The Hindu : Ahern back in saddle, but sans majority

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, May 20, 2002

International

International

Ahern back in saddle, but sans majority

By Hasan Suroor

POLITICAL BREAKTHROUGH: Sinn Fein's Martin Ferris (left) and the Chief Negotiator, Martin McGuinness are lifted by supporters after Mr. Ferris' victory in Tralee, Ireland, on Saturday. — Reuters

LONDON MAY 19. The Irish Prime Minister, Bertie Ahern, was today headed for another term in office following an impressive performance by his party, the centre-right Fianna Fail (FF), in the general elections held on Friday.

The party, however, narrowly missed an absolute majority that would have allowed it to form a government on its own and end its dependence on Progressive Democrats, a minor conservative player.

"It's a great night for Fianna Fail. It's a great night for the party and those who work for the party," Mr. Ahern said as his party members celebrated the results which gave it 43 per cent of the votes.

In a House of 166, it was slated to end up with just a few short of the 84-mark needed for an absolute majority.

Far more significant than Mr. Ahern's predictable victory, however, was the dramatic breakthrough achieved by Sinn Fein, until now regarded as a political untouchable by mainstream parties in Dublin because of its links with the Irish Republican Army (IRA).

The party, which had only one seat in the outgoing Parliament, won five seats and with a few results still awaited, was expected to gain at least one more. Among the Sinn Fein victors was a former gunrunner, Martin Ferris, who spent 10 years in prison for alleged terrorist activities.

Observers said Sinn Fein's performance was likely to change the country's political "landscape" as it would now have to be reckoned with as a significant force.

The party chief, Gerry Adams, called the poll verdict a "culmination of years of hard work" and an endorsement of the party's support for the Northern Ireland peace process.

The goal of Irish unity, he believed, had come a step closer. "Building our base in this part of Ireland is an essential step to building Irish unity," he declared.

The biggest loser has been the main Opposition party, Fine Gael, which recorded the worst ever performance, losing nearly one-third of its seats in the outgoing Parliament.

Its leader, Michael Noonan, resigned calling the party's performance "beyond our worst expectations".

He had taken over only 15 months ago, promising to revive the party but in the end, it failed to withstand the pro-Ahern tide stemming from a booming economy and the Prime Minister's personal charisma.

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