Fr A. Reid

Clonard Monastery,

Clonard Gardens,

Belfast,

BT13 2RL

PURPOSE

The purpose of the meeting would be to reach an agreement on the strategy and tactics of a common Nationalist policy for peace which would enable the leadership of the porties concerned to combine their political forces in a common campaign for a just and lasting settlement of the present conflict.

SUGGESTED AGENDA

(1) Discuss and decide on whether of not it would be (a) possible and (b) opportune to organise a combined political effort to persuade the British authorities to declare:-

(i) that they are willing to set aside the 1920 Government of Ireland Act either now or at some date in the future.

(ii) that they intend to withdraw from Ireland at some date in the future.

(iii) that they do not intend to stay in Ireland forever.

(iv) that their continuing presence in Ireland is a matter for continuous review because, in the long term at least, it may not be in the best interests of the Irish people.

(2) Discuss and decide on the feasibility of a combined political effort to persuade the British authorities to declare

(i) that they will set aside the 1920 Act when the Irish people themselves provide them with a viable alternative

(ii) that, whatever the situation may have been in the past, they no longer have any self-interest in remaining in Ireland or in exercising authority here.

(iii) that they will support and facilitate the kind of constitutional Conference that would enable the Irish people to decide their own constitutional and political future through free, independent end democratic dialogue among themselves.

(iv) that they would not interfere in the deliberations of such a Conference or attempt to influence or, much less, dictate its decisions.

(v) that they would respond, with the necessary legislation, to any constitutional and political decisions about the future of Ireland which such a Conference might make.

(3) Discuss and decide on the acceptability to the parties concerned of the following formula for peace (whatever attitude the British authorities might take towards making any of the declarations set out in (1) and (2) above.)

It should be said at the outset that the principles of this formula were not thought out in any abstract or a priori way by anyone. They emerged from an actual dialogue about the way forward to peace which has been taking place over the past year or so and in which the viewpoints of the main parties concerned were expertly represented and explained.

The formula, as will be seen, envisages a radical solution because, if applied, it would lead to the creation of a new Ireland.

THE CONSTITUENT POINTS OF THE FORMULA

1. The free, independent and democratic consent of the Irish people as a whole is the only basis for a just and lasting peace.

2. The Irish people as a whole are defined as "the people of the Nationalist tradition and the people of the Unionist tradition" by the historical, political, religious and cultural realities of the situation.

3. The consent of the Irish people as a whole must, therefore, be defined as “'the consent of the people of the Nationalist tradition and the consent of the people of the Unionist tradition". It is twofold, therefore, in its very nature.

4. Because it is twofold in nature, the consent of the Irish people as a whole can only be achieved through political dialogue between the people of the Nationalist tradition and the people of the Unionist tradition.

5. The leadership of the main parties concerned would make a formal commitment to abide fully and faithfully by all the principles of the formula and by their proper implementation until a final agreement about the constitutional and political future of Ireland had been reached, no matter how long or how short the time-factor involved might be.

6. While the manner in which this formula would be actually implemented would be a matter for discussion and decision between the main parties concerned, it is clear that a suitable frame-work for the necessary political dialogue between the people of the two traditions would have to be set up and, in part at least, would have to take the form of a Constitutional Conference which would remain in existence and continue to function until a final agreement about the future of Ireland had been reached.

The membership of this Conference would consist of the constitutional representatives who would have been elected by the people of both traditions to achieve the aims of the Conference.

The details of how these representatives would be elected by the people of both traditions and of the mandates that the people would give them, would be a matter for discussion and decision by all the parties concerned.

Any necessary, interim constitutional and political arrangements for the time between the setting up of the Conference and the time when a final agreement on the future of Ireland would have been reached, would be a matter for dialogue, agreement and decision between the constitutional representatives attending the Conference.

Note The phrase “all the parties concerned” as used above refers to:-

(1) The leadership of the main Nationalist parties, North and South.

(2) The leadership of the Republican Movement.

(3) The leadership of the main Unionist parties.

(4) The British Authorities.

(5) The Authorities of the Irish Republic.

(6) The leadership of Loyalist Organisations.

• Proposal for a Meeting to Agree a Common Nationalist Policy for Peace (introduced on 1989-01-01 00:00:00 - CREATE - e1072287) [This document]

• Proposal for a Meeting to Agree a Common Nationalist Policy for Peace (introduced on 1989-01-01 00:00:00 - CREATE - e1072287) [This document] [view current proposal at this moment]