The war is over. There are many messages that can be read into the overwhelming endorsement of the Good Friday Agreement on both sides of the Irish border - but that is the most conclusive, and the most welcome. Over 94% of the people in the Republic voted Yes, a ringing endorsement of the terms of the settlement in anyone's terms. But the consensus among people of nationalist background in the North was even more complete. There, a remarkable 97% of the 'nationalist' voters supported the Belfast Agreement - effectively signing up to the peace process on the terms negotiated on Good Friday by the British government, the Irish government and the major political parties in the North.
Such an overwhelming level of support in a referendum of this kind is virtually unprecedented, except in places like Albania in the days of the glorious leadership of Enver Hoxha. For the remnants of the Republican movement still intent on pursuing the so-called armed struggle, the message could not be made more abundantly clear: the people of Ireland, and particularly what used to be thought of as the nationalist people of Ireland, have voted unequivocally for an end to violence. Whatever claims to a mandate might have been made in the past by those pursuing the re-unification of Ireland by military means have been completely and comprehensively rejected. We want an end to murder. We want an end to bloodshed. We want an end to the old, redundant tribal divisions. That is the will of the people, and it must be respected.
The sheer scale of the rejection of violence is hugely encouraging. The Provisional IRA were successful in pursuing their campaign precisely because they enjoyed the support of large sections of the community on both sides of the border. Now that support is gone. Gunmen will no longer find it easy to melt into the background. Safe houses will be in short supply. The people have had enough of all that - and now they want to look forward to the prospect of peaceful co-existence. They want to define a future for themselves and for their children that is free of the poison of terrorism.
It will be virtually impossible for the Continuity IRA or the 'real' IRA, or, for any combination of paramilitaries that might emerge from the current shakedown to function in these new circumstances. No doubt the most entrenched among them will want to mount a few 'spectaculars'. But they would be much better to acknowledge the will of the people, and to call it a day now. Their efforts are doomed to ultimate ignominious failure. The war is over. That is what the people of Ireland have declared in the Referendum. And there is no other possible interpretation of the result.
The magnitude of the yes vote in the Republic was indeed overwhelming. But in the North while the victory involved less of a landslide, the people also came down comprehensively in support of the agreement. The subsequent unwillingness of the DUP, and Dr. Ian Paisley in particular, to listen to the democratically expressed voice of the people is telling. The rump of the Loyalist No conspirators can attempt to twist the result in any way that they like but the fact is that in excess of 71% of the people of Northern Ireland support the agreement. Dr. Paisley wants now to discount entirely the 'nationalist' community, as if they had no right to a say in the future of Northern Ireland at all. In this of course he is being absolutely consistent: he was always a sectarian and a bigot and he still is. But in continuing to cling so desperately to an outmoded worldview he may well be signing his own political death warrant.
The tide of history is clearly against him. With the crucial leadership of the UDP and the PUP, the loyalist working class, like their nationalist counterparts, have begun to move on to fresher ideological pastures. Young voters too have more willingly undertaken the great leap of faith that saw over 50% of people of Unionist background vote for the Agreement. So where does that leave Dr. Ian Paisley, Peter Robinson, Robert McCartney and their luddite cohorts?
They might attempt to disrupt the functioning of the planned Assembly but it is doubtful that this will be effective. Representing an ageing 29% minority who are opposed to the Agreement, they will become increasingly isolated, prisoners of a dead culture of supremacism that has no place whatsoever in the modern era.
Of course the Referendum vote was only the first hurdle, and it is vital now that everyone who was - and is - party to the Agreement continues to act in good faith, to further the process of securing peace, justice and equality for everyone in the North of Ireland within the least protracted time-frame possible. Throwing shapes or squaring up to the traditional enemy should not be part of the agenda. Above all, it is time now for working constructively together.
In this respect the Assembly elections may indeed unveil a whole new set of possibilities. There is a risk that the very nature of the Agreement might entrench the historical divisions within the community in the North. But if people are really determined to make the intended spirit of the settlement work, then this will not happen. If Sinn Féin first preferences, for example, were to transfer to PUP candidates, what would that say about the prospect of an end to sectarianism! These are signs that we will all be watching for.
In the meantime, we can allow ourselves to engage in a fit of optimism, the likes of which has not been possible for close to 30 years. Writing this, I am thinking again of the late Bill Graham, knowing how much he would love to have been alive to savour this moment to the full. I can hear his voice speaking through the darkness that separates us - but I can only begin to imagine the piece he would have written in celebration.
He is just one of the thousands who might have - who should have - been here to experience this new beginning. The best tribute we can pay to him and to them - and especially to those who were victims of the violence that ravaged Northern Ireland over the past 30 years (and in a different way the previous 45 or so) - is to make this Agreement work.
That is the way of the future. The people have spoken.
* Niall Stokes
Editor