Interesting article on uniting behind the Eire Nua Policy
Posted by Jim on May 27, 2016
If all republicans were to unite behind the Éire Nua policy it would give clear direction to both the broad republican family and the wider Irish people – which are badly needed at this time to escape the grip of censorship imposed on alternatives to the status quo.
If we’re honest we’ll admit that no-one else – at least not yet – has produced a template for Irish reunification other than vague talk of a ‘socialist republic’ or the idea the Six Counties would simply be bolted onto the existing Free State.
Éire Nua envisages a community of communities under a broader constitution that exists to uphold democratic standards and protections for the citizen. It represents a serious alternative to the centralised state, which upholds state power over the rights of the individual towards an authoritarian end – however light be that end.
Éire Nua then is not just about uniting Ireland but about breaking down the power of the state and subjecting it to far greater democratic pressure and accountability from below.
Unionists and the British though are shaping up for the argument that will come 10-15-20 years down the line, should the mechanisms set in place by the Good Friday Agreement run into difficulties (i.e. a Nationalist majority in the North which they can’t control).
If we look closely, they are lining up the position that there should be a Federal Ireland (more likely on a two-state model than the Provincial one set out in Eire Nua) within a wider Federal ‘British Isles’ entity. I engage with Unionists on other platforms and can see clearly that this is where their strategic thinking is at.
Many republicans believe that Irish Unity will follow a vote in the North once the numbers stack up in their favour but what they don’t realise is that Britain, through their tool the Unionists as always, are readying the ground for another settlement which allows them to remain in control on critical matters – those that count – while the Irish once again are given the illusion that they hold power in their own country – an illusion ongoing since the days of partition itself.
We need to be building our own argument and Eire Nua is the best that’s out there to fight this particular ideological battle, which is looming on the horizon even though we might not see it at this point
