, especially as the Good Friday agreement has laid out an agreed roadmap for these issues, Unfortunately, it is be expected if it serves Sinn Féin’s desire to capitalise on a fraught post-Brexit relationship.

Mr Martin’s response was in contrast to Tánaiste Leo Varadkar’s farcical error when he claimed that Sinn Féin does not have senior politicians who are Protestant. His inaccurate remark drew sharp criticism from Ms McDonald who said: “The religious beliefs or tradition of any TD is none of Leo Varadkar’s business,” forgetting for a minute she was the leader of a party which backed decades of violence carried out on the basis of religious beliefs.

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Yet Sinn Féin’s past is the never-ending distraction that all too often diverts attention from today’s policy promises.

It is apparent that a considerable proportion of those who vote for Sinn Féin or might vote for the party, are at best indifferent to the party’s roots so something more than constant references to a shady past and proximity to Armalites and car bombs is necessary for the Taoiseach and Tánaiste to temper its rise. Cold-eyed scrutiny of its policies would be preferable and bring the added benefit of forcing the established parties to review their own policies too.