Coalition Government in Ireland Falls Apart : Politics: A judicial appointment by prime minister spurred collapse. It is not expected to affect Ulster cease-fire directly.

Ireland’s coalition government collapsed Wednesday night, just as it was making strides toward peace in Northern Ireland.

Deputy Prime Minister Dick Spring, head of the Labor Party, announced that he and six Labor members of Prime Minister Albert Reynolds’ Cabinet were resigning. Further, Spring declared that his 32-member party will cast ballots against Reynolds in a parliamentary vote of confidence scheduled for today--which would formally end the government coalition.

“Neither I nor any of my colleagues can vote confidence in this government,” Spring said.

The failure of the government--the result of a dispute over a judicial appointment--had no roots in the Northern Ireland peace process and is not expected to directly affect the recent cease-fire that ended 25 years of sectarian violence in the province.

However, political observers noted that Sinn Fein, the political arm of Northern Ireland’s outlawed Irish Republican Army, has been closer over the years to Reynolds’ party, Fianna Fail, than to the leading opposition party, Fine Gael.

Sinn Fein said late Wednesday that it regretted the failure of the Irish government and will continue to work with all parties toward a lasting peace.

After today’s expected no-confidence vote, President Mary Robinson will decide whether to call new national elections or ask the various party leaders whether they can form a new government.

The crisis could last several days or longer while party leaders negotiate, because most politicians oppose new elections since the Fianna Fail-Labor government is less than 2 years old. Coalition wrangling had already dragged on for weeks after recent national elections.

Spring’s resignation came after the most dramatic and confusing parliamentary session in memory.

The Labor Party leader effectively accused Reynolds of lying in a statement to the Parliament on Tuesday about his controversial appointment of former Atty. Gen. Harry Whelehan as president of the High Court, a post similar to that of chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.

The immediate crisis began with Reynolds’ decision last week to name Whelehan to the post--a decision opposed by his Labor coalition partners because they considered Whelehan’s record far too conservative on social issues.

Further, Labor argued, Whelehan took seven months to decide that a Roman Catholic priest should be extradited to Northern Ireland on charges of child abuse--possibly for political reasons, his opponents suggested. The priest, Father Brendan Smyth, has since been jailed in Northern Ireland.

Whelehan was also involved in prohibiting a 14-year-old rape victim from going to England for an abortion in 1992.

Reynolds, an autocratic leader, insisted on pushing through Whelehan’s appointment in the face of massive opposition, and he attempted to explain his action in Wednesday’s parliamentary session.

But his performance was bumbling and marked by pleas for adjournment while he reconsidered his position. Finally, he admitted that Whelehan had been less than frank with him in explaining the extradition delay and said the reservations of the Labor Party coalition partners were “fully justified.”

In Dublin, there was speculation that President Robinson will ask Spring to consider forming a coalition with the center-right Fine Gael party under its leader, John Bruton, or with Fianna Fail under someone other than Reynolds.

Political observers said that despite Reynolds’ ineptitude as a coalition leader, he has been pivotal in the Northern Ireland peace effort, particularly in building bridges to Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams.

Reynolds pressed British Prime Minister John Major to hasten the peace process by accepting the current Northern Ireland cease-fire as permanent and to begin all-party talks, even with those representing paramilitary groups.

In London, one Foreign Office official said of the Dublin developments: “The Downing Street Declaration which started the peace process is between the British and Irish governments--not between particular leaders.”