Mowlam Recalled as Peace Architect

By Vinnie O’Dowd

Former Northern Ireland Secretary Mo Mowlam died on Friday morning in a hospice in Kent, England.

Mowlam, 55, who had been treated for a brain tumor in the 1990s, died after never regaining consciousness from a coma induced by banging her head after a fall. She had dizziness problems as a result of previous radiation treatment for the tumor.

The tributes to Mowlam, who was named Northern Ireland secretary by British Prime Minister Tony Blair in 1997, and replaced in 1999, came from all across the political spectrum in Ireland, the U.K. and the U.S. Blair called her “one of the most remarkable and colorful personalities” in the history of British politics.

Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Bertie Ahern said, “Even at her lowest moments, she always seemed to have enough energy and enthusiasm to lift an occasion and to inspire those around her. No matter what the challenge, Mo tackled it with courage and sincerity. She was a politician and a person whom the Irish people held in great affection and esteem.”

Former President Bill Clinton fondly remembered Mowlam for her tireless work in promoting the Irish peace process.

“Hillary and I are saddened by the death of Marjorie Mowlam,” he said in a statement on Friday, hours after her death.

“Mo was an integral part of building a peace process in Northern Ireland that has endured for over a decade. Her persistence, toughness and good humor were legendary. All of us who worked to support peace in Northern Ireland owe her our gratitude. Hillary and I cherished the times we spent together and will carry the warmth of her friendship always.”

Former Senator George Mitchell, who served as special envoy to the North under President Clinton, said that Mowlam was instrumental.

“Mo Mowlam was an outstanding politician whose warmth and energy were crucial to the success of the Northern Ireland peace process.”

Mitchell, who chair-

ed the talks which led to the Good Friday Agreement, added, “Mo Mowlam made a major contribution to the peace process in Northern Ireland at a crucial time when little progress was being made,” he said.

“She contributed energy, enthusiasm and optimism. She helped reinvigorate the process and bring it to a successful conclusion. She was an outstanding public official, a warm human being, very colorful.”

Senator Edward M. Kennedy also expressed his appreciation.

“It was a great privilege to work with Mo, and I’m saddened by her death. I had immense respect for her ability and dedication to the peace process in Northern Ireland,” Kennedy said. “She was extraordinarily committed and effective, and we’re closer to a lasting peace today because of her.”

Trina Vargo, president of US-Ireland Alliance, said, “It was Mo who first committed the British government to supporting the Mitchell Scholarship program in 1999 and we are forever grateful for her support. The scholars are enthusiastic ambassadors for Northern Ireland in the U.S. and they are one of Mo’s legacies.”

Vargo citing the personal relationship she had with Mowlam as “a breath of fresh air.”

“I worked with Mo frequently as Senator Kennedy’s foreign policy adviser. She was a breath of fresh air in the Northern Ireland peace process — straight-talking, no nonsense and determined to make a positive difference.”

Frank Durkan, a New York based Irish civil rights lawyer, feels that Mo brought balance and equality to the situation in Northern Ireland.

“She was a great spokesperson for the Catholic minority in Northern Ireland. She was the fairest person to ever fill the roll of Northern Irish secretary,” he said.

“I had a built-in distrust for all British secretaries of Northern Ireland before her, but I was gladly surprised by her and the change she brought to politics in Northern Ireland. I welcomed the change, her change, from the blatantly one-sided secretaries that preceded her who favored the Loyalist agenda.”

Father Sean McManus, head of Irish National Caucus in Washington, D.C., thought Mowlam was the key ingredient to the success of the Good Friday Agreement.

“Her attitude made the Good Friday Agreement possible,” he said.

“She gave a huge contribution to the Good Friday Agreement. She convinced Catholics that the anti-Irish, arrogant and racist attitude had left the British administration in Northern Ireland, and she made them feel confident of the position of Northern Irish secretary.”

Speaking on a personal level, Father McManus said, “I met Mo three times and liked her immediately. It was completely unlike the meeting I had years before with the then Northern Irish Secretary Sir Patrick Mayhew.

“He had the most offensive arrogant and racist attitude to Irish people. An attitude that was completely lacking in Mo. In that meeting with Mayhew I figuratively tore his head off as a matter of fact.”

Bill Flynn, chairman emeritus of Mutual of America in Manhattan and a long-time campaigner for peace in the North , express-

ed his sadness at Mowlam’s passing.

“Mo Mowlam did a superb job at a very difficult time in the peace process,” he said.

“She seemed to have a greater understanding than most of the people in that job before her, since she appealed to people and demonstrated her understanding, but above all I believe she had guts and common sense.”

Larry Downes, president of the New York-based Friends of Sinn Fein, thinks Mowlam revitalized the peace process.

“I think Mo took a new and refreshing attitude to the Northern Ireland peace process,” he said.

“Even though she was hamstrung by British policy at the time she made a critical and positive changes to the peace process during a difficult time. She showed compassion and enthusiasm for people on both sides of the divide in Northern Ireland.”