Sir, - We have seen another major step forward towards a viable peace process with the Sinn Fein vote to change its constitution in favour of participation in the new Northern Assembly.
Can we hope that there will be a resounding Yes in the referendum south of the Border and that those "remote control" Republicans, often far removed from the consequences of political violence with their sentimental attachment to Articles two and three, will give priority to the deep desire for peace in the North? Articles two and three have had little beneficial effect on the lives of Northern nationalists in the past, and I think it is reasonably safe to conclude they will not, in their new form, in practical terms prove any different. Most of us up here do not require a written declaration to confirm our nationality. In fact most of us were unaware of the existence of the Articles until they were made the subject of a Supreme Court ruling at the behest of a few unionists who were trying to convince all and sundry that they were the greatest obstacle to an agreed Ireland.
They were and shall remain a form of words that offered us nationalists no protection from the excesses of the killer gangs. The change is unlikely to have any material effect on our day-to-day lives. The time has come to put practical considerations before high-minded principles. It is imperative that all citizens of the Republic who are in any way sympathetic to the idea of a political settlement demonstrate, by their votes, their support for what we hope are the foundations of peace and equality. - Yours, etc.,
Brendan Horisk, Malone Road, Belfast.