17 May 2007 Edition
Sinn Féin - the only real alternative
Ireland, North and South, has made great strides forward in recent years. The Peace Process, driven by Sinn Féin, has transformed the situation in the Six Counties from one of armed conflict to one of peace, a new political dispensation and real hope for the future.
We have seen the tentative beginnings of a real process of national reconciliation between Orange and Green.
The prospect of a peaceful transition to Irish unity has never been closer.
Emigration and mass unemployment in the 26 Counties have been replaced by near full employment, net immigration and very visible prosperity.
All of this is to be very much welcomed and is long overdue. The economic progress that has been made is largely the result of the efforts of Irish workers and their families.
The positive changes that have occurred have brought their own challenges. They are challenges for the Irish people and, in particular, for their political representatives.
We must now decide what type of society we want for Ireland. While the Southern economy has boomed and there has never been as much wealth in the country, public services have crumbled, social inequality deepened and many feel their quality of life has been undermined.
There is clear evidence that the Government has failed to properly plan for the future by ensuring Ireland’s economic success is built on sound, sustainable foundations.
Our hospitals are in chaos with patients languishing on trolleys and at risk from MRSA while right-wing ideologues in Government drive forward an agenda of privatising healthcare.
Children are attending crowded classrooms, often in rat-infested prefabs, while the government fails to sufficiently invest in education to tackle social inequality.
Hardworking families, including key workers such as nurses and those in the emergency services cannot afford to buy homes, particularly in the capital city of Dublin while developers and speculators are massively enriched. Houses have become purely a commodity rather than what they are meant to be – a home.
Ireland’s natural resources are given away to private and foreign interests without benefit to the Irish people and a potentially rich source of public revenue is squandered.
Neither the Fianna Fáil/PD Government nor the Fine Gael/Labour ‘coalition of the confused’ has any guiding vision for this country. Both blocs are a rehash of the tweedle dee, tweedle dum, sham politics that has afflicted the 26 counties for decades.
The only political force providing a fresh vision and a dynamic track record of commitment and delivery is Sinn Féin.
Sinn Féin seeks to build a united Ireland where the economy serves society and not the reverse; a prosperous country in which wealth is shared and where there are equal opportunities for all; a country with strong and efficient public services funded by a just and equitable system of taxation.
Sinn Féin is the only party with a genuine commitment and strategy to achieve the egalitarian republic envisioned in the 1916 Proclamation. Sinn Féin is the only real alternative in this election.
Sinn Féin is ready for Government, north and south. On 24 May, Vote Sinn .Féin.
We have seen the tentative beginnings of a real process of national reconciliation between Orange and Green.
The prospect of a peaceful transition to Irish unity has never been closer.
Emigration and mass unemployment in the 26 Counties have been replaced by near full employment, net immigration and very visible prosperity.
All of this is to be very much welcomed and is long overdue. The economic progress that has been made is largely the result of the efforts of Irish workers and their families.
The positive changes that have occurred have brought their own challenges. They are challenges for the Irish people and, in particular, for their political representatives.
We must now decide what type of society we want for Ireland. While the Southern economy has boomed and there has never been as much wealth in the country, public services have crumbled, social inequality deepened and many feel their quality of life has been undermined.
There is clear evidence that the Government has failed to properly plan for the future by ensuring Ireland’s economic success is built on sound, sustainable foundations.
Our hospitals are in chaos with patients languishing on trolleys and at risk from MRSA while right-wing ideologues in Government drive forward an agenda of privatising healthcare.
Children are attending crowded classrooms, often in rat-infested prefabs, while the government fails to sufficiently invest in education to tackle social inequality.
Hardworking families, including key workers such as nurses and those in the emergency services cannot afford to buy homes, particularly in the capital city of Dublin while developers and speculators are massively enriched. Houses have become purely a commodity rather than what they are meant to be – a home.
Ireland’s natural resources are given away to private and foreign interests without benefit to the Irish people and a potentially rich source of public revenue is squandered.
Neither the Fianna Fáil/PD Government nor the Fine Gael/Labour ‘coalition of the confused’ has any guiding vision for this country. Both blocs are a rehash of the tweedle dee, tweedle dum, sham politics that has afflicted the 26 counties for decades.
The only political force providing a fresh vision and a dynamic track record of commitment and delivery is Sinn Féin.
Sinn Féin seeks to build a united Ireland where the economy serves society and not the reverse; a prosperous country in which wealth is shared and where there are equal opportunities for all; a country with strong and efficient public services funded by a just and equitable system of taxation.
Sinn Féin is the only party with a genuine commitment and strategy to achieve the egalitarian republic envisioned in the 1916 Proclamation. Sinn Féin is the only real alternative in this election.
Sinn Féin is ready for Government, north and south. On 24 May, Vote Sinn .Féin.