The visit by the Northern Ireland Secretary of State, Dr Mo Mowlam, to the Maze Prison and her meeting with loyalist and republican prisoners has angered and dismayed many people who regard it as a concession to terrorism. But last night's announcement by Ulster Defence Association prisoners in favour of the talks process, which resumes at Stormont on Monday, must be regarded as sufficient justification for taking such a political risk. Even in the absence of such an outcome, Dr Mowlam was right to make peace and an agreed political settlement her priorities by going to meet the prisoners. Had the talks process collapsed and full-scale violence resumed because of her failure to listen carefully to prisoners' complaints, she would have attracted far greater public censure - particularly as no fundamental principle was breached by her action. Within the deeply divided community of Northern Ireland - and in the Republic - families have suffered grievous loss because of the activities of gunmen and bombers. And there is a great residue of hurt and anger. As law-abiding citizens and as victims of terrorism, individuals may feel frustrated and ignored by the authorities as the "peace process" grinds on its seemingly interminable way. Dr Mowlam recognised that reality yesterday when she entered the Maze Prison. She referred to her own personal difficulty in talking to convicted murderers and she publicly apologised to people who had been hurt by her actions. It was a humane and disarming gesture by a brave woman who realised that - even if her initiative succeeded - she herself could possibly lose in the political quagmire that is Northern Ireland.
The Secretary of State's initiative represented a reversal of long-standing British policy on paramilitary prisoners. In recent years, that position has gradually altered as the two governments embarked on an inclusive political process designed to involve paramilitary groupings and their political supporters. The visit to the Maze represented public recognition by the British Government that paramilitary prisoners constitute an important element in the Northern Ireland equation that must be addressed in any overall political settlement. In that regard, the Secretary of State formally recognised the importance of the prisoner issue and agreed it should be addressed as part of confidence building measures. But negotiations or deals did not figure in yesterday's meetings. The alternative to the talks process was starkly put: further murder and mayhem on the streets and an increasing number of prisoners languishing in jail. Within the talks process, she said, the British Government was prepared "to discuss parties' concerns and to work on an account of what would happen in respect of prisoner releases in the context of a peaceful and lasting settlement being agreed."
Having rescued the peace process from imminent implosion through the withdrawal of support by loyalist prisoners, the focus now shifts to the responsibilities of those politicians who will sit down to negotiate next week. Both Governments have spoken of the need to fast-forward the process and to move rapidly to the middle phase of negotiations. In that regard, the obligations and responsibilities of the Ulster Unionist Party, the SDLP, Sinn Fein, the Alliance Party, the UDP and the PUP to seize the present opportunity and to engage in meaningful negotiations are starkly exposed.