Hume spoke against guns – but actually opened the door to let the gunmen in

There is talk of having a permanent memorial to John Hume to mark his part in our deeply flawed – and in many cases corrupt – peace process, which they claim is his alone!
By Tom Nash
Published 25th Aug 2020, 10:39 BST
Updated 25th Aug 2020, 14:25 BST
PACEMAKER PRESS 18/2/1994: John Hume photographed in LondonderryPACEMAKER PRESS 18/2/1994: John Hume photographed in Londonderry
PACEMAKER PRESS 18/2/1994: John Hume photographed in Londonderry

Such a memorial might be welcomed by some, yet not by many others.

One abiding memory of John Hume was his mantra: “No guns on the table, under the able or outside the door”.

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However his secretive, flawed negotiations ensured that not only did we still have “guns” we also got – courtesy of Hume –gunmen , murderers and bombers on, under, and outside every table of public life.

Letter to the editorLetter to the editor
Letter to the editor

To the countless victims of PSF / PIRA, his memorial and legacy is the highly toxic fact that he opened the door for proud, unrepentant, convicted terrorists to become embedded in our councils and Government.

They lecture us on “honesty, integrity and respect”, re-traumatising their victims on a daily basis, and their very presence is a gross insult to democracy.

Perhaps those who are trying to bestow “sainthood” upon him might take into account his real legacy of legitimising PSF / PIRA politicians.

Tom Nash, Derriaghy

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Related topics:John HumeGovernmentStephen Nolan