The Ulster Unionist Party’s Upper Bann MLA Doug Beattie MC, has said the latest comments by Alex Maskey prove that Sinn Fein do not know the meaning of the word, ‘respect.’
Doug Beattie MC MLA said:
“Respect, rights and equality - this is the big idea Sinn Fein are using to attack any party who is trying to make Northern Ireland work. Be they nationalist and strive for a United Ireland or be they unionist and strive to remain part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, they are all fair game for Sinn Féin’s respect, rights and equality campaign.
“However, in recent months it is obvious that this campaign is as thin as the paper it is written on. Firstly we had Barry McElduff’s mocking of victims promoted by other Sinn Fein members. Then we had the de facto leader of the party eulogising terrorists and trampling over the memory of victims. Then we had more revelations of ongoing Sinn Fein abuse and bullying of its own elected members, mostly in the Irish Republic.
“Now we have an intervention from another MLA - Alex Maskey - who described Northern Ireland in a tweet as “a putrid little statelet”.
“But the tweet says much more. Referring to Colm Eastwood’s tweet about the Civil Rights Association, Alex Maskey says. “Unfortunately it took more than the CRA (Civil Rights Association) to secure rights in the putrid little statelet NI.”
“Clearly Alex Maskey is referring to the murderous terror campaign inflicted on our society by the IRA, supported and promoted by Sinn Fein. The “it took more than the CRA” can be categorised by “the IRA was justified in burning people alive, kidnapping, torturing and murdering innocent protestants and catholics. It was right to butcher men women and children at Teebane, Enniskillen, Claudy. It was acceptable to line up Protestant men in the dead of night and riddle them with bullets. It was fine to abduct and murder a woman and leave her ten children as orphans. It was part of a noble cause to blow up two children in Warrington and kill a baby in Germany. We were justified in doing all this in the name of rights.”
“What absolute offensive rubbish. Let us be absolutely clear. We could have got to where we are today without the murder of a single person, let alone almost 3,600 men women and children, and we could have a society where fair and honest political aims could be sought without the spectre of murder. This country we live in - Northern Ireland - is not a putrid statelet. It is home to 1.8 million people who just want to get on with their lives and peacefully seek what is best for them, their families and their community.
“It is increasingly clear that Sinn Fein don’t know what the word ‘respect’ means. Their campaign is in shreds and their credibility as a partner in government is in tatters.”