Former Foes Unite to Take Oaths of Office in N. Ireland

Source: Washington Post

BELFAST, May 8 -- Protestant and Catholic leaders, old enemies who until recently barely spoke to each other, took oaths of office in a power-sharing government in Northern Ireland on Tuesday, a key step in bringing a final end to sectarian violence that has killed 3,600 people in the British province.

The Rev. Ian Paisley, 81, the Protestant leader who once called Pope John Paul II "the anti-Christ," smiled broadly inside the Stormont parliament building as he was elected to the top post in a government in which he and Catholic leaders will work together on issues from potholes to tourism. Paisley stood shoulder-to-shoulder with his new deputy, Martin McGuinness, 56, a leading Catholic politician and former Irish Republican Army commander; until recently, Paisley referred to McGuinness as a terrorist.

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But now, elected Catholics and Protestants have agreed to sit together in the wood-paneled legislative chamber, instead of railing against each other in the streets, and to debate and vote on everyday issues, from how much each household will pay for water to which elementary schools must close.

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