Party celebrates 30 years of politics

SDLP hopes to attract young blood and young voters

By BBC NI political correspondent Martina Purdy

The Social Democratic and Labour Party swallowed up much of the old Nationalist Party when it was formed 30 years ago on Monday.

And since then, it has dominated the political scene in Northern Ireland, and remains the largest nationalist party.

The anniversary is being marked with little fanfare, although there was an official celebration in Belfast's Europa Hotel some months ago.

It brought together many of the original founders, some of whom have since left the party or political life.

Some key members of the party

The key personalities involved in the formation included John Hume, the present leader and Ivan Cooper, who served as a minister for community relations in the short-lived Sunningdale Executive of 1974.

Other key people were Paddy Wilson, who was murdered in 1973 by loyalists, Paddy O'Hanlon, now a barrister, the late Paddy Devlin whose early career involved the republican labour movement, Austin Currie, presently a Fine Gael TD, and Gerry Fitt, now Lord Fitt, who quit the party in 1979 complaining it had lost its socialist ideals.

He was succeeded by Mr Hume.

The party was born largely out of the civil rights movement of the 1960s. The early founders, both Catholics and Protestants, were a collection of independent Stormont MPs, Irish socialists, and professional people.

They shared a vision of building a radical left-of-centre party which would seek to eradicate sectarianism, provide civil rights for all, and ensure the fair distribution of wealth.

The party supported a united Ireland but only with the consent of the majority of people in Northern Ireland.

The consent principle formed the cornerstone of the Good Friday Agreement which was endorsed at referendum in May 1998.

Anniversary of party

Speaking on the anniversary of his party's foundation, Mr Hume looked forward to building on the agreement to overcome the remaining difficulties, not least a deep-rooted sectarianism.

He said: "In order to build a strong country, the best way is to work to build employment and tackle the social and economic problems."

As it enters a new millennium, the SDLP faces a number of challenges.

Despite remaining the dominant voice of nationalism for three decades, its position is under threat. Its smaller rival, Sinn Fein, has gained ground since the inception of the peace process and the IRA ceasefire.

While the SDLP leader John Hume is credited with helping to bring about the ceasefire, the peace process has blurred the differences between the parties.

Sinn Fein now refers to itself as a nationalist rather than republican party. Sinn Fein has made gains in Westminster, Assembly and council elections.

Where the SDLP might have commanded 70% of the nationalist vote compared to Sinn Fein's 30% in 1992 elections, that gap has narrowed, sometimes to around 55% to 45%.

Building youth movement

The SDLP recently carried out a review of the party which concluded that some people viewed it as tired and middle-class.

The party has focused on building its youth movement and members are conscious of the need to promote younger faces.

Efforts are also being made to attract Protestants in large numbers, as cross community support has been relatively modest.

The party has been dominated by Mr Hume and his deputy Seamus Mallon for many years. Filling their shoes will be a formidable task for any politician.

Neither, however, show any signs of being ready to retire. Mr Hume has said he will take decisions on his role in the party when the time is right.