AMID the picturesque drumlins and dales of the Newry and Armagh constituency, there has been murder and torture of a venom that has ravaged the community. The future of the peace process is a priority here.
The sitting MP, SDLP deputy leader, Mr Seamus Mallon said the response from the doorstep is a very strong demand for a total end to violence in all parts of the constituency. "The primary issue is real and lasting peace and a lot of dissatisfaction with those who will not enter fully into the peaceful political process," he said.
Mr Mallon, who has constituency offices in both the main towns in the district, says socio-economic issues - cuts in health, education and housing - have been of deep concern to voters. He does not believe and, he maintains, nor do the voters, ministerial statements that money for these vital services had to be moved into the security budget after the Drumcree crisis.
Mr Mallon, who has been in politics since the 196Os, became MP in 1986 after the Ulster Unionist MP, Mr Jim Nicholson, resigned in protest at the Anglo-Irish Agreement. He said he was "quietly confident" of holding his seat, but observers have little doubt he will be re-elected.
The MP, who took ill while at Westminster last year, quickly rebuffed any suggestion that this would be a problem.
Sinn Fein has substantial support ill this constituency, but not enough to come close to Mr Mallon's lead. Sinn Fein's candidate is Mr Pat McNamee, from Crossmaglen. He claims he has received a positive response on the election trail. An IRA ceasefire has not been a priority on the doorsteps, he said, but voters had voiced hope for a renewed cessation in IRA activity.
The Ulster Unionist, Mr Danny Kennedy, comes from Bessbrook in south Armagh, where Lance-Bombardier Stephen Restorick was killed in February. "People don't want to see murder on the streets of Bessbrook and on the streets of Newry and Armagh," he said.
Mr Kennedy said his challenge was serious. "We had the big guns down," lie said, referring to visits by the party leader, Mr David Trimble, and others. But he is realistic. "We want to be in a position to maximise our vote."
He finds voters concerned about the huge cuts in health and education which were blamed on the security cost during the Drumcree situation last year. Mr Kennedy, an Orangeman, said that was a "convenient" excuse.
The Alliance candidate, Mr Pete Whitcroft (25), one of the youngest candidates, has no illusions about winning but is concentrating on canvassing in Newry town and Armagh city, where Alliance is eager to gain seats in the ensuing local government elections.
Also standing is Mr David Evans, of the Natural Law Party, which believes that transcendental meditation and yogic flying will greatly relieve stress and enhance the chances of peace in the North.