POLITICIANS from both sides of the border have issued an urgent call for Ireland to rejoin the Commonwealth.
They say the move would be a conciliatory gesture to unionists, help the Republic to weather the economic storm and give it greater international influence.
A total of 33 politicians, academics, writers and community activists yesterday signed a s
tatement saying it was time for a “reunion” in the run-up to the 60th anniversary of the Republic leaving the Commonwealth.
They included Assembly members David Burnside (UUP), Dawn Purvis (PUP) and Alliance leader David Ford.
“The time has come for Ireland to establish links with this important international organisation of 53 modern states committed to peace, democracy and human rights,” their petition declared.
“Ireland’s membership would strengthen our links with a vast network of countries, communities, civic associations and professional bodies at a time when we need all the friends and connections we can get to weather the worst economic crisis since the founding of the State.”
It added that it would also give Ireland’s athletes the right to compete in the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
“Ireland’s membership would be welcomed by the unionist community in Northern Ireland as a significant gesture of reconciliation and an important step along the road to a pluralist Ireland, recognising and respecting different identities,” it said.
A total of 32 of the 53 states in the modern Commonwealth are republics like Ireland.
The plans will be discussed in a public debate run by the Reform Group today in Dublin.
