Paddymac. The hunger strikers gave their lives for a cause they believed to be just and true in a way that did harm only to themselves and to the regimes that imprisoned them. Whatever the cause was is irrelevant. I believe InOBU wanted to commemorate their sacrifice in a peaceful and humanitarian manner which warrants the respect of all concerned.

I will not apologise for the actions of the British Government or the RUC. I cannot. Nor would I expect you to apologise for the the Republican factions "operating under a variety of aliases, continue murdering innocent people, burning, fire-bombing, beatings and other forms of terrorism"

What I will do is extend my hand in friendship, in the hope that you may forgive whatever harm I have done to you. If you believe that the British people do not endorse the repression of the Irish, as I believe that Irish are a peaceful peoples, then we can move forward. If we take a negative stand we may as well give up now.

My Son, Stewart, now nearly 20, was born on the day that Bobby Sands died. (May 5). At that point I promised myself that I would never instill the hatred that has perpetuated this bloody and violent conflict in any of my children. To date, all my children (5 - aged 16 to 24) have no ethnic related predjudices. Let us hope that if enough of us, on both sides of the Irish Sea, do the same then the sins of the fathers will not be visited upon the sons.

Those sons and daughters will eventualy build a peaceful, bright new future in a way that talk of past attrocities never can. They will be the ladders out of the pit that we keep digging with violence and hatred.

I will not say I pray to God for the souls of the dead hunger strikers, as that may indicate I follow one of the religions which started this bloody mess in the first place. Instead I will light a candle to remind me that somewhere in the dark there is a glimmer of hope.

All the best and may the courage of your convictions help bring about a peaceful solution.

Dave the Gnome