Abstentionism Is Not Absenteeism

At the SDLP conference on 12 September, Colum Eastwood described Provisional Sinn Féin’s refusal to take its Westminster seats as a “terrible dereliction of duty”. His argument was that decisions concerning a future border poll will ultimately be taken in London, “whether we like it or not”.

For clarity, I refer here to the contemporary party led by Mary Lou McDonald as “Provisional Sinn Féin (P Sinn Féin)”, principally to distinguish it from Republican Sinn Féin, which takes the abstentionist principle considerably further.

Eastwood’s criticism makes sense if representation is understood simply as exercising whatever influence is available within the institutions that currently possess power.

Abstentionism starts from a different premise.

The Sinn Féin MPs elected in 1918 did not regard themselves as MPs who happened to boycott Westminster. They sought a mandate to reject Westminster’s authority and establish an Irish legislature in its place. Abstentionism was therefore never an absence from politics, but a statement about where legitimate political authority lay.

P Sinn Féin today applies abstentionism specifically to Westminster, while participating in Stormont and Leinster House. Whatever objections may be made to that narrower application of the principle, neither institution requires its representatives to participate in the British Parliament or swear allegiance to the British Crown.

Westminster nevertheless remains distinctive. Its MPs would be required to swear or affirm allegiance to the British Crown before taking their seats, while Westminster retains ultimate legislative authority over the Six Counties.

Eastwood argues that because decisions affecting Ireland are taken in London, Irish nationalists ought to be represented there.

The Westminster-abstentionist argument starts from a different question. The issue is not merely where power happens to be exercised, but whether an Irish representative should participate in a foreign parliament which claims jurisdiction in part of Ireland.

An absentee leaves a seat empty through neglect.

An abstentionist leaves it empty deliberately, because taking the seat would mean participating in an authority whose jurisdiction they contest.