Tomorrow the full honours of a State funeral will be rendered to 10 members of the IRA who were executed and buried within the walls of Mountjoy Prison during the War of Independence, 80 years ago. The President, the Taoiseach and other political leaders, members of the Diplomatic Corps, representatives of the security forces as well as relatives of the dead men will participate in the ceremonies. The progress of the corteges will bring much of the capital to a halt although it remains to be seen how many of the ordinary citizenry will turn out on the streets.
Opposing views have been expressed in this newspaper and elsewhere, both welcoming and criticising the transfer of the men's remains from a prison compound to the hallowed ground of Glasnevin. Some have concerns on the timing, given the fragile condition of the Northern Ireland peace process. Others have questioned the propriety of honouring men who used force in pursuit of objectives which might have been attained by political methods. To do so now may be lend legitimacy to those who still claim the right to use violence to further their political objectives.
It is entirely proper to honour those whose endeavours and sacrifice helped to bring the State into existence. There are few democratic states in the western world whose conception was without violent struggle. The shots at Concord, Massachusetts that began the American War of Independence were fired by men who would qualify as terrorists today. Most of the great European democracies sprang out of warfare and the killings of kings and aristocrats.
It would be shameful and wrong if modern Ireland were to deny the manner and means of its own foundation in order to accommodate contemporary political considerations. None of this is to say that the methods of 80 years ago are acceptable today or that there is any valid parallel between conditions and circumstances then and now. Nor is it to deny that in the War of Irish Independence, atrocities and indefensible actions were perpetrated on all sides.
It is right and proper that these men's mortal remains should be removed from the executioner's yard and relocated to a place of honour. They are entitled to no less. So are their families and descendants, many of whom have campaigned for years to this end. Nonetheless it is impossible not to be cynical about the timing. Fianna Fβil's Ardfheis takes place this weekend also. The Taoiseach will give the usual leader's address this evening and he will deliver the graveside oration tomorrow at Glasnevin. Fianna Fβil seeks to be confirmed by association and by imagery as the repository of the republican tradition and as the embodiment of the State.
It is a pre-election strike against Sinn FΘin's ambition of taking seats from Fianna Fβil in the coming general election. Many would share Fianna Fβil's conviction that the fewer Sinn FΘin seats in the next Dβil the better. But the transparency and opportunism of this affair will not be lost on the electorate - and in particular on the young. It is a poor headline to give them. And it is a cynical exploitation of the sacrifices by the young men whose remains will be brought through Dublin tomorrow.