The Haass-O’Sullivan document contains the “makings of real progress” on a number of challenging fronts, according to Foyle SDLP MP Mark Durkan.
Mark Durkan.
Mr Durkan, a member of the SDLP delegation at the recent talks, has called on all parties to come together as soon as possible to optimise the promise and potential of large aspects of the paper.
Mr Durkan said: “Having talked and worked together in all of the discussions that led to the paper, the parties need to get into a working compact to take forward significant areas of agreement and those points where more agreement needs to be developed.
“The section on the past can be seen to have the strongest level of agreement and some of the newest proposals actually reflect a lot of the spirit – not just the detail – that I had raised in amendments to the NI Miscellaneous Provisions Bill in July and at the report stage at Westminster in recent months.
“I would hope that many victims and others will see that the parties are now trying to make good some of the gaps in the reflection and treatment of the past for them, for wider society and for future generations.
“As has been well-known for weeks, the section on flags and emblems reflects less agreement and we are right to be disappointed about that given all of the evident difficulties.
“An approach to better understanding and dealing with the question of flags and other issues of identity and cultural tradition is offered in terms of a commission with a timescale. Like others, I could not enthuse about the prospects of that commission resolving all such issues. But even if it doesn’t have our best confidence as a channel for success now, we all have to give it our best effort.
“The final version on parades, selected commemorations and protests is weaker in some key areas than we would have wanted and weaker than in some previous drafts. However, even if the text had more weight and clarity in those areas it would still have to be committed to legislation and the legislative process which will see the parties testing their different emphases and interpretations.
“We know that we will not be the only party who will want to strengthen the scope and standing of the proposed Code of Conduct in the legislation and also know that others will have a different view. To prevent everything foundering on such differences during the passage of the bill in the Assembly, the SDLP argued at the final session on Tuesday morning for the parties to come together soon to work on scoping out the draft heads of a bill.”
Mr Durkan concluded: “We need to create working modalities like that – perhaps convened by the First and Deputy First Ministers – if we are to optimise the promise and potential of large aspects of the paper and if we are to manage the points of disagreement where the contention currently is or will be obvious in the future.”
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