The Government has restated its position that the Belfast Agreement must be implemented in all its aspects and says people should not be diverted from that by "new totems that may get in the way of political progress".
A spokesman was commenting on Fine Gael demands that the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, intervene with the Sinn Fein leader, Mr Gerry Adams, in seeking a statement from the Provisional IRA that "the war" is finally over. The spokesman said they should not allow themselves to return to the kind of "linguistic quagmire" that was created over the interpretation of the word "permanent" during the first Provisional IRA ceasefire. Anything that could be done to establish confidence between the political parties in Northern Ireland was to be encouraged, he said. Publicly calling for certain words or phrases to be used by Sinn Fein or the Provisional IRA, however, or establishing a series of public tests which were not part of the Belfast Agreement, was unlikely to be productive.
There was an agreement committing them to the Mitchell Principles and to the use of peaceful and non-violent democratic means, and they should concentrate on developing that base.
The Fine Gael leader, Mr John Bruton, criticised Mr Adams for not getting the IRA to say that "the war" was over on the grounds that he would not "solve David Trimble's problem for him". That attitude was an insult to all Irish democrats who had worked hard for a peaceful settlement and who had shown understanding of Sinn Fein's position, he said. Mr Bruton was supported by the party's spokesman on Northern Ireland, Mr Charles Flanagan, and by Mr John Cushnahan MEP.
Mr Flanagan spoke of the "inexplicable silence" of the Taoiseach and said Mr Ahern had a duty to "maintain both the integrity and the progress of the Belfast Agreement . . . The issue of a final declaration of cessation of violence by the IRA is a crucial one if Sinn Fein is to be a full participant in the future governance of Northern Ireland under the Agreement."
Mr Cushnahan said Mr Bruton was absolutely right to call on Sinn Fein and the IRA to declare the war was finally over. It was about giving David Trimble room for manoeuvre. It was about honouring in letter and spirit the Good Friday Agreement.
Sinn Fein's vice-president, Mr Pat Doherty, accused Mr Bruton of pandering to the failed agenda of certain sections of unionism who wanted to delay change. The Agreement had been negotiated on an inclusive basis and the parties and the governments had signed up to it. That was the basis on which they should now move forward to secure agreement and a lasting peace.
"Sinn Fein is not at war with anyone. Bringing an end to war requires more than words or word games. Ending the war requires an effective process of conflict resolution which addresses and removes the causes of conflict," he said.