[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 75 (Tuesday, May 8, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E985]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      NORTHERN IRELAND PARLIAMENT

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. SCOTT GARRETT

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                          Tuesday, May 8, 2007

  Mr. GARRETT of New Jersey. Madam Speaker, today is an historic day 
for the people of Northern Ireland. A day that has been years in the 
making and which heralds a new era of peace. Today in Belfast, 
parliament opened with the swearing in of Unionist and Sinn Fein 
members side-by-side.
  I congratulate Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness on their new roles 
as first minister and deputy first minister of the assembly. Today is 
proof that despite decades of violence, two previously bitter enemies 
can sit down and work through their differences peacefully through 
representative government.
  Nine years ago, the Good Friday Agreement envisioned this day. The 
work to cement that achievement has been difficult but it has been 
accomplished through negotiation and compromise.
  Certainly, today is not the end of disagreement, but it is the 
beginning of settling things politically and not militarily. Today is 
possible because both sides have recognized that violence is not 
productive, that killing benefits neither side. The children of 
Northern Ireland can now grow up in a country where hate is not a 
virtue.
  What the people of Northern Ireland have accomplished today is an 
example for areas around the world suffering with internal conflict. A 
people who were once at war with one another have freely elected 
leaders who will work to solve problems peacefully.
  Again, I congratulate the people of Northern Ireland on this historic 
occasion. It is a day to remember and in which they should take pride.

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