Des Dalton is an Irish political activist. He was the president of Republican Sinn Féin (RSF) from 2009 until 2018.Connla Young
Former president of Republican Sinn Féin Des Dalton has resigned from the party
, ''The Irish News'' (11 March 2021). Previously a member of

Ógra Fianna Fáil Ógra Fianna Fáil(; meaning "Youth of Fianna Fáil") is the youth wing of Fianna Fáil. The organisation was founded in 1975 by party leader Jack Lynch under the guidance of party general secretary, Séamus Brennan. It is active on an all-Ir ...

, Dalton later joined RSF and was a candidate for Athy Town Council in 2004. Dalton became president of RSF in 2009, succeeding his close friend

Ruairí Ó Brádaigh Ruairí Ó Brádaigh (; born Peter Roger Casement Brady; 2 October 1932 – 5 June 2013) was an Irish republican political and military leader. He was Chief of Staff of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) from 1958 to 1959 and again from 1960 to ...

. Dalton is a leading

dissident republican Dissident republicans, renegade republicans, anti-Agreement republicans or anti-ceasefire republicans ( ga, poblachtach easaontach) are Irish republicans who do not support the current peace agreements in Northern Ireland. The agreements follow ...

, rejecting the

Good Friday Agreement The Good Friday Agreement (GFA), or Belfast Agreement ( ga, Comhaontú Aoine an Chéasta or ; Ulster-Scots: or ), is a pair of agreements signed on 10 April 1998 that ended most of the violence of The Troubles, a political conflict in No ...

Henry McDonald
Irish republican says violence is counter-productive
, ''The Guardian'' (March 7, 2021). and opposing the Irish peace process.Henry McDonald
Catholics who join devolved PSNI 'in line of fire' says Republican Sinn Fein
, ''The Guardian'' (February 7, 2010). In 2010, Dalton said that the devolution of powers over the

Police Service of Northern Ireland The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI; ga, Seirbhís Póilíneachta Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster-Scots: ') is the police force that serves Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) after it was reform ...

(PSNI) made no difference to dissident republicans; contended that the PSNI's function was "to uphold British rule"; and warned that Catholics and republicans who joined the PSNI were "putting themselves in the line of fire." In July 2011, Dalton spoke at a demonstration in

Lurgan Lurgan () is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland, near the southern shore of Lough Neagh. Lurgan is about south-west of Belfast and is linked to the city by both the M1 motorway and the Belfast–Dublin railway line. It had a population ...

County Armagh County Armagh (, named after its county town, Armagh) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of an ...

(attended by about 200 people) protesting the imprisonment of Martin Corey. The demonstration was peaceful, but illegal because it had not been approved by the

Parades Commission The Parades Commission is a quasi-judicial non-departmental public body responsible for placing restrictions on any parades in Northern Ireland it deems contentious or offensive. It is composed of seven members, all of whom are appointed by the S ...

. Dalton was subsequently arrested and charged. As president of the

Continuity IRA The Continuity Irish Republican Army (Continuity IRA or CIRA), styling itself as the Irish Republican Army (), is an Irish republican paramilitary group that aims to bring about a united Ireland. It claims to be a direct continuation of the or ...

-aligned RSF, Dalton rejected an overtures from the mainstream

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur G ...

for peace talks and Irish republican unity, saying, "Our position is that they are now an integral part of the machinery of British rule in Ireland and that consequently as Irish republicans we have nothing to say to them.Henry McDonald
Sinn Féin offer of peace talks spurned by republican dissidents
, ''The Guardian'' (1 April 2013). Dalton stepped down as RSF's president in 2018, but remained a member of the party's national executive. In March 2021, Dalton denounced violence as counterproductive, saying that violent acts (such as the 2019 accidental killing of journalist

Lyra McKee Lyra Catherine McKee ( 31 March 1990 – 18 April 2019) was a journalist from Northern Ireland who wrote for several publications about the consequences of the Troubles. She also served as an editor for Mediagazer, a news aggregator website. On ...

) turned the people against the cause of

Irish republicanism Irish republicanism ( ga, poblachtánachas Éireannach) is the political movement for the unity and independence of Ireland under a republic. Irish republicans view British rule in any part of Ireland as inherently illegitimate. The develop ...

. Dalton defended the legitimacy of "

armed struggle War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

" in principle, but expressed a personal view that a suspension of violence by the Continuity IRA,

New IRA The New Irish Republican Army, or New IRA, is a paramilitary organisation founded in July 2012. It was formed after the Real Irish Republican Army (RIRA), Republican Action Against Drugs (RAAD) and other small Irish republican paramilitary grou ...

, and other factions would best promote dialogue toward

Irish reunification United Ireland, also referred to as Irish reunification, is the proposition that all of Ireland should be a single sovereign state. At present, the island is divided politically; the sovereign Republic of Ireland has jurisdiction over the maj ...

and take advantage of "major opportunities opening up" in the wake of Brexit.Des Dalton resigns from Republican Sinn Féin following his calls for dissident republican ceasefire
, ''The Irish News'' (10 March 2021). Dalton pointed to previous IRA ceasefires in 1923 and 1962 as precedent for his stance. Dalton criticized the dissident Irish republican campaign as a series of "sporadic actions" rather than a true armed campaign, saying that it was morally unjustifiable and unhelpful politically. After expressing support for a ceasefire, Dalton was suspended from RSF; Dalton refused to accept the suspension, and instead resigned from RSF. Dalton lives in County Kildare.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dalton, Des Irish republicans Living people Republican Sinn Féin members Year of birth missing (living people)