BRITISH LOBBYING:THE BRITISH government used Roy Jenkins, then president of the European Commission, to lobby Pope John Paul II before his visit to Ireland in September 1979.
Jenkins, a former minister, was due to meet the pope before he left for Ireland. He was briefed by the foreign office in early September about what the British would prefer the pope to say.
“While no one disputes the right of the people in the Republic or in Northern Ireland to aspire to Irish unity, if the pope were to say anything publicly that could be interpreted as support for Irish unity, the Protestant community in Northern Ireland would undoubtedly feel that they were being unfairly threatened.”
The foreign office also suggested it would be of great advantage if the pope could speak out against terrorists, and also those who “help, assist, comfort and support them, whether actively or passively”.
“Better still,” the brief continued, “if the pope felt able to go so far, would be a condemnation of terrorists organisations by name, both ‘republican’ and ‘loyalist’.”
Addressing an audience of 250,000 in Drogheda on September 30th, the pope made a strong appeal against violence. On October 2nd, the IRA replied, stating that they knew that “upon victory, the church would have no difficulty recognising us”.