A chara, – In relation to Gerry Adams’s statement about a Border poll being inevitable (Breaking News, March 10th), it might be wise to be careful what one wishes for, as a failure to get the right result would delay Irish unification even further.
Many in the North might feel that it is economically silly to unite with the South now that the South’s economy is decimated. Many in the South might feel it unwise to accept a territory that will require an increased security budget; just because there is no conflict now doesn’t mean that there will not be trouble in the future, and there is no way that the Irish Government could spend as much on security as the British did.
It might be wiser, in my opinion, to take back the North in easier to digest “bite size” pieces. I would suggest, if there were to be a poll at all, that the poll should be limited to the county of Fermanagh. The reason is for the satisfaction of the four groups involved: the nationalists/republicans, the unionists/loyalists, the British and the Southern Irish. I believe that if Fermanagh were given the option of uniting with the rest of the South, the poll would be favourable to that unification.
Assuming that Fermanagh gained this vote and voted in favour of unification, the nationalists/republicans could boast that it is one down and five to go, the unionists/loyalists could boast that the ratio of nationalists to unionists (currently heading towards a 50-50 split) would be in their favour for longer. The British would benefit by having a shorter Border (and the removal of the Drumully polyp), and the Southern Irish would have a route from Dublin to Donegal that would not be hampered by the crossing of any Border, as well as giving its fellow citizens a say in government. It would also show the unionists that they would have nothing to fear from a united Ireland as the Southern government would protect them to the same extent as any citizen, while the Southern government would have a security challenge that is fairly manageable.
Of course, it is not enough to win but one’s enemy must also lose! The nationalists/republicans might be seen to be abandoning their fellow citizens again (circa 1924 Boundary Commission fiasco), the unionists/loyalists would be offended at the loss of Enniskillen and its historical significance, the British would lose some territory and the Irish would have a group of unionist/loyalist who have no loyalty to the state and may hold the balance of power in any future Dáil election.
However, as I noted, this is a bite size solution when taking the whole of the North would choke us and not taking any is a continuation of the same, potential, disastrous powder keg whereby we wait until the nationalist/republicans become the majority and, per the Ireland Act of 1949, choose to opt out of the United Kingdom and become part of the Republic along with the million of unionists who have not yet been convinced that a United Ireland is in their interests. – Is mise,