Political blame game begins following suspension

Northern Ireland's political parties have rounded on each other today following the suspension of the Northern Ireland Assembly by Secretary of State, Dr John Reid.

In his statement this morning, Dr Reid attributed the need for a suspension to a loss of trust between both sides of the community.

However, Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams said today's announcement would not help bring about the disbandment of the IRA.

He added: " Dr Reid is an intelligent man and he must know that what he is doing is accommodating resistance to the Good Friday Agreement.

"The problems have to be resolved and the two governments in the meantime have to be held to their obligations under the Agreement.

"For the DUP or anyone else there is no escape from the Good Friday Agreement. There will be no renegotiation of the Agreement."

Sinn Féin's Dáil leader, Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin TD said suspension represented a "temporary success" for anti-Agreement unionists.

Mr Ó Caoláin said the current crisis stemmed from the Ulster Unionist Council (UUC) meeting of September 21 "when the anti-Agreement forces in that party finally succeeded in having their programme adopted".

The SDLP deputy leader, Brid Rodgers also placed part of the blame on the UUC meeting in September. She said that fundamental to the current institutions was the existence of trust between "all parties and within the community".

Coupled with the furore concerning documents allegedly found in the possession of republicans, Mrs Rodgers said that these events had brought about suspension and disrupted the "good work being brought forward in all areas by the Northern Ireland Executive".

Meanwhile, Democratic Unionist Party leader Ian Paisley said any talks to find a new political settlement would have to be held after an assembly election was called.

He added: "Those who do not want elections are afraid of the verdict of those elections. We need to get back to the task of finding a way Northern Ireland can be governed on a purely democratic basis."

However the DUP was criticised by senior Ulster Unionist Sir Reg Empey who said the Dr Paisley's party had now "commenced on a courtship dance with Sinn Fein".

He said: "What the DUP are now trying to do is recognise, as we recognised many years ago, that republicans are there and they have to be dealt with.

"A courtship dance has now commenced between the DUP and Sinn Fein which will be aided and abetted by the government and others as time goes on."

On issue of the suspension of the assembly, the former Enterprise Minister said: "What is happening today is our ministers are being ejected from government, not because of any wrongdoing on our part, not because we haven't honoured our obligations under the Agreement and the Act to the letter, but because the government has failed to honour it obligations to deal with people who are deemed not committed to exclusively peaceful means."

In a statement late this afternoon, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Irish Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, reiterated Dr Reid's statement but also hinted at where it wanted progress made.

In a broadside at Sinn Féin, clearly hinting at IRA disbandment, both leaders said it was "now essential that the concerns around the commitment to exclusively democratic and non-violent means are removed.

"The time has come for people to clearly choose one track or the other," the statement added.

(MB)