BRIEF FROM NORTHERN IRELAND

For Immediate Release:7/10/2005

North Antrim Sinn Féin MLA, Philip McGuigan, has said that he found it quite sad that the SDLP excluded members of his party from attending a ‘North-South Makes Sense’ conference in Derry. All parties that have representatives in the Dáil were invited to attend the conference except for Sinn Féin members.

Mr McGuigan said:

“The decision by the SDLP to exclude members of Sinn Féin from a conference on promoting North-South co-operation, a premise that we totally adhere to, is in my opinion both childish and hypocritical.

“The politics of exclusion is something that is more commonly found in the DUP and it saddens me that the SDLP feel it is necessary to go down this road. Sinn Féin is a big supporter of further North-South co-operation, indeed we are the only party that operates across the entire island, and it seems absolutely ludicrous that the SDLP is penalising us because of this.

“The fact that parties such as the Conservative Progressive Democrats will be attending this conference – a party which is quite happy for partition to remain in place – whilst Sinn Féin is discriminated against is something that speaks for itself. It makes sense for the SDLP and Sinn Féin to be working together to promote North-South co-operation and indeed a united Ireland. Exclusion and alienation doesn’t make any sense at all.”