Sir, - One remaining obstacle to normal politics in the North is the presence of arms in the political arena. The IRA's declared legitimacy for the armed struggle stems from the "first Dail". I believe we are now in a position whereby a combined decision of the elected members of the present Dail plus the members of the Northern Executive can be seen to supersede the decisions of the "first dail". To this end I suggest that the following motion be passed by both bodies at the same time:
"That we, the elected representatives of all the people of the island of Ireland, state that it is unacceptable that violence continue to be part of our political process. We therefore affirm that we require that all paramilitary organisations, who have not already done so, begin decommissioning their weapons forthwith."
I ask that this suggestion be considered seriously by our political leaders, so as to give moral support to those within the Republican movement who wish to achieve the ultimate objective of the removal of arms from politics in Ireland. - Yours, etc.,
Brendan O'Donoghue, Raheen Close, Tallaght, Dublin 24.