[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 17 (Thursday, February 24, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: February 24, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
       THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF JOHN HUME'S TERM IN PUBLIC OFFICE

  Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise today to inform my colleagues of the 
fact that today is the 25th anniversary of the day that John Hume, the 
leader of Northern Ireland's Social Democratic and Labour Party, first 
took public office in Northern Ireland. Not enough members of this 
Chamber, I suspect, are familiar with John Hume or are aware of the 
crucial role he has played over the years in the peace process in 
Northern Ireland. But I am quite confident that if more people were to 
listen to his words and to follow his example when it comes to Northern 
Ireland, the prospects for peace there would be far brighter indeed.
  Mr. President, John Hume occupies a central and, in truth, a unique 
role in the political landscape of Ulster. He was an early leader of 
the movement to bring civil rights and equality to the long-oppressed 
Catholic community in Northern Ireland, and through his seats in the 
British Parliament and the European Parliament he has continued to play 
an instrumental role in speaking out for justice in the north. His 
party, which received approximately one-quarter of the votes in the 
most recent general elections, is committed to the long-held 
nationalist ideal of a united Ireland. At the same time, he has 
condemned the Irish Republican Army and he has often spoken out against 
the ruthless ways of the IRA. This willingness to confront both 
extremes of the Ulster reality has given him a crucial role in the 
peace process now underway in Northern Ireland.
  Mr. President, last year John Hume helped to set the pace of peace 
negotiations forward when he engaged in a series of meetings with Gerry 
Adams, the controversial leader of Sinn Fein. While these meetings--and 
the agreement they reportedly produced--were regrettably not supported 
by the British Government, they nonetheless had an important impact in 
advancing the notion that if the conflict in Northern Ireland is to be 
solved, it must be solved through negotiation. In fact, as Mr. Hume 
told an interviewer last fall, ``Given that the British Government has 
stated it cannot defeat the IRA and that the IRA has stated it cannot 
defeat the British Government, my simple Irish mind tells me the logic 
of that is that the only thing that'll solve the problem is dialogue.''
  Mr. President, John Hume has it absolutely right. What is needed in 
Northern Ireland today is more discussion, less violence; more 
listening, and less posturing. John Hume has taught us this lesson over 
the past 25 years and for that we should all be thankful.

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