Sinn Féin deny link with Colombian suspect

Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams has denied that one of the Irish men being held in Colombia was ever a member of the political party.

On Monday, Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque confirmed the statement made by his office last month that Sinn Féin had a representative based in Havana.

He said that one of the men, currently in prison in Colombia, Niall Connolly, had been the party’s representative for a number of years.

However, speaking on Tuesday, September 11, Mr Adams said: “Our national party chairman spelt out our position some time ago. There are obviously crossed wires in all of this. I am going there [Cuba] soon and I have asked our international affairs committee to sort this out with the Cuban foreign ministry.”

In response to questions, Mr Adams added that Mr Connolly was not a member of Sinn Féin nor had he ever been a member.

Colombian authorities arrested three suspected IRA members in Colombia last month. The three Irishmen, Niall Terence Connolly, Martin McCauley and James Monaghan, are accused of being senior IRA members and of training FARC guerrillas in tactics and the use of explosives. They were arrested on 11 August.

Gerry Adam’s comments came as his party prepared to meet US President Bush’s special envoy Richard Haass who arrived in Northern Ireland to discuss the latest impasse in the peace process.

At the meeting on Tuesday evening, Sinn Féin discussed with Mr Haass the situation in north Belfast, policing, the crisis in the peace process and the three Irish men arrested in Colombia.

Speaking afterwards Mr Adams said: “The meeting was very useful, friendly and constructive.” (AMcE)