Sir, - I refer to a letter from Gary McEneaney (August 30th), in which he attempts to defend Sinn FΘin against statements made by Fianna Fβil TDs following the arrest of three suspected IRA members in Colombia.
His assertion that Fianna Fβil TDs have used their arrest as "a tool to attack Sinn FΘin" suggests that he has failed to comprehend the serious and legitimate questions that have been raised.
I cannot see how raising questions about the credibility of Sinn FΘin's anti-drugs stance, and calling for the party to clarify its association with those arrested in Colombia can be taken to be an attack on Sinn FΘin.
Mr McEneaney is attempting to divert attention from the fact that Sinn FΘin has been linked to those arrested and that the three individuals were allegedly involved with an international organisation known for terrorism and drug smuggling.
While I fully subscribe to fair and due process for every Irish citizen, I am surprised that Mr McEneaney has completely satisfied himself that all questions relating to the three men arrested have been sufficiently addressed.
It is equally surprising that he has ignored confirmation by Sinn FΘin of its association with at least one of the three men arrested, and that he has totally dismissed this in the face of the party's publicly stated anti-drugs position.
Mr McEneaney obviously refuses to accept that Sinn FΘin's credentials as an anti-drugs party are open to interpretation, and are at the least questionable given all the circumstances of the Colombian arrests.
Until Sinn FΘin clarifies its position on the facts surrounding the Colombian arrests, and until it properly explains its relationship with the three individuals who have been arrested, people will rightly draw their own conclusions. - Yours, etc.,
Rory O'Hanlon, TD, Chairman, Fianna Fβil Parliamentary Party, Dβil ╔ireann, Dublin 2.