[QUOTE]Belfast, Northern Ireland (CNN) -- Northern Ireland's Martin McGuinness will be the Sinn Fein candidate for president of the Republic of Ireland when elections are held next month, the party's executive committee voted unanimously Sunday.
McGuinness, a former leader of the IRA, is now deputy first minister of Northern Ireland.
Accepting his party's nomination Sunday, he said republicans have an obligation to "heal the wounds of their actions."
McGuinness has admitted that he was a leader of the Provisional IRA during the 30-year conflict in Northern Ireland between pro-British and pro-Irish forces.
In recent years, he has received death threats from hardline dissident IRA splinter groups because of his support for the peace process.
He referred to a recent upsurge in violence in the province in his speech Sunday.
"I know there will be a very strong temptation for people to drag us back to the past. God knows there are enough of them trying to do so, in a violent sense, at the moment," he said.
He described himself as a man of peace who can work across sectarian lines.
"People see me very much as a peacemaker, but, more importantly, they see me as a peacemaker who can be trusted," he said. "I have every confidence that the peace process will be strengthened by my participation in the presidential election."
"I am proud to have served in government alongside unionists," he said, referring to those who want Northern Ireland to remain part of the United Kingdom rather than uniting with the republic to the south. "I can work with anyone. Times have changed in the North."
Sinn Fein won 14 seats in the Irish parliament, the Dail Eireann, in elections this year.
The party's leader, Gerry Adams, moved from his west Belfast constituency in Northern Ireland to win a parliamentary seat in the republic, topping the poll in the Louth constituency.
McGuinness will step down temporarily as deputy first minister in Northern Ireland's power-sharing government during the election campaign, to be replaced by Education Minister John O'Dowd, Sinn Fein said.
If elected, he would resign from his position in Northern Ireland.
Ireland's president is a largely ceremonial role, with national elections held every seven years.
The president is the guardian of the constitution and has the power to refer contentious laws to Ireland's Supreme Court.
Mary McAleese has been the president since 1997 and is nearing the end of her second term of office.
McAleese hosted a historic visit to Ireland by Britain's Queen Elizabeth II in May, days before U.S. President Barack Obama arrived in the country.
Elections are due to be held October 27.
On Friday, Irish Senator David Norris said he intends to re-enter the race.
Norris -- previously tipped to be the first openly gay president of Ireland -- withdrew from the contest August 2.
He abandoned his bid after it emerged he had made a plea for clemency for a former lover convicted of the statutory rape of a 15-year-old Palestinian boy in Israel in the 1990s.
However, Norris told Irish television Friday night he had changed his mind and is seeking support to relaunch his campaign following a "consistent outpouring" of public support.
He now has to secure political nominations to get his name on the presidential ballot paper.
An opinion poll published Sunday showed Labour's Michael D. Higgins leading Norris, who might be backed by the Fianna Fail party.
But the Sunday Independent/Millward Brown Lansdowne poll was completed before Norris said he was rejoining the race and before Sinn Fein put McGuinness' name forward.[/QUOTE]
Source: [url]http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/europe/09/18/ireland.president/index.html[/url]
I was about to say "Whats an American doing running for office in Ireland."
Then I realized it was the terrorist organization in Ireland, not the lobbyist group in America.
Bring back the black and tans.
This will be interesting
It'll be interesting to see where this goes
it will go nowhere lol
Just what Ireland needs, a terrorist president.
tiocfaidh ar la
I see no harm in this, if he is working with peace efforts why not.
This is the correct way to go about this sort of thing IMO. People could learn a lot of things that could be applied to other situations from Ireland to be honest.
Up the 'RA
This is a step forward.
Still some terrorist groups around, but the majority have abided by the peace agreement.
[quote]McGuinness[/quote]
Yes.
free bombs for everyone.
I don't want a murderer as my president, this is a joke. The sad thing is that he is one of the candidates who is most likely to either win, or come fairly close to winning. I love how he condemns terrorist groups that still exist in Northern Ireland. So ironic.
[QUOTE=Caesar;32370417]I don't want a murderer as my president, this is a joke. The sad thing is that he is one of the candidates who is most likely to either win, or come fairly close to winning. I love how he condemns terrorist groups that still exist in Northern Ireland. So ironic.[/QUOTE]
I'm sure he believes what he did was either wrong or justified. People who even have a chance at running for presidency can normally see such obvious hypocrisy, assuming there's any faith left in humanity in me.
Well im fucked
[QUOTE=Cone;32370622]I'm sure he believes what he did was either wrong or justified. People who even have a chance at running for presidency can normally see such obvious hypocrisy, assuming there's any faith left in humanity in me.[/QUOTE]
Of course he probably thinks it was justified, that doesn't change the fact that what he did was wrong. Blowing up innocent people should mean that that man is in jail, not running for the presidency.
[QUOTE=Caesar;32372424]Of course he probably thinks it was justified, that doesn't change the fact that what he did was wrong. Blowing up innocent people should mean that that man is in jail, not running for the presidency.[/QUOTE]
Then people won't vote for him if he was blowing up people left 'n' right. If people do vote for him, then there will be a bloody good reason why - like wanting to atone.
[QUOTE=Caesar;32372424]Of course he probably thinks it was justified, that doesn't change the fact that what he did was wrong. Blowing up innocent people should mean that that man is in jail, not running for the presidency.[/QUOTE]
[url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_McGuiness[/url]
[editline]19th September 2011[/editline]
could've wiki'd it yourself but nooooo
[QUOTE=TrulliLulli;32373315][url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_McGuiness[/url]
[editline]19th September 2011[/editline]
could've wiki'd it yourself but nooooo[/QUOTE]
What are you talking about? I haven't said anything inaccurate.
[quote]Then people won't vote for him if he was blowing up people left 'n' right. If people do vote for him, then there will be a bloody good reason why - like wanting to atone.[/quote]
Politics is complicated here where Sinn Féin are involved. I don't know what you know about politics in Ireland but Sinn Féin definitely don't want to atone for what they did. Sinn Féin never condem what the IRA did, and Sinn Féin members never express any regret at what was done. That is why I have a problem with them.
I live in Northern Ireland (although that hardly counts for anything), and this seems like a good thing. I really don't feel that a united Ireland is the best thing at this moment, and I hardly see what good would come from it, but I do feel that if we let bygons be bygons, we can finally start to put the murky past behind us.
I mean, at least he isn't a Protestant!
Hope he gets elected so IRA victims can get major asshurt.
This will be a real step forward considering how bad and how little attention the discrimination against Catholics was in the 60's there, and this guy was in the heat of it, so surely he'll want to follow up on whatever he promises the people.
[QUOTE=Mr.Haughty;32364663]Bring back the black and tans.[/QUOTE]
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaGCK7T4X3w[/media]
(Skip to about 3:40, it's where the Black and Tans come in).
I'm not sure how I feel about this.
[QUOTE=Caesar;32370417]I don't want a murderer as my president, this is a joke. The sad thing is that he is one of the candidates who is most likely to either win, or come fairly close to winning. I love how he condemns terrorist groups that still exist in Northern Ireland. So ironic.[/QUOTE]
People change.
this isn't America where people get worse by age you know.
[QUOTE=Patriarch;32373452]I live in Northern Ireland (although that hardly counts for anything), and this seems like a good thing. I really don't feel that a united Ireland is the best thing at this moment, and I hardly see what good would come from it, but I do feel that if we let bygons be bygons, we can finally start to put the murky past behind us.
I mean, at least he isn't a Protestant![/QUOTE]
I feel that you're right in one sense, but I have a feeling that this might harm Anglo-Irish relations if he gets in.. Hoepfully I'm wrong.
Has he atoned for all those murders he ordered, murders he performed?
Has he paid for them?
Has he even admitted to them?
[QUOTE=orbitrek;32374217]I feel that you're right in one sense, but I have a feeling that this might harm Anglo-Irish relations if he gets in.. Hoepfully I'm wrong.[/QUOTE]
That's a good point, and there is no denying how many people are going to get riled up by this. Still, we can only really hope that people have learnt to forgive and forget, and to focus on the future instead of the past.
So we're fucked.
[QUOTE=Patriarch;32374669]That's a good point, and there is no denying how many people are going to get riled up by this. Still, we can only really hope that people have learnt to forgive and forget, and to focus on the future instead of the past.
So we're fucked.[/QUOTE]
Martin McGuinness and Sinn Féin have never asked for forgiveness for what they and the IRA have done. When directly asked in interviews if they condemn violence, they avoid the question and will never say no. That is why I despise Sinn Féin and what it represents. Tell their victims to "forget the past and move on". I honestly would not have such a problem with them if they at least apologised and expressed some form of regret, but they never will.
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