Sinn Féin reject DUP plea to restore Stormont power-sharing
3 min read
Sinn Féin have rejected fresh calls from the DUP to immediately resume power-sharing at Stormont.
The party said restoring government in Northern Ireland under the current circumstances would only lead to another collapse "after a matter of months".
The province has been without devolved government since Sinn Féin pulled out of the administration in January over disagreements ranging from the creation of an Irish language act to rights issues.
Former DUP first minister Arlene Foster said getting the process up and running again was a “common-sense solution”, adding that further talks between the sides would be a “waste of time unless there is some new thinking”.
She added that unionists have “nothing to fear from the Irish language” and that her party were willing to “reach agreement”, but that they would not “simply agree to one-sided demands” on the issue.
In a speech in Belfast, Ms Foster said: “I am proposing that we restore an Executive immediately. Put ministers back into posts so that decisions can be made and that Northern Ireland can have a government again.
“But we also agree to bring forward legislation to address culture and language issues in Northern Ireland within a time-limited period to be agreed.
“If we fail to do that in a way that commands cross community support then the Executive would cease to exist.”
With a warning that direct rule from London would be the result of failure to restore the administration, she added: “A winners and losers approach to discussions will only guarantee failure in both the short and long-term.”
Sinn Féin however said the factors that resulted in the assembly’s fall earlier in the year have not yet been addressed.
The party’s leader in Northern Ireland, Michelle O’Neill, said: “Establishing an Executive that may collapse after a matter of months on the same issues will only fail all our people.
“Let’s agree to quickly conclude talks on implementation and rights, that is the only way to build a sustainable Executive that will last.”
In a press conference Ms O’Neill added that the DUP had failed to “embrace the principles of power-sharing”.
"They have acted disrespectfully towards Irish identity and Irish culture. They have failed to deliver people their rights. Whether that be marriage rights, language rights, economic rights or cultural rights,” she said.
"That has been the problem at the heart of the political rights: the fundamental issue of rights."
Veteran party president Gerry Adams had earlier said that a language act was crucial to devolution restarting.
"There won't be an assembly without an Acht na Gaeilge [Irish language act]. The DUP know that, the [British and Irish] governments know that," he said.
"This right which has been denied people here, is available everywhere else on these islands," he said.
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