President Mary McAleese has told dissident republicans their campaign of violence and attempts to destabilise the peace process will fail and said they must cease their actions.
She said the "crass methodology of the so-called dissidents" was overtaken by a "radical and intelligent new dispensation" which fully acknowledged the legitimacy of the aspiration to a united Ireland but only by peaceful means and with the consent of the people of the North and South.
She said this was enshrined in the Belfast Agreement. In an article on the dissident threat in today's nationalist Belfast-based Irish News she said the dissidents did not reflect the will of the people, as did the Belfast Agreement.
"What is worse everything they do sullies that legitimate objective of uniting Ireland in the eyes of those who most need to be persuaded of its merits and makes its achievement less and less likely," she said.
"Those who think they can drag us back into darkness should take serious note of the fact that despite a litany of gruesome acts of violence the seed of peace has taken root strongly in many hearts once estranged from one another. Love is stronger than hate. It is as simple as that," she added.
There was a message for the dissidents, she said. "Your violent campaign will not succeed and it is long past the time to stop."
The President said relationships within Northern Ireland and between North and South have improved considerably.
"Many of those who were actively involved in violence or who supported paramilitarism have become convinced champions of the peace process and of our collective power to build a society that cherishes peace, justice and diversity," she said.
Mrs McAleese said there was a momentum behind the new dispensation. "It is not easy or straightforward but it is markedly better than anything which has preceded it. It offers hope and it offers that hope to everyone."
"Achieving a united Ireland is a mission that challenges us all in a spirit of love, mutual respect and peaceful dialogue to move mountains but, then again, who could have foretold the extent of the positive shifts in the political landscape that have already happened since the Good Friday Agreement?" she said.
"However, one thing is dismally clear - unity will never be achieved by the powerful destroyer of hatred and violence."
Mrs McAleese said Ireland was now well on its way to a positive future of peace, equality and good neighbourliness.
"Anyone who claims to be passionate about this island's future should be doing what they can to build the trust, the reconciliation, the mutual respect and acceptance which make people comfortable with one another even where profound differences exist," she said.