Martin McGuinness (1950-2017) was a Northern Irish politician and member of Sinn Féin. Among his most important political activities, Martin McGuinness was Chief of Staff of the Provisional IRA between 1979 and 1982, and was Sinn Féin’s negotiator for the Good Friday Agreement in 1998.
Martin McGuinness joined the IRA in 1969, then became a member of the Provisional IRA (PIRA). In 1972, at the age of 22, he was appointed second-in-command in the Derry area. It was at this time that the Bloody Sunday of 1972 took place.
He was convicted a year later by the Special Criminal Court, for having been discovered in a vehicle containing over 113 kilos of explosives, and more than 5,000 bullets. At his trial, he was quick to proclaim his membership of the PIRA: ” We fought against the murder of our people […] I am a member of Óglaigh na hÉireann, and very, very proud to be!
On his release, McGuinness was sentenced again, and became head of the PIRA staff in 1979. His credibility grew and he became an increasingly important figure within Sinn Féin, the IRA’s political wing. He was then appointed member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for Londonderry. However, like all other Sinn Féinn and SDLP MPs, he refused to sit on the committee.
On December 9, 1982, he was refused entry to Great Britain, like Gerry Adams…
In 1996, he was elected as a member of the Northern Ireland Forum, and became MP for Mid Ulster in the UK House of Commons. He was then appointed Sinn Feinn’s negotiator for the Good Friday Agreement.
Elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly on June 25 in the Foyle constituency, McGuinness was subsequently appointed to the post of Minister for Education in the bi-partisan executive, but was suspended from the post after a series of controversial decisions…
He was finally re-elected to Westminster in 2001, and was re-elected MP in 2005.
The 2006 St Andrews Agreement provides for new elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly. Martin McGuinness is appointed Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland, and begins working alongside Ian Paisley… In 2008, Martin McGuinness declared: ” Up until March 26 this year, Ian Paisley and I had never talked about anything – not even the weather – and now we’ve been working very closely for seven months, without a word of anger. This shows that we are in a new era. ”
A new advance, which marks a political and historic turning point in Northern Ireland…
3.56/5 (16 votes)
