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| Albert Reynolds Dies at 81; Peacemaking Irish Premier | |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| DUBLIN — Albert Reynolds, the former Irish prime minister who played an important role in forging peace in Northern Ireland, died on Thursday at his home in Dublin. He was 81. | DUBLIN — Albert Reynolds, the former Irish prime minister who played an important role in forging peace in Northern Ireland, died on Thursday at his home in Dublin. He was 81. |
| His death was confirmed by his son Philip, who said Mr. Reynolds had been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. | His death was confirmed by his son Philip, who said Mr. Reynolds had been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. |
| In a colorful, multifaceted career, Mr. Reynolds was variously and sometimes simultaneously a straight-talking businessman and a hard-nosed politician. Conservative but not doctrinaire, he held several ministerial positions, primarily with economic portfolios. | In a colorful, multifaceted career, Mr. Reynolds was variously and sometimes simultaneously a straight-talking businessman and a hard-nosed politician. Conservative but not doctrinaire, he held several ministerial positions, primarily with economic portfolios. |
| The high point of his political career came in 1993 when, as prime minister, he signed the Downing Street Declaration in London with his British counterpart, John Major, paving the way for an Irish Republican Army cease-fire the next year and a Loyalist cease-fire shortly afterward. | The high point of his political career came in 1993 when, as prime minister, he signed the Downing Street Declaration in London with his British counterpart, John Major, paving the way for an Irish Republican Army cease-fire the next year and a Loyalist cease-fire shortly afterward. |
| To those who considered the obstacles insurmountable after centuries of fighting, Mr. Reynolds said, “I don’t mind if others think I’ll fail, when I believe the greatest prize of all, peace, is still achievable.” | To those who considered the obstacles insurmountable after centuries of fighting, Mr. Reynolds said, “I don’t mind if others think I’ll fail, when I believe the greatest prize of all, peace, is still achievable.” |
| However, his tenure as prime minister, or taoiseach, from 1992 to 1994, was one of the briefest in the history of the state, when he led two successive, fragile governments. After the second coalition fell, in large part because of a sexual abuse scandal involving the priest Brendan Smyth, he resigned as prime minister and as leader of the Fianna Fail party. | However, his tenure as prime minister, or taoiseach, from 1992 to 1994, was one of the briefest in the history of the state, when he led two successive, fragile governments. After the second coalition fell, in large part because of a sexual abuse scandal involving the priest Brendan Smyth, he resigned as prime minister and as leader of the Fianna Fail party. |
| Aside from his role in the Northern Ireland peace process, Mr. Reynolds’s enduring legacy may be his pyrrhic libel victory in 1994, in which a court awarded him compensation of a symbolic penny for defamation by a British newspaper. An article in The Sunday Times said that Mr. Reynolds had misled the Irish parliament by suppressing negative information about a candidate for president of the Irish High Court. | Aside from his role in the Northern Ireland peace process, Mr. Reynolds’s enduring legacy may be his pyrrhic libel victory in 1994, in which a court awarded him compensation of a symbolic penny for defamation by a British newspaper. An article in The Sunday Times said that Mr. Reynolds had misled the Irish parliament by suppressing negative information about a candidate for president of the Irish High Court. |
| The so-called Reynolds defense became a staple in British libel law. It allowed newspapers to plead qualified privilege in cases where they had published untrue and defamatory information, provided they could prove that it had been the product of responsible journalism and that it was in the public interest. The common law defense was effectively codified under the British Defamation Act 2013. | The so-called Reynolds defense became a staple in British libel law. It allowed newspapers to plead qualified privilege in cases where they had published untrue and defamatory information, provided they could prove that it had been the product of responsible journalism and that it was in the public interest. The common law defense was effectively codified under the British Defamation Act 2013. |
| Albert Reynolds was born on Nov. 3, 1932, in Roosky, a village on the River Shannon in the Irish Midlands. He attended a college in County Sligo. | |
| Besides his son Philip, he is survived by his wife, Kathleen, and six other children, Miriam, Emer, Leonie, Abbie, Cathy and Andrea. | Besides his son Philip, he is survived by his wife, Kathleen, and six other children, Miriam, Emer, Leonie, Abbie, Cathy and Andrea. |
| Mr. Reynolds’s renowned negotiating skills were honed in the wheeler-dealer years of the 1960s, when as a young railway employee he opted to forsake the security of a full-time state job to operate dance halls during the heyday of the Irish show bands. His success allowed him to diversify into other ventures, most notably a newspaper and a pet food company that employed more than 1,000 people, which gave him a political power base in the Irish Midlands. | |
| His business dealings also created an enduring network that transcended the border between the republic and Northern Ireland, and among religious, social and political divides. He said he had used these contacts to optimal effect to gain the trust of “pragmatic unionist people” during peace negotiations. | His business dealings also created an enduring network that transcended the border between the republic and Northern Ireland, and among religious, social and political divides. He said he had used these contacts to optimal effect to gain the trust of “pragmatic unionist people” during peace negotiations. |
| The former Irish president Mary McAleese, who in 1997 was selected as the Fianna Fail presidential candidate ahead of Mr. Reynolds, described him on Thursday as the “linchpin” of the Northern Ireland peace process. | The former Irish president Mary McAleese, who in 1997 was selected as the Fianna Fail presidential candidate ahead of Mr. Reynolds, described him on Thursday as the “linchpin” of the Northern Ireland peace process. |
| The Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams said Mr. Reynolds “had acted on the North when it mattered.” | The Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams said Mr. Reynolds “had acted on the North when it mattered.” |
| “I believe in making a decision and going for it,” Mr. Reynolds said in 1994, referring to his peace efforts. “You can leave the status quo or take a risk, try to change things that will leave an impression after you’re gone.” | “I believe in making a decision and going for it,” Mr. Reynolds said in 1994, referring to his peace efforts. “You can leave the status quo or take a risk, try to change things that will leave an impression after you’re gone.” |