Neither charm, nor gesture politics will work. John Hume recently said: "The problem has always been the same . . . so the solution is the same too."

The problem is divided people, not territory.

Since the 1973 Sunningdale agreement, the unchanging SDLP solution is that the division will only be repaired when communities in the North put aside differences and begin to work their common ground together . . .

and so learn to trust each other. An agreed Ireland would then emerge as a naturally evolving process. Sinn Fein's sustained and wholehearted support for law and order is an essential first step.

Then, following the SDLP example, all other republican parties need to unilaterally decide to eschew in-your-face, flag-waving politics, commemorations, parades etc.

Otherwise, divisions will remain and the unity of Catholic, Protestant and dissenter will never happen.

Brian Rooney, 14 The Heights, Downpatrick, Co Down.

Hello to e-voting is goodbye to democracy From A Leavy THE recent public debate surrounding the alleged payments to the Taoiseach has demonstrated an alarming naivete among commentators and ordinary letters-to-theeditor writers. It has also betrayed a horrifying lack of appreciation of the fact that power corrupts.

That basic law of human behaviour applies to all of us. In the present situation, it applies to our government which has been in power for 10 years. If the opposition was in government for that long, the same would apply to them.

My worry is that if the present government is reelected, they will continue to take our naive tolerance for granted and consider themselves untouchable.

For example, there is a grave danger that they will impose for all future elections the unverifiable and corruptible electronic voting system which is still in storage.

It is not for nothing that they spent, and are still spending, large amounts of taxpayers' money in purchasing and storing these machines. Yet, despite having spent all this money, the government has absolutely refused to spend the extra amount necessary to include a paper facility so that electoral counts can be verified.

Alarmingly, this issue has deliberately been excluded from the terms of reference of the government's own commission. It is, therefore, difficult to reach any other conclusion than that the government wants to introduce a corruptible e-voting system.

That is not just my verdict but that of the government's own commission. The commission's report says that without paper verification, the proposed system cannot verify that the votes counted were the votes cast.

With this instrument, therefore, the present government, if re-elected, can write the result of every future election without anyone knowing. If that happens, it is goodbye democracy.

That is a serious and frightening conclusion, but the evidence is there in front of our eyes. The recent debate has demonstrated, however, that we don't want to know.

We better wake up pronto if we hope to still have a functioning democracy and not a perpetual elitist hegemony after the next election.

A Leavy, 1 Shielmartin Drive, Sutton, Dublin 13.

Connect new Dublin Metro under Irish Sea From Keith Nolan SINCE Dublin has now lost most of its unique identity and looks and sounds more like a mediocre British provincial city, the ideal location for the Metro is a connection under the Irish Sea!

Keith Nolan, Caldra House, Caldragh, Carrick~on~Shannon, Co Leitrim.

Democrats should be grateful to Ian Paisley From Dick Keane ALL democrats on this island should be profoundly grateful to Ian Paisley.

He is the only politician of substance left standing in the peace process and seems to be the only one capable of keeping his eye on the ball when everyone else gets distracted by deadlines, timetables and grandiose claims about talks in big houses.

Bertie is the master of waffle and fudge, Tony is the master of spin, while Gerry and Martin are masters of both and have to be pushed and dragged along every step on the road to democracy and peace.

Along the road, almost every other politician jettisoned their principles and gave many hostages to fortune in their rush to accommodate Sinn Fein. Poor David Trimble was conned by Tony and Gerry's false promises and then left swinging in the wind while his political career and his party went down the toilet.

Through all this, Ian Paisley was steadfast in his principled view that he would not engage with former terrorists until they had demonstrably embraced exclusively democratic means. He simply refused to have any truck with a la carte democrats.

We should be forever grateful to Ian Paisley when, in late 2004, he alone refused to jump into bed with Sinn Fein until they had ended all criminal activity, thus saving us and our children from the scourge of a permanent paramilitary-style criminal mafia.

Paisley has accepted the abolition of majority rule and Dublin's permanent involvement in Northern Ireland's affairs and is now prepared to share power with Sinn Fein, provided that they support the reformed police force and the rule of law.

Surely an essential prerequisite, given Sinn Fein's record up to recent times?

All right-thinking democrats should now stand four-square with Ian Paisley and finally drag Sinn Fein across the finishing line.

Dick Keane, Silchester Park, Glenageary, Co Dublin.

Poll report unfair on Fine Gael and Kenny From Caitriona Fitzpatrick YOUR newspaper carried the front-page headline "Kenny: the biggest loser" and an article inside claimed "Fine Gael and Labour will be reeling from today's Sunday Tribune poll."

I can tell you that, as a member of Fine Gael, I was not reeling from your poll which was based around issues which the public had tired of even before your poll was taken. I think the biggest loser is the Sunday Tribune, which is a paper that usually has high standards of journalism and makes for interesting and informative reading.

Last week's issue was disappointing and I certainly hope that we don't have to endure nine months of this 'red top' style journalism from the Sunday Tribune.

Caitriona Fitzpatrick, Marble Hall Park, Douglas Road, Cork.

Poolbeg not suitable for mini-Manhattan From John Gormley THE PD plan for a Manhattan-style skyline on the Poolbeg peninsula is unrealistic. It ignores a number of crucial factors.

1) There is a total lack of transport infrastructure. This should be put in place now before any further development takes place on the Poolbeg peninsula.

2) The Poolbeg peninsula is vulnerable to flooding and the government's own guidelines state that building should not take place within 100 metres of the shore.

3) It would be impossible for most people to live there because of the serious odour problem from the wastewater treatment plant. As a resident in the area I can testify to the fact that the smell is as bad as ever this week.

4) The proposed incinerator would impact negatively on the potential development of the area. As the Green Party predicted, this plant is set to burn 760,000 tonnes of waste per annum, making it one of the largest mass-burn incinerators in Europe.

There is no doubt that the Poolbeg peninsula should be properly developed, but the PD proposal represents this government's typical lack of joined-up thinking. It is yet another example of PD kite-flying.

The Green Party made a major submission on the Poolbeg framework plan and we will also be publishing detailed plans for the Poolbeg peninsula over the coming months.

John Gormley TD, Green Party chairman, Dublin 4.