Looking back, it was a life well spent, says Gerry Adams

Posted on Friday, March 16, 2012 at 04:21 PM

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Gerry Adams has been at the spear point of the movement for a free and united Ireland for much of his life. But Irish history is awash in stories of those who seek to right injustices ingrained into society for generations. Change is not accomplished without push-back. For those that are called upon to sacrifice for a greater good, much sacrifice is required. Sometimes you make choices in the heat of the moment or as conditions dictate in order to further your goal, those choices can bring unforeseen consequences. Sometimes your motto is, the enemy of my enemy, is my friend.

Regarded as a freedom fighter by millions around the world for the great changes he has brought to Ireland, this recognition has not come without high cost to himself and those around him. Today Gerry suffers from pain caused by bullet wounds and the health effects from imprisonment in harsh conditions.

The imprisonment was not only designed to keep him away from a struggle he fervently believed in, but also designed to break his spirit. Gerry's struggle also resulted in the loss of friends and family and created bitter enemies along the way.

In this fourth and last part of my interview with Gerry Adams, we discuss choices made during his lifetime and his belief in the vast power of the Irish people to see the peace process through.

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Read 1st parts of interview here:

From soldier to statesman Gerry Adams made his mark

US civil rights movement inspired Gerry Adams

Gerry Adams say British have illegal, immoral and illegitimate claim to part of Ireland

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I asked Gerry about the tumultuous past of his life. Looking back in retrospect, would he have chosen a different route?

"First of all Ed" I do not look upon myself as a historic or pivotal figure, I look at myself as a small part of a much bigger whole, no way unique." Gerry went on to say: "We're blessed with a huge team of people, some of us have come through a lot of hard experiences together and that has forged a continuity and history, through the good as well as the bad"

Gerry then said: "I can't see me doing a lot of other things, if I had the chance, but I didn't....I have no regrets"

"There may be individual issues and matters and events, that I may have regrets about-just in terms" But summed it up with: "But it is a life well spent"

Gerry continued: "When you are able to bring about the type of seismic changes which my generation have been involved and hopefully a lot will be continued in the upcoming period, then much will be accomplished peacefully"

Through his life's prism, Gerry was able to share his feelings on how peaceful change can be brought about: "I have huge confidence in people" he said. " But through all of this I have learned we have to listen a lot, we have to talk a lot and be very proactive in listening to those who oppose our views." "We must be able to peacefully persuade them to the vast possibilities for them in the future."

A chara

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irish5047Damien | Apr 08, 2012, 02:55 PM EDT

Gerry I'd Believe every word you say,IF you would admit your part in the I.R.A.,The Disappeared and then show us Your "Active" part in helping to locate the bodies.

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seamus60 | Apr 02, 2012, 01:21 PM EDT

Monsoonman. What gerry and co with all their great wisdom have settled for was on the table back in the seventies, there fore all the war , imprisonment and death in the decades since was in vain. Hardly a great achievement in comparison. But as long as those with so much wisdom are now recognised as statesmen and international peacemakers.Why confront their failings and treachry when they`re in denial of their own proud past. Ruling by Fooling.

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PhlutiePhan | Mar 26, 2012, 03:40 PM EDT

Gerry Adams talks peace with one hand and makes bombs with the other. He is a radical solialist who has taken his radical views into the market place. He is no "Robert the Bruce" and is only a false idol who lost his chance at greatness with his radical views which actually dovetail with our own four year wonder.

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Monsoonman | Mar 24, 2012, 02:38 PM EDT

Sorry pal, many do not believe what U say...There were several hundred years to talk and all that got was lip service and genocide.

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seamus60 | Mar 23, 2012, 08:08 PM EDT

Carefull Monsoonman. Please forgive people for not wanting to jump up and down with joy in honor of those who as you imply are round a table in ernest. Hard to swallow for most, even those who were the scapegoats (cannon fauder) in a pretence war that by all accounts could have ended in the seventies with much the same outcome. But hey as long as you`re prepared to fool yourself that the corupt leaders who for decades kept the phoney war going with the loss of thousands of unessacery lives, are to be applauded. Knock yourself out. Ruling by fooling.

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Monsoonman | Mar 20, 2012, 07:44 PM EDT

Oh? I see hundreds of years of glad handing and good will certainly brought changes and parties to the table to negotiate in earnest.

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RedBranch | Mar 20, 2012, 06:11 PM EDT

'I have no regrets..' (not even a few, too few to mention). Not even when his 9 year old niece confided in 'Uncle Gerry' that his brother, her father, was molesting her and Gerry simply moved 'the brother' (Liam) around the country like a abuser priest. The cause, the cause, its all about the cause, but what is the cause?

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citizen69 | Mar 20, 2012, 01:44 PM EDT

Ed, what a sycophant you are. Gerry has no regrets for the countless atrocities his paramilitary gang carried out on innocent people? Sounds like a real man of peace to me. "Today Gerry suffers from pain caused by bullet wounds". What a sickening quote! Poor Gerry, he should tell that to the families of innocent civillian victims from Bloody Friday, Le Mon, Kingsmill, Shankill, Enniskillen, Teebane and many others, as well as the tens of thousands badly injured by the Provos.

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sirpeter | Mar 19, 2012, 10:37 PM EDT

Any man who was willing to suffer for what he believes in. To risk death in his quest for justice for his neighbours deserves the term statesman.His cause was just and everybody knows it.He risked his life to bring peace and achieved power sharing in a tyrannical statelet.

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