Power Play: The Rise of Modern Sinn Féin - Softcover

Deaglán De Bréadún

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1785370316 ISBN 13: 9781785370311

Publisher: Merrion Press, 2015

Synopsis

This is the first comprehensive analysis of how Sinn Féin has transformed itself from political wing of the Republican movement to a mainstream force in Irish politics. In this book by one of Ireland's leading political journalists, Deaglán de Bréadún provides an incisive account of how the party has arrived at a position, in the space of one generation, where it is in power north of the border and knocking on the door of government in the south.

Despite recent controversies and scandals arising from alleged sexual abuse by republican activists and the violent legacies of the Troubles, the party has maintained its popularity. The outsiders have now become insiders in the political game.

Based on detailed research as well as interviews with a wide range of figures inside Sinn Féin and across the Irish political spectrum, Deaglán de Bréadún reveals the most fascinating and unmissable political story of 2015.

Chapter 1: We Need to Talk About Sinn Féin - Setting the scene: why Sinn Féin matters even if you don t like them; Chapter 2: Hello Mary Lou Goodbye Gerry? In-depth interview and background on Sinn Féin deputy leader Mary-Lou McDonald; Chapter 3: The Armalite and the Ballot-Box - How Sinn Féin ditched abstentionism in both parts of Ireland and set out on the parliamentary road to the Republic; Chapter 4: From Rebel to Ruler: Martin McGuinness. Meeting the former IRA leader, now the North's Deputy First Minister, at Stormont Castle; Chapter 5: Now Get Out of That: Disowning Fateful Decisions. Grappling with the intricacies of economic policy in the Republic, Sinn Féin supports the Bank Guarantee but lives to regret it; Chapter 6: Turning Swords into Ploughshares: Good Friday and its aftermath - How the guerrillas ended up in government in the North and started to make inroads south of the border; Chapter 7: Members, Critics and Observers: Perspectives on Sinn Féin from inside and outside the party; Chapter 8: In the Eye of the Storm: Controversy after controversy for a party that is rarely out of the headlines; Chapter 9: The Rocky Path to Power: Could Sinn Féin end up in government on both sides of the border?; Epilogue: The Story so Far.

About this title

About the Author

Deaglán de Bréadún is author of The Far Side of Revenge: Making Peace in Northern Ireland, the definitive account of the making of the Good Friday Agreement and its aftermath. As a journalist with the Irish Times for many years, he held such positions as Northern Editor, Political Correspondent and Foreign Affairs Correspondent and later worked as Political Editor of the Irish Sun. He is a regular broadcaster on radio and television and a member of the Press Council of Ireland.

Edition details

• Publisher: Merrion Press
• Publication date: 2015
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1785370316
• ISBN 13: 9781785370311
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 248