The process of reconciliation in Northern Ireland will take at least a generation because of the terrible violence that divided the communities, the Taoiseach said last night.
In a lengthy speech on the peace process, Mr Ahern made no reference to the looming difficulty next month when the Ulster Unionist Council is to meet to consider whether enough progress has been made on the decommissioning of paramilitary weapons. However, in response to a question from the audience, he said that if decommissioning did not take place by May, as provided for in the Belfast Agreement, "it is my view with certainty that the entire thing will fall apart. Whatever happens after that, that's another thing."
He said the UUP deadline of February made the time available shorter than he would like, but he understood why Mr David Trimble had set the deadline. The formation of the Executive and the other institutions was historic, he added..
Speaking to South Africa's Institute for International Affairs, he said Irish people appeared to be against the option of having a truth and reconciliation commission on the South African model. "My assessment is that people feel that, on balance, the potential harm that would flow from disclosure, against the background in particular of the small size of the society and of local communities, would considerably outweigh the benefit."
He called for the full implementation of the recommendations of the Patten report on policing, without "cherry-picking". This would "bring about a new situation where the police can enjoy the confidence of all the community they serve and, in their composition, reflect the diversity of that community".
He thought a South African audience could identify with recent events in Ireland more closely than most, and paid tribute to President Thabo Mbeki and the former presidents Mr Nelson Mandela and Mr F.W. de Klerk.
South Africa had given Ireland encouragement to believe that perseverance and dialogue could overcome seemingly intractable difficulties, he said. He thanked Mr De Klerk, Mr Cyril Ramaphosa, Mr Roelf Meyer and others for coming to Ireland.
"Today, the institutional frame work envisaged in the Good Friday agreement is in place," he said. "With all that has been achieved, we have not only entered a new millennium but also a new chapter in relations on the island of Ireland and between Ireland and Britain."