IRA Political Ally Wins 50 Seats on N. Ireland Councils
The IRA’s political ally, Sinn Fein, captured more than 50 of 566 seats on town councils in Northern Ireland, giving it a new role in local politics, according to election returns made available today.
Danny Morrison, Sinn Fein’s No. 2 man, said the result of the Wednesday elections was a popular mandate for the legal political organization, which supports the outlawed Irish Republican Army. The IRA has waged a nearly 16-year guerrilla war to end British rule in the stricken province.
British analysts said Sinn Fein could play a spoiler’s role in town councils. The Guardian newspaper’s report said Sinn Fein now had “the opportunity to pursue its aim of destabilizing the government and administration of Northern Ireland.”
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