Iraqis Try To Learn Lessons From The North

According to reports on Tuesday morning, leaders of about thirty Sunni and Shia factions in Iraq are have agreed to consider a series steps to end the sectarian violence in that country after intensive discussions with Northern leaders.

The meeting, which were held in Finland this weekendn were chaired by Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness and Roelf Meyer, a former minister in apartheid-era South Africa.

The seminar, organised by the Crisis Management Initiative - an organisation which is headed by Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari, was also attended by Jeffrey Donaldson, the DUP M.P. for Lagan Valley, former Stormont Assembly Speaker, Lord Alderdice, as well as Billy Hutchinson, Leo Green and Quintin Oliver, who headed up the "Yes" campaign during the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement.

After the four-day talks ended, Mr Donaldson riddiculed suggestions that the talks had been organised by either the U.S. or British governments, telling reporters that, "This was a private initiative very much in the background, so I'm not in any way concerned that there's been manipulation here."

"The Iraqis themselves were anxious that they should do this, that they should get help from South Africa and Northern Ireland and that there should be no involvement from the coalition governments."

Highlighting the lessons that the Iraqi leaders could learn from the North, Deputy First Minister McGuinness said, "The important lesson to learn is that if people are serious about bringing about peace in their country, that can only be done through an inclusive negotiating process.."