Tony and Berties Big Day Out

[heganboy]

John Hume and Alec Reid for having the balls and the foresight to get the whole thing kicked off

[deiseach]

John Major. The power to impose a deal, which was what was needed between two groups incapable of splitting the difference, has always rested with the British government. Successive governments - not least Labour ones - have talked the talk but couldn't walk the walk when faced with rhetoric about dealing with terrorists (okay to talk to the Mau Maus but not to the Provos) or the Orange card. While periodically hampered by parliamentary arithmetic, Major was the first PM to behave as an honest broker between two warring parties.

[The Gs Man]

Donagh.......what about Holly, 8 from Kent?

[Bogball XV]

Donagh also agree there with the nominations. The IRA also got my vote, they have showed great courage to take the road they have taken and tremedous recilence in the face of heel dragging and spanner throwing by th unionist/MI5 etc.

Hopefully we can now live side by side and develop this part of our island into a global united force

What did the IRA have to lose??  Do you think the lads enjoyed life on the run? 

[muppet]

 It's Hume by a mile for me. It is difficult to get two diametrically opposed groups together but it takes a very clever individual indeed to even get the ball rolling. 

Honourable mention to Reynolds, Major and in fairness Blair, Trimble and Ervine.

[ONeill]

Canavan.

[ziggysego]

Don't be forgetting Bill Clinton and George Mitchell.

[stew]

It can only be John Hume. It's scary (but sadly not surprising) that some people are giving credit to the IRA.

I voted for Hume but am saddened by the comment above. Like it or not samuel the face of politics in the north has changed since the IRA downed their weapons and I was  no fan of theirs but I admire greatly the decision they took and the net result of that decision is that there are thousands of people from both sides of the community walking around today in the north who would otherwise be dead, either killed in bomb blasts or shot dead by paramilitaries from either side, in short the decision the IRA  made was monumental and changed the landscape of the six counties for the better.

Do you feel it is ok to give credit to the UDR and RUC Sammy?  your richeous indignation hopefully extends to the british side of the struggle as well.

[lynchbhoy]

John Major. The power to impose a deal, which was what was needed between two groups incapable of splitting the difference, has always rested with the British government. Successive governments - not least Labour ones - have talked the talk but couldn't walk the walk when faced with rhetoric about dealing with terrorists (okay to talk to the Mau Maus but not to the Provos) or the Orange card. While periodically hampered by parliamentary arithmetic, Major was the first PM to behave as an honest broker between two warring parties.

cant agree about major.

I recall the sense of disgust when he pulled the rug from under the peace movements feet

it was this action that finally woke up some southern pundits

eamonn dunphy most notably did a massive u turn based on the actions of major showing flamin eamon the error of his ways.

major - no way.

[supersarsfields]

Awwww lads sure you's all know it was down to Bono!!

[Main Street]

The final  "permanent" ceasefire decision by the IRA was the single biggest contribution to the process. Very little could have happened without that.

Not on the list but whenever I heard David Irvine speak I was optimistic about the process. I don't know if many listened to him but I'm glad he was around.

[SammyG]

It can only be John Hume. It's scary (but sadly not surprising) that some people are giving credit to the IRA.

I voted for Hume but am saddened by the comment above. Like it or not samuel the face of politics in the north has changed since the IRA downed their weapons and I was  no fan of theirs but I admire greatly the decision they took and the net result of that decision is that there are thousands of people from both sides of the community walking around today in the north who would otherwise be dead, either killed in bomb blasts or shot dead by paramilitaries from either side, in short the decision the IRA  made was monumental and changed the landscape of the six counties for the better.

Do you feel it is ok to give credit to the UDR and RUC Sammy?  your richeous indignation hopefully extends to the british side of the struggle as well.

WTF are you on about? What have the UDR or the RUC got to do with the peace process? The question was about who contributed most to the process, the IRA contributed fcuk all other than a few robberies to pay their pensions. The IRA/INLA/UDA/UVF/RHC are a bunch of gangsters, nothing more nothing less. The war is over (thank f**k) but they continue to be gangsters (pimping, extortion, smuggling, robberies etc etc) and probably always will.

[his holiness nb]

I give credit to the IRA too.

[Gaoth Dobhair Abu]

It's Hume by a mile for me. It is difficult to get two diametrically opposed groups together but it takes a very clever individual indeed to even get the ball rolling. 

Honourable mention to Reynolds, Major and in fairness Blair, Trimble and Ervine.

Jezuz muppet, you've managed to whitewash the contribution Republicans made too this process - thats some going!!!