Contradictory Sinn Fein are in a muddle over immigration in the south

Today, though, rather than discussing the ideological corruption of today’s police, I am celebrating the exposure of Shinner demonisation of a decent cop of yesterday. It is significant for anyone following the recent mishaps of obsessive crusaders for a united Ireland.

The good news is that Sinn Fein is showing signs of wear and tear. After disappointing elections in the Republic and continued decline in the polls, despite occasional bursts of her trademark aggression, Mary Lou McDonald has often been unable to avoid looking baffled and defeated.

As most of us know from experience, Shakespeare was right when his Claudius remarked: “When sorrows come, they come not single spies but in battalions.”

To add to their electoral calamities, some senior Sinn Fein members are hurting financially. After all those years of republican wallets being fattened with libel damages that frightened critics into silence, now the tables seem to have been turned.

Earlier this year Gerry Kelly, that proud bomber, jail breaker and later member of the Policing Board (isn’t Northern Ireland a weird and wonderful place at times?) was humiliated twice by having to pay all the costs of his unsuccessful libel actions against Malachi O’Doherty and me. In the memorable words of the judge who threw out the case against Malachi, It was “scandalous, frivolous and vexatious”.

And this week, Dominic Doherty, who for many years was a faithful Sinn Fein press officer, had to pay all the costs and “substantial” damages to former senior PSNI officer Jon Burrows and issue a mortifying apology.

Mr Doherty last September attacked Mr Burrows, who retired on health grounds after 22 years and is an authoritative, thoughtful, balanced commentator on law and order, who dislikes all violence and sectarianism.

Mr Doherty hurled at him a traditional unfounded anti-cop allegation of having “turned a blind eye to criminal activity” while in the police force. The public apology and retraction were abject.

Mr Doherty is an interesting example of what’s going wrong with Sinn Fein. He seems to be one of their loyal party tweeters.

When Máiría Cahill @cahillbooks said on X (formerly twitter) that the·IRA man Seamus Marley, who abused two boys, would be released next week without accepting responsibility for his crimes, Mr Doherty replied dismissively: “There must be an election afoot”

He is not just a critic of Orangemen and unionists who confines himself to Irish issues. In his reposting of the views of others he is an internationalist proxy warrior, a stout defender of the tiny hard-left faction in the British Labour Party and a hater of Donald Trump and Israel.

Sinn Fein as a ‘progressive; movement have found that “Ireland for the Irish” is not only no longer an acceptable slogan. It is racist.

They are so critical of what they call British imperialism and racism yet have found themselves suddenly in a muddle as to how to respond to anti immigrant feeling in the Republic.

Caught electorally between the left-wing believers in open borders, the old-fashioned nationalists who are defecting to independents, the young men who want to emulate the last generation and riot against the police, and the party establishment who want to emphasise their readiness for government, they are flailing.

The old guard have the 72-year-old ex-convict and ex-TD Martin Ferris and the ex-internee Alex Maskey who ended his career as Stormont Speaker helping with Sinn Fein strategy ahead of the general election they fear might come soon. Their job is to keep traditionalists on board.

The contradictory and meaningless immigration policy Sinn Fein are stumblingly devising to deal with arson and riots in places like Coolock as migrants are dumped in deprived areas is almost identical to the government’s. They speak of law and order, as the petrol bombs fly.

Now they are talking about moving migrants into more affluent areas.