Sinn Fein trying to justify terror campaign in the name of rights, says UUP MLA

After attending an Assembly event to commemorate the centenary of women’s voting rights, SDLP leader Colum Eastwood tweeted about the Civil Rights Association (CRA) being instrumental in ensuring “that all people got full access to voting rights” in Northern Ireland.

Sinn Fein Alex Maskey replied: “Unfortunately it took more than the CRA to secure rights in the putrid little statelet NI.”

UUP MLA Doug Beattie said the latest comments by Mr Maskey prove Sinn Fein do not know the meaning of respect.

He said: “Respect, rights and equality - this is the big idea Sinn Fein are using to attack any party who is trying to make Northern Ireland work. Be they nationalist and strive for a United Ireland or be they unionist and strive to remain part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, they are all fair game for Sinn Fein’s respect, rights and equality campaign.

“However, in recent months it is obvious that this campaign is as thin as the paper it is written on. Firstly we had Barry McElduff’s mocking of victims promoted by other Sinn Fein members. Then we had the de facto leader of the party eulogising terrorists and trampling over the memory of victims. Then we had more revelations of ongoing Sinn Fein abuse and bullying of its own elected members, mostly in the Irish Republic.”

Referring to Mr Maskey’s tweet, the Ulster Unionist said: “Clearly Alex Maskey is referring to the murderous terror campaign inflicted on our society by the IRA, supported and promoted by Sinn Fein. The “it took more than the CRA” can be categorised by “the IRA was justified in burning people alive, kidnapping, torturing and murdering innocent protestants and catholics. It was right to butcher men women and children at Teebane, Enniskillen, Claudy. It was acceptable to line up Protestant men in the dead of night and riddle them with bullets. It was fine to abduct and murder a woman and leave her ten children as orphans. It was part of a noble cause to blow up two children in Warrington and kill a baby in Germany. We were justified in doing all this in the name of rights.”

“What absolute offensive rubbish. Let us be absolutely clear. We could have got to where we are today without the murder of a single person, let alone almost 3,600 men women and children, and we could have a society where fair and honest political aims could be sought without the spectre of murder. This country we live in - Northern Ireland - is not a putrid statelet. It is home to 1.8 million people who just want to get on with their lives and peacefully seek what is best for them, their families and their community.

“It is increasingly clear that Sinn Fein don’t know what the word ‘respect’ means. Their campaign is in shreds and their credibility as a partner in government is in tatters.”