IRA volunteers were not involved in criminality of any kind, Sinn Féin MP Martin McGuinness asserted in New York yesterday. At a lunch hosted by the National Committee on American Foreign Policy, Mr McGuinness added: "No IRA volunteer should be involved in criminality of any description."
The lunch was attended by Irish and British diplomats, former US ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith and leading Irish-Americans. The Sinn Féin negotiator was given a warm reception in the light of Gerry Adam's call to the IRA to follow democratic and political principles.
The words of the Sinn Féin leader "have to weigh heavily on every single volunteer", Mr McGuinness said, while declining to speculate when the IRA would respond. He expressed the hope that all parties would "crack a deal" after the election.
Bill Flynn, for the committee, said Mr Adams' statement was a good thing "and must be followed up as quickly as possible". Mr McGuinness said: "The fact that I am here in the US" during the election campaign "is a demonstration of the seriousness with which we are taking forward this initiative. There is a narrow window of opportunity to get down to serious negotiations after the Westminster and local government elections."
This would involve difficult decisions for all, not just republicans. Referring to Robert McCartney's murder he said: "The people responsible should be ashamed of themselves . . . It is in our interests that they be brought before a court and made accountable."