RSF for Nobel Peace Prize????

limerick | politics / elections | press release Wednesday October 22, 2003 13:14 by sceptical

RSF/'C'IRA in denial over their well documented role in Limerick feud

'Scurrilous' Provo election leaflet
Des Long, Vice President, Republican Sinn Féin
October 21, 2003
The only organisation that has consistently called for an end to feuding in Limerick and that has offered to nominate a go between to negotiate an end to violence is Republican Sinn Féin and for anyone to allege any different is a distortion of the truth, RSF said in a statement today.

RSF vice-president, Limerick based Des Long said that the facts are well known and on the public record yet the Provos continue to engage in aping the distorted journalism of the tabloid press.

"While I do not wish to dignify the scurrilous claims of the Provos in their election leaflet being distributed around Limerick, the blatant lies must be answered in case any decent person is fooled by these false claims," he said in the statement." The Provos refer to "breakaway microgroups" and I shall let these groups reply in their own time but as a long time Republican I wish to state that the true Republican Movement has never taken any side in the Limerick feud.

"In fact Republican Sinn Féin has often called for an end to the feuding and we offered to provide a mediator between both sides in the interests of bringing peace to the city. For the Provos to twist the truth and to use weasel words like "if these reports are true" smacks of the baser acts of the gutter press and shows the Provos are learning fast from their new found friends in the mainstream media.

"The local people who are behind this type of truth twisting must ask themselves what happened to Gareth O'Connor and the other people who were disappeared by the Provos. If they are sincere about the suffering of bereaved families let them go to their leadership and ask that the body of Gareth O'Connor be returned to his parents for a proper decent Christian burial.

"These Provos must cease throwing mud at faithful Republicans whose only desire is to see real peace and lasting brought about by the removal of the root cause of conflict from our country."