23/03/2017 The View


23/03/2017

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It's been an extraordinary day here in a city that has seen more

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than its share of historic events as thousands of mourners lined

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the streets of the Bogside to pay tribute to Martin McGuinness.

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Tonight on The View we assess the complicated legacy of the former

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IRA commander who became Deputy First Minister.

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Hello and welcome to the walls of Derry.

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We're overlooking the Bogside, which today saw extraordinary

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scenes, as VIPs joined thousands of mourners to pay respects

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to Martin McGuinness, the one-time IRA commander turned

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A man with a disputed legacy - while some can never

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forgive his IRA role, others saw him as a man

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The former United States President Bill Clinton made the trip.

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I spoke to him moments after he addressed those

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Why is it so important to be here today? First of all... We spent a

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long time together, when I was president. And I wanted to honour

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him for what he did. War to peace. And to emphasise that it is one

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thing to make peace, another to make it work. That is an endless process.

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You have got work on that all the time. To and all these people, who

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justifiably respect the fact that he changed war to peace, really

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committing himself to the work that needs to be done. And you're

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optimistic that the politicians listening in charge today are going

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to take that message on board? I think so. This whole rise of

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tribalism, all over the world, everything that is happening. Dutch

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didn't go for it. And I think the reaction is beginning to set in. It

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is not as though you can repeal interdependence. The debate is about

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defining the terms of independence. If you believe that, then shrinking

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the definition of us, them, that is not a good strategy. Still plenty of

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things to debate about, how best do you trade, do immigration,

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negotiation. That is basically what is at stake. And when it mattered,

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Martin McGuinness made the correct decision. That was Bill Clinton

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talking to me earlier. With me now to help unravel

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the complicated figure that was Martin McGuinness

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are Peter Sheridan of Co-Operation Ireland,

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Denis Bradley who knew Martin McGuinness much

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of his adult life, and the DUP This is the first time we've heard

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from, Gregory, sense the death of Martin McGuinness. Why have you

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broken the silence? Some people would say, why have I been silent,

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rather than break it? But I think what many people would think of the

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person who is deceased, the family, close friends, should be allowed

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some time to grieve, and bury their loved one. I imposed this

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self-imposed silence, until after the funeral. That is why I have not

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spoken about any of these matters, until now, despite numerous

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requests. Arlene Foster was applauded by members of the

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congregation when she entered the church for the service today. Do you

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applaud her, for attending the funeral today? I think these are

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matters of conscience for the individual. I would not criticise

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anyone for going privately to the, publicly to the funeral service,

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signing the book of condolence, just as I hope nobody would criticise

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those who choose not to do those things. Do you think she did the

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correct thing, attending today? I think it was her choice. But I am

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asking you. I think it was her choice. Just as I would not have

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criticised her she had not gone, I am not going to criticise her for

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going. You talked about the complicated legacy, and we should

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look at the two aspects of Martin McGuinness. The last ten, 15 years,

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it is undoubtedly the case that he had done much to promote politics,

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promoting peace, trying to make progress for Northern Ireland. You

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recognise that? I do recognise that. But what we must not do, ignore the

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first 25 years of his life, walls on Londonderry now, west bank. And when

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Martin McGuinness joined the IRA, thousands upon thousands fled the

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city as a result of the actions of Martin McGuinness. But you do except

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that was in the past. He could have been involved in the Troubles, an

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active member of the IRA, many years ago, nonetheless he contributed very

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significantly to the peace process for Northern Ireland. That is what

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Bill Clinton said. I recognise that and I recognise that 15 years ago.

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We all moved. But what we must not allow to happen, we must not allow

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the rerating of the past. When we talk about building the peace

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process, and the past five years for example, the progress that has been

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made, unfortunately even when it came to the very end, when Martin

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McGuinness was resigned as Deputy First Minister, very ill. And we

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could see that he was very ill. The final interview, when he was asked

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if he regretted any of the actions that he took part in, he said he

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regretted not of that. That unfortunately for me, it is a sad

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indictment of Martin McGuinness. Does that unpick the positive

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aspects of his legacy? I think that for the complicates the picture,

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even after 25 years of peace, being lauded as a statesman, he cannot say

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that he regrets the violence, the murder, human bomb, all of that. But

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it is a complicated picture and we have to acknowledge what steps have

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been made, but we must not lose sight of the fact we only need of

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the peace process because of people like Martin McGuinness. Can you

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square that circle for Gregory? I do not know if I can do that for

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Gregory, but you have got the rerating of history, I was actually

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there when some of Gregory's co religionists left a street near

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here. The movement of the Protestant people. I knew Martin McGuinness at

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that time. He was not the leader of the IRA, he was involved with

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people, beginning to become some kind of leadership. I think it is

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terribly wrong, historically it is wrong, politically, to personalise

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these matters to the point when you talk about Martin McGuinness did

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that, this, that. The truth of the matter, politically we are divided

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society, we have been for centuries and we need to come together

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politically to get past these things. If you put all that on

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Martin McGuinness, Gerry Adams, Queen, Margaret Thatcher, you're

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missing the point. And Gregory, I think you always miss the point. You

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always end up blaming Martin McGuinness, some leader of England

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for that, we have known that for decades. What we need to know now,

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how we solve that. And if you personalise that to this degree,

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beyond the point of people making a choice, of course they made the

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choice, but if you personalise it beyond that then you miss the core

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of how you actively achieve political reconciliation. The issue

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is this, when Martin McGuinness and I were both similar age growing up,

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I faced the same discrimination, but I was not taking up a gun. Did not

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murder. You may have felt marginalised, but it was different.

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My family, friends, all intimidated. That is in the past. I agree with

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Dennis. But the problem that we had, even when Martin McGuinness and

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others, who had moved, and directly based on knowledge the move at the

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time, and I have done so since on numerous occasions... Whenever they

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were asked about the numerous individual instances, Gillespie, the

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two policeman gunned down here three days before bloody Sunday, every

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single instance Martin McGuinness said that he knew nothing about it.

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Denial. Denial. Denial. Can I just say... You're in danger of raising

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some victim expectations. This thing about Martin McGuinness went to

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date. You do not understand, the IRA worked in sales. Martin McGuinness

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may not have known anything. About anything? Everything that I asked of

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it, he said he did not know anything. You have got the right to

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complain about that, but do not release the expectations of victims.

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The Sinn Fein party, all the other parties, failed to grasp how to deal

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with the past. You were told ten years ago, still working with that

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and you have not dealt with that. I want to bring Peter in. We have

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talked about the past and we want to talk about the future. You want to

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build reconciliation, in a debate community, working towards a more

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positive future. But in a previous life, you were also police commander

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in the city. It is possible, is it not, some of those people close to

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Martin McGuinness with an Republican circles may have been planning to

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kill you? How do you feel about attending the funeral today? I did

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not know Martin McGuinness throughout the opening 20 years of

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his life, growing up in poverty. I did not know that. I knew about him

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in the next 20 years, when he took to violence, as a way of dealing

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with rage, anger, those things that he saw us wrong. But I got to know

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him, in the last 20 years of his life, when he was dealing with the

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peace process, and I got to know him, like Ian Paisley, Arlene

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Foster, Peter Robinson, I think those people who knew him, came to

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the conclusion that he was genuine and what he was trying to do. And as

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an organisation Corporation, he was supportive of all the work that we

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are trying to do, both within Northern Ireland, building

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reconciliation. Did you absolutely believe him when

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he talked about those issues with you? Do you think he had had an

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absolute conversion away from his violent past towards a peaceful and

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better future? I think when you see the people who turned up today, who

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knew him, not that they knew of him like I did in the first 20 years,

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but knew him, once you knew him, I think you recognised he was genuine.

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Do you think that Gregory Campbell might have a different view of

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Martin McGuinness tonight if he had been in a position to get to know

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him? A lot of people have said that actually there was a personal

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warmth, and when you got to know him, he was persuasive and he could

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convince you that he actually had changed and was working for a better

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future. I am not naive about those 20 years, that middle 20 years. I

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was a police officer for 32 years. I saw too many horrific events in the

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city, not to be anything other than naive around this. When I got to

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know the person, I genuinely... And I don't know, but maybe if Chen --

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Gregory got a home, I don't know, but maybe he would have thought

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differently about him. But I had that ability, through faith I got

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the ability to know him in the last 20 years. Gregory, you never shook

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his hand, is that right? Had you sat in a room and talked to him? Yes,

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many years ago. But did you shake hands with him? Know. Was that a

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deliberate move? Probably, yes. Was that because of a concerned that if

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you had done that, he might have one year over? Do you regret today that

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you did not make the effort to get to know the man who Bill Clinton and

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Arlene Foster spoke about in the last few days? I know that a man who

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involved himself deeply in a peace process wouldn't have had to do that

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if he himself had not provided the violence that required the peace

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process in the first place. I do not care who is content with that, or

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angry with that. Because that is the reality. The challenge is that three

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senior members of the DUP, two of them former leaders, Ian Paisley who

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became a personal friend, Peter Robinson who said today their

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relationship went beyond friendship, and he thought he was in a better

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position to judge him than anyone else, and today Arlene Foster, they

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were persuaded by him. You are out of step with the leadership of your

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own party. Does that court caused a problem? I am not out of step. All

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of those leaders knew that they had to make progress for the greater

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good of everybody in Northern Ireland. Our own community, the

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nationalist community, and those who would not describe themselves as

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either. I am as committed to doing that as everyone else. But in doing

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that, and this is the point, it is not either or, in doing that I will

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not allow the past to be rewritten. Nobody will obliterate the past. In

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that middle 20 years, I took one path, Martin McGuinness took

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another. Him and I could never reconcile those just -- two separate

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paths. But we were able to accept that the other person had a story. I

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did not agree with his story, I did not say it was right. Martin

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McGuinness would never say my story was right. But both of us accepted

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that each other had a story, in the interests of the next generation, to

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make this a better place. Denis Bradley, you officiated at Martin

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McGuinness's wedding many years ago. A lot of water has flowed under the

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bridge since then. How would you sum up the mood in this city today? We

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saw a lot of people on the streets paying their respects, we saw

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spontaneous and warm applause for Arlene Foster when she entered their

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church. In a minute or so, just give me your sense of the significance of

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what happened in this place today. I think that the thousands of people

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were on the street because they recognise Martin not as -- not just

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as the person who was in the IRA, but the person who got rid of the

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IRA. Because people are sensible enough to know that only a real

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insider can get rid of an organisation. And Martin was that

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person. He wasn't the only person, but he was very, very big in that.

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On the other hand, I think the warm applause is from what I would call

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rural Northern Ireland and from the city, this city. I think that was

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the main focal congregation today, and they were saying, we wish you

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well, we want you to be part of the negotiations, we want you to reach

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out and we want to reach out to you. I'd I think that actually his

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legacy, I don't like the word, but his legacy may be in death he made

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it easier for Arlene and even for Gregory hopefully in the future, to

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actually begin to get past this personalisation of "You are the

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devil and I am not the devil." Both of us are either good people or else

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we are terribly bad people, but we need to reach out to each other

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because of our politics and because of our past, and that is the real

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history and the real truth. Gregory, briefly, do you accept that? We have

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to make progress. And that involves compromise. Yes, and that compromise

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will undoubtedly be required next month, next year... Your macro must

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complete it not allowing anyone to try to betray themselves or those

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who passed away as saints, when they were anything but. That will not be

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allowed to happen, no matter what anyone says. Not well there are many

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of us still to remind them of what happened. We have got a Bill beyond

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that and make sure we never, ever go back to those days. -- we have got

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to build beyond that. Final sentence, Peter Sheridan. Well, I

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think that the last third of his life was that time he made that

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transition, that difference. There are 1000 people alive today because

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of the Good Friday Agreement and all of those efforts. That is the bit I

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would prefer to remember. Gentlemen, thank you very much indeed for

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joining us tonight. When President Clinton

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addressed the congregation, he made a clear plea

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to the politicians Just minutes later I spoke to

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the former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, and asked him for his reaction

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to that message. That was the simple and direct

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message that, you know, people who have the obligation to follow on and

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finish it. That was the message from the president. And when you saw

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Arlene Foster and Peter Robinson there, what did you think? I'm

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delighted they were there and delighted also at the reception they

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got from the people here in Derry. I think, you know, there is no doubt

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about it, people just want positive things in their life, they want

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positive progress. They want people to move on, and move on from the

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past. What would you say to those individuals who struggle with Martin

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McGuinness's Path, who cannot see beyond that? And have been critical

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in what they have said in recent days? -- Martin McGuinness's past. I

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understand that. I spent many long hours and days and weeks talking to

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the families of those who suffered violence, I always made a point of

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meeting those from every walk of life, whether they were relatives of

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British soldiers or former RUC officers or innocent nationalists or

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whoever. And I always made a point of meeting and talking to them. So I

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understand the hurt and the pain. You never forget, nobody's asking

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anyone to forget. We are asking them to forgive, to allow a fair way to

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the future. Just finally, with Martin McGuinness no longer playing

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a part in the political process here, and with politics in Northern

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Ireland that such a delicate stage, as the weekend approaches and

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Monday's deadline is nearly upon us, are you optimistic that outstanding

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issues can be resolved? I am, and I'm not directly involved but I do

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not -- understand these issues inside out. To be frank, there are

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not many issues to be resolved. I think what is necessary to resolve

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is that everyone is committed wholeheartedly, 100% committed, to

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the argumentation of it all. There may be one or two issues around,

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current issues, but we got around far bigger things in the scale of

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things, these are not insurmountable. I mean, what are the

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alternatives? Direct rule? I don't think anyone wants that. Another

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election? It would be insanity. More procrastination? Useless, time

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wasting. The best thing is, do it. Bertie Ahern.

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Well, the former First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond held office

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in Edinburgh at the same time as Martin McGuinness

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I asked him what sort of professional and personal

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relationship he had with Martin McGuinness.

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I got to know him when I became First Minister in 2007, and Ian

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Paisley had moved in as First Minister, Martin as deputy. And I

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got -- I had known Ian for donkey's years before that, but I got to know

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Martin really well, and of course Martin was one of these people, as

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soon as you got to know him, he was a joy. I don't know anybody who met

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Martin who did not think better of him after they had met him. And I

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suppose... I think both of them thought that there were things we

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could do, because obviously I am a Scottish Presbyterian so I

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understand the traditions of Northern Ireland, also I am a

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Scottish nationalist, but I remember once when I did a speech to the

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Senate instalment. And I was making pains not to upset anyone, but we

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had this great salvation of Celtic culture, and Scots - Irish culture,

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and in the Great Hall where we were sitting, they came in a pipe band to

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represent the Celtic culture and a flute band to represent the Scots

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culture. At that stage I may not have shaken hands with him in public

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before, and I said, why don't we get a picture with the drum? Our get the

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drum, and you get a drumstick in -- on either side. Fabulous picture.

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They were game, both of them, understanding the significance of

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beating the drum together. And the message it sent about accommodating

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the different strands and traditions of Northern Ireland. And you know,

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if I could be at all helpful to that process, they were very willing. It

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was a remarkable leap of faith -- faith, and the optimism of ten years

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ago is with us still. Martin McGuinness was to many

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people a divisive figure, someone linked inextricably

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to the IRA. At the same time, he had

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deep religious faith. With me now to look at those

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apparent contradictions, the Catholic Bishop of Derry,

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Dr Donal McKeown, and the former You are both very welcome to

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programme. Bishop, you presided at today's Requiem Mass. What did you

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make of who was there, and what we said? I have been here in Derry for

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three years, and what I have experienced in that short period of

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time after being in Belfast is a city that has been able to find

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peace in itself. I have been at the burning of Lundy, with the

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apprentice boys, and nobody uttered a word about presidents there. It is

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also a city that has come through many difficult time and seems to

:26:25.:26:28.

have found ways to handle bereavements, tragedies, death. I

:26:29.:26:31.

think it is a city with some sense of being together, and I think this

:26:32.:26:36.

is one more example of the ability to handle another big event and do

:26:37.:26:40.

it in a very understated, competent way. It is a city trying to find

:26:41.:26:44.

narratives about the past that will enable it to spring into the future

:26:45.:26:48.

rather than being dragged back constantly into an old story that is

:26:49.:26:52.

going round in circles. Gregory Campbell told they're about his

:26:53.:26:56.

concerns about Martin McGuinness being eulogised and lionised. Do you

:26:57.:27:02.

understand that? Of course, I was talking to a Catholic family

:27:03.:27:09.

yesterday, who these past two days were just suddenly swamped again by

:27:10.:27:13.

feelings about their own loss for 40 years ago at the hands of the IRA.

:27:14.:27:16.

So of course I recognise where people are, but I think we are

:27:17.:27:21.

living in a context where there are competing narratives, and what

:27:22.:27:23.

Martin McGuinness showed was that only by talking to other people and

:27:24.:27:26.

hearing their narratives, could we find some way to create a way

:27:27.:27:28.

forward. Why did you want to attend the

:27:29.:27:41.

Martin McGuinness's funeral service? I became involved in the peace work,

:27:42.:27:47.

as a result of seeing people close to me suffer from violence, and

:27:48.:27:54.

because of those injuries and wounds, I saw death. I mean a

:27:55.:27:58.

deliberate decision in my life that I would be working for peace, and

:27:59.:28:04.

part of that is trying to talk to people, so for 20 years I have been

:28:05.:28:10.

in touch with Martin, and we have not been meeting regularly, but we

:28:11.:28:14.

have been meeting consistently. That has given me the opportunity to

:28:15.:28:22.

challenge him. One of the meetings was after the ceasefire, with a lot

:28:23.:28:25.

of animosity from the Unionist Protestant community, but we

:28:26.:28:31.

engaged, and we challenged, and we tried to take apart any sort of

:28:32.:28:34.

sense that he had not contributed to the Troubles, and this went on, and

:28:35.:28:42.

I was able to ask questions about the Good Friday agreement. I said,

:28:43.:28:46.

Martin, in the back of your head, the top, the front, are you ever

:28:47.:28:51.

going to go back to violence if you do not get what you want, and he

:28:52.:28:55.

said I thought you would have known me better. I was not sure what that

:28:56.:28:59.

meant, but they took that positively, and since that it was

:29:00.:29:06.

confirmed. But some people believe it was not enough regret, I spoke to

:29:07.:29:13.

one victim of the Troubles, who said he will never look at Martin

:29:14.:29:18.

McGuinness as anything other than an unrepentant terrorist. He cannot get

:29:19.:29:26.

past his past. That is a position that you have got to respect. You

:29:27.:29:31.

have got to respect those views. I have been working with some from

:29:32.:29:37.

Loyalist backgrounds, and Republican backgrounds, I have tried to not

:29:38.:29:42.

travelling towards choosing to live the violence free life, becoming

:29:43.:29:45.

more inclusive. What I have discovered with people, if you keep

:29:46.:29:52.

ringing up the past, you undermine the capacity to embrace a new

:29:53.:29:58.

future. With Martin McGuinness, he had good commitments. Everybody

:29:59.:30:01.

knows that. And he was deeply committed to militant republican but

:30:02.:30:10.

then he moved to a deep commitment to peace and reconciliation. As a

:30:11.:30:13.

Christian, it is not always people just talking to me, changing my

:30:14.:30:17.

mind, even what they are thinking, but I watch their feet, the

:30:18.:30:25.

direction, and he gave up the belief of that armed struggle because it

:30:26.:30:31.

had lost its appeal to him. But once he embraced peace and

:30:32.:30:34.

reconciliation, he carried that to his grave. He took a lot of other

:30:35.:30:41.

things, but he had passion for this country that should be flourishing

:30:42.:30:47.

for everybody. I am here to express my condolences to the family, but

:30:48.:30:51.

also appreciate that people can change, and as a result of that, I

:30:52.:30:57.

give him the benefit of the doubt. Frankly, were you surprised that

:30:58.:31:00.

Arlene Foster got such a warm reception when she entered the

:31:01.:31:08.

church behind us this afternoon? I was delighted that happened, but

:31:09.:31:13.

having been here for three years, I was not terribly surprised. You have

:31:14.:31:17.

got graciousness in this city, people wanting to work together, and

:31:18.:31:22.

that sort of response cannot be faked. I was delighted that

:31:23.:31:27.

happened, and the credit it is going to give to the discussions at

:31:28.:31:31.

Stormont, but there was no surprised after spending time in this city.

:31:32.:31:35.

People want to create a better future. Forgiving people, in many

:31:36.:31:40.

ways. In all the tributes

:31:41.:31:42.

to Martin McGuinness, a recurring theme has been his love

:31:43.:31:45.

of the poetry of Seamus Heaney. He was a big fan of

:31:46.:31:49.

the Nobel Laureate, and Martin McGuinness often

:31:50.:31:51.

quoted him during his speeches. As Education Minister

:31:52.:31:53.

and Deputy First Minister, he met A number of them have been

:31:54.:31:55.

reflecting on his life and legacy, with our political correspondent

:31:56.:32:00.

Stephen Walker. In the story of Martin McGuinness,

:32:01.:32:10.

this building has a special place. This is the later where Martin

:32:11.:32:22.

McGuinness met the Queen. He felt comfortable here, and his love of

:32:23.:32:25.

Seamus Heaney and Portree meant that he spent a lot of time year. Many

:32:26.:32:35.

boards were his friends. When I learned several weeks ago that he

:32:36.:32:40.

was extremely ill, I was upset. And I wrote him a letter. And I thanked

:32:41.:32:49.

him for the grease and generosity of spirit that he had brought to the

:32:50.:32:53.

position of deputy Frost Minister. And I think I said that he was more

:32:54.:33:04.

than we deserve. And I said, it is something, I believed that it could

:33:05.:33:07.

not have been a peace process without Martin McGuinness. Michael

:33:08.:33:15.

Longley was also present when art and McGuinness met the Queen. I

:33:16.:33:22.

think she responded to the fact that he was unaffected. Straightforward.

:33:23.:33:33.

And sincere in his wish to shake hands, in that symbolic way. I think

:33:34.:33:37.

she was impressed by the symbolism of the occasion. Also, Glenn

:33:38.:33:46.

Patterson, director of the Seamus Heaney Centre, make Martin

:33:47.:33:49.

McGuinness on numerous occasions. Probably, I met him more often than

:33:50.:33:54.

any other politician over the years. I remember one occasion, at an arts

:33:55.:34:05.

Council conference, and he got out at one -- a poem of his own. Read

:34:06.:34:15.

it! Brave! I am told that is not the only occasion that he produced and

:34:16.:34:25.

rock to poems of his own. This journalist was at Queens University

:34:26.:34:28.

and is corruptly working on a book about the Sinn Fein president Gerry

:34:29.:34:32.

Adams. How does he think the former Deputy First Minister should be

:34:33.:34:38.

judged? The funeral is over. We have to be realistic. The historical

:34:39.:34:44.

record, that is optical parted, ruthless determined researchers,

:34:45.:34:50.

historians, academics. Let them get the story right. What will the

:34:51.:35:00.

political landscape look like? Sinn Fein have lost a leader, and someone

:35:01.:35:06.

who was central to the party. Lost probably the greatest figure that

:35:07.:35:09.

the Irish Republic and movement ever had. Nobody coming up to replace

:35:10.:35:18.

them. Not in the south, or. Gap at the leadership of Sinn Fein, very

:35:19.:35:28.

much as the day you pay after -- DUP after Ian Paisley. It is difficult

:35:29.:35:31.

to imagine political life without Martin McGuinness part we have got

:35:32.:35:35.

to. The desire for change has been a constant theme, just as it was with

:35:36.:35:41.

Seamus Heaney. People themselves must change. They must crawl out of

:35:42.:35:50.

their history. Historians will argue about the legacy of Martin

:35:51.:35:55.

McGuinness, the story that began in his home city and ended there today.

:35:56.:36:07.

I am joined by the journalist Susan McKay. Susan, you are from the city.

:36:08.:36:14.

You wrote the well-received book about Northern Protestants. You

:36:15.:36:18.

decided to come to the funeral. Why do you want to be here? I thought it

:36:19.:36:25.

was important, as somebody from Derry, to have been here. I would

:36:26.:36:29.

have shaken Martin McGuinness's has, in the city, when to do that as a

:36:30.:36:35.

Protestant, was to invite trouble from people like Gregory Campbell. I

:36:36.:36:40.

was dismayed by what Gregory said. I made it my business as afternoon

:36:41.:36:44.

after the funeral to go and talk to a number of people from the

:36:45.:36:49.

Protestant community. Generally, it was a consolidator rescinds, sorrow,

:36:50.:36:56.

a lot of Protestant people say to me that the pot Martin McGuinness had

:36:57.:37:00.

changed, and made good change. I think it is really important that we

:37:01.:37:04.

looked at the fact that for example during the fight that during the

:37:05.:37:12.

ceremonies, many things were quartered. And the passage about a

:37:13.:37:20.

time for more, please. A lot of warfare, perpetrated by the Unionist

:37:21.:37:27.

community. And the duty was associated in the past with loyalist

:37:28.:37:31.

paramilitary. It is not just one-sided, it is not just Martin

:37:32.:37:35.

McGuinness who has a past of violence and it is more important to

:37:36.:37:43.

look at where we go now, rather than looking back to something that

:37:44.:37:46.

neither of the DUP and Sinn Fein has acted credibly. The DUP would say it

:37:47.:37:52.

has never supported paramilitary is. Ian Paisley has been clear about

:37:53.:37:56.

that. Closely associated with loyalist paramilitaries, much

:37:57.:38:02.

evidence of that. But today is a dignified death for Derry. What did

:38:03.:38:11.

you make of today? I think it was very dignified. A lot of respect.

:38:12.:38:18.

People behaved in a completely dignified way. And the importance of

:38:19.:38:21.

Arlene Foster to come here, it cannot have been an easy decision, I

:38:22.:38:26.

am sure she was filled with apprehension, but the rapture that

:38:27.:38:30.

she received, she was mentioned three times, the warmth to which she

:38:31.:38:36.

was received, people shaking her hand. That symbolically as

:38:37.:38:41.

important. Game changer? I do not know but it changes the mood, going

:38:42.:38:46.

to go into talks in a completely different context, and it is

:38:47.:38:49.

important, and I think she has been the subject of a great deal of

:38:50.:38:54.

criticism but today she got the warm welcome. It is important to

:38:55.:38:59.

acknowledge that. I think that if she had not come to date would have

:39:00.:39:03.

been absolutely outrageous. It makes it difficult for the DUP with

:39:04.:39:06.

another election, because they did that on the basis of the bogey men.

:39:07.:39:18.

Reconciliation was the scene today. And you have got the thirst in this

:39:19.:39:23.

community. People do not want to dwell on the past.

:39:24.:39:24.

That's it from The View this Thursday night.

:39:25.:39:27.

Join me for Sunday Politics, at 11.35 here on BBC One.

:39:28.:39:32.

For now though, from the walls of Derry, goodnight.

:39:33.:39:41.

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