BELFAST Leaders of Northern Ireland's largest political partySaturday endorsed the new agreement designed to end almost 30 yearsof street warfare and terrorism in the British province.
Delegates of the Ulster Unionist Party voted 540-210 to approvethe plan, providing momentum for backers of the Good Friday agreementas voters begin to focus on the May 22 referendum that will determinewhether the peace plan takes effect.
In the eight days since the multiparty agreement was reached,politicians here and in the Republic of Ireland have engaged in afairly bitter debate over the details. The general public, though,seems to have eagerly embraced the chance for peace.Voters both north and south must approve the plan for it tobecome law.David Trimble, head of the Ulster Unionist Party and the topindividual vote-getter in the province, noted that the public seemslargely to have made up its mind. "When I was walking into our(party) meeting today, I encountered about 80 excited journalists onthe street - and about four excited members of the public," he said.Still, endorsement by Trimble's party was considered necessaryfor approval of the peace plan.The peace plan, agreed to by the governments of Britain andIreland and eight Northern Ireland political parties, says theprovince will remain part of the United Kingdom. But it increasesintergovernmental cooperation between the north and south of Ireland.And it leaves open the possibility that the people of NorthernIreland could vote someday to merge with Ireland.Leaders of the largest nationalist party in the province, theSocial Democratic and Labor Party, have endorsed the plan.But the term "largest party" doesn't mean much here. No partygets more than 30 percent of the vote in general elections.In Dublin, Sinn Fein began its debate on the agreement, but putoff a decision amid signs of discontent among its supporters.Contributing: Associated Press
No comments:
Post a Comment