Ian Paisley had no doubts about Sinn Féin's commitment to peace and democratic process, says Martin McGuinness

IAN PAISLEY had no doubts about Martin McGuinness's commitment to peace and the democratic process, the Sinn Féin deputy First Minister told reporters at the start of the party's autumn “think-in” in County Meath on Friday.

Reminding people that he was speaking on the eve of the first anniversary of the death of the former leader of the Democratic Unionist Party, Martin McGuinness said:

“I have worked in the Office of First and Deputy First Minister for the last eight years, for that first year with Ian Paisley and, God rest him, he will be dead a year tomorrow. Whatever about his past, in that year that I worked with him, he had no doubt about my commitment to peace and democracy and making the process work. And I had no doubt abut his commitment to peace and democracy and making the process work.

“We need to get back to this spirit.”

There is a short window of opportunity in which to resolve the difficulties caused by the unionist parties' actions following the deaths of Gerard 'Jock' Davison and Kevin McGuigan, the deputy First Minister said, beginning with next week's inter-party talks.

“If people are genuine and serious about making the Peace Process work, there has to be a spirit of generosity, there has to be a spirit of reconciliation and there has to be a spirit of reaching out.”

Martin McGuinness listed the occasions when he had stood alongside unionist leaders to condemn the killings of PSNI police officers, British Army soldiers and a prison officer by armed groups intent on destroying the Peace Process. He contrasted this with the immediate failure and then reluctance of unionist leaders to speak out against attacks on hundreds of police officers during the Union flag protests supported by the DUP and the Ulster Unionist Party as well as the Orange Order, or UVF shootings in unionist communities and attacks on PSNI officers.

Sinn Féín’s Dáil, Assembly, Westminster and European Parliament teams were meeting in Gormanstown to plan and strategise for the new political term.