The Australian Government warmly welcomes the overwhelming support
for the Good Friday peace settlement demonstrated in the referenda
held in the Irish Republic and Northern Ireland.
Such emphatic Yes votes will be a source of hope to the people of
Northern Ireland whose lives for so long have been blighted by bigotry
and tribal hatred.
This is an historic moment for the people of Northern Ireland.
They now have the opportunity after decades of bloodshed to put the
deaths and division of the past behind them.
I congratulate the Prime Ministers of Britain and the Irish Republic
for the leadership they have both displayed on this issue.
Few countries in the world have such deep Irish roots as Australia.
I know that many Australians will be heartened by such a decisive
embrace of a more peaceful future by people on both sides of the Irish
border.
24 May 1998