adam, - I note from a report in your edition of October 5th that Sinn Féin MP Conor Murphy was invited to speak at a fringe meeting of the Conservative party's annual conference in Brighton.
That such an invitation was issued shows the Conservative party has moved on and has accepted that Sinn Féin representatives might have something relevant to say about Irish-British relations. This is welcome.
However, it is quite clear from the report of Mr Murphy's address that he and the party he represents have learnt nothing, and feel that they have nothing to learn from their contacts and dealings with normal democratic parties. In fact, he doesn't seem to entertain what I would regard as fairly normal feelings of compassion for the suffering of others, even in circumstances where the organisation with which his party is closely associated directly and deliberately caused those sufferings.
There is probably little point, therefore, in bringing to his attention the following extract from an interview given by Lord Tebbit, whose wife was very seriously and permanently injured as a result of the bombing of the Tory party conference in Brighton in 1984. I will do so, however, for the benefit of those who might not be familiar with the outcome of that horrendous and cowardly act. This is an extract from a report in The Irish Times of July 30th, 2005:
"For myself, most days I don't think about my own scars or the bits of plastic which hold me together, and the aches and pains, when they come, are what we all share in old age.
"But every morning as I awake, my wife is there beside me; still the same person as she was when we married almost 50 years ago.
"But no more can she sit up and say, 'It's a lovely day: let's go for a walk', as we did across the moors with the children and the dogs. For her, the pain is the ever-present companion, disability the load she never ceases to bear.
"For her, that quick shower and breakfast is a three-hour routine with a carer. Hers is now a life of dependency: having to ask for everything from waking to the end of the day."
And for all that, Mr Murphy has no regrets. "It was part of a war" he says. Wonderfully consoling words for Lady Tebbit and all the other victims of the violence of the IRA and their apologists. - Yours, etc,
BRIAN STEWART, Knocknacarra, Galway.
Madam, - If the subject were not so serious one would be tempted to laugh, when we are being encouraged by supporters of the IRA murderers to welcome the announcement of decommissioning of IRA weapons and explosives.
We are expected to be thankful to this band of murdering terrorists for handing over their weapons and explosives that they have used to cause such loss of life, mayhem and misery.
They have carried out their activities allegedly in the name of the Irish people, despite the fact that the vast majority of our population despised their activities and have shown in many polls and elections that they do not support them or their political front pals in Sinn Féin. - Yours, etc,
TONY FAGAN, (Retired Detective Garda) Enniscorthy, Co Wexford.