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Mowlam: contact for clarification only
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Government Still in Contact
With Sinn Fein
The Northern Ireland Secretary Mo Mowlam has confirmed that Government officials have resumed contact with Sinn Fein. Mo Mowlam said three telephone calls from Sinn Fein had been received by civil servants.
But she insisted that no negotiations were taking place. "What's important
is that Sinn Fein cannot give any excuse that we have not clarified our
position," she said. "It's not negotiations. I'm not talking to them. But if they want clarification then it will happen. I'm not hiding anything," she insisted.
Following the murder of two policemen in Lurgan, Co Armagh, last month, the Prime Minister, Tony Blair, said exploratory talks between civil servants and Sinn Fein had been cut off.
Ms Mowlam insisted that the resumed contact was purely to clarify the
terms for republican involvement in talks on the future of Northern Ireland.
Revelation of the move came after Unionists launched an attack on the
Government's peace strategy.
Admission Angers Unionists
Ken Maginnis of the Ulster Unionists accused the Secretary of State of having misled the House of Commons, by telling it contacts had not continued after the Lurgan killings.
"Unless we get an early explanation in the House of Commons then I believe the credibility of the ministerial team in the Northern Ireland office will be called into serious question," said Mr Maginnis. "And that can only complicate the lives of all of us."
Peter Robinson, deputy leader of the Democratic Unionist Party, also accused Ms Mowlam of undermining trust. "I think it augurs ill for the talks process as we move into a vital period of those talks in the next fortnight," he said.
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