Seamus Heaney Quotes

We extend our hand towards peace. Our people are committed to peace. We know that peace entails painful compromise for both sides.

Northern Ireland still suffers from its past, and it will take generations to escape sectarianism and for violence to end totally. Nonetheless, it is in a different place now than during the Troubles, and it will not go back to the old days.

Terror can never be defeated by force alone.

War is what happens when language fails.

You know, the pessimism which exists now in the Middle East existed in Northern Ireland, but we stayed at it.

Now the first step has to be taken, the step towards democracy. This step is full of risks, and requires trust on all sides. We don't know where it will lead. But if we just stand still, we will have no chance of escaping the violence.

Peace in the Middle East isn't going to be created by another war or violent act on the other side.

The world will not find rest by just saying "peace.

Very significant. My mission is to pacify Ireland.

The violent will not come to a natural end.

In order to have peace in the Middle East both sides are going to have to put away history and make a leap of faith.

Successfully pressuring armed militants to abandon violence and participate in democratic elections requires a favorable political climate. In Northern Ireland and South Africa, armed militants turned away from violence and entered mainstream politics only when the framework of an acceptable political deal was on the table, providing them with a product they could sell to their supporters. The sequence of events was of crucial importance.

There are universal traits and aspects of all these conflicts, and I think that all of them have bridgeable solutions. The only question is whether you are ready to take the challenge, to pay the price, to compromise in order to get more. This, I believe, is the challenge for all the peacemakers in the world.

There will always be somebody opposed to the peace process. The important thing is not to let those people seize the political agenda.

Violence against violence? That will never solve the problem.

I'm in the government to make sure that if there's an opportunity to make peace, it won't be missed.

I'm just very interested, fascinated, heartbroken, obsessed with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and our need to find peace on that front... Everyone's always, like, victim and avenger at the same time.

The violence seems to be diminishing. They've stared into the abyss a bit. I think they've all concluded that further violence... is not in their interests.

Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.

The ongoing conflict between us has caused heavy suffering to both peoples. The future can and must be different. Both our peoples are destined to live together side by side, on this small piece of land. This reality we cannot change.

Peace is a question of will. All conflicts can be settled, and there are no excuses for allowing them to become eternal.

The Ahmadinejads of the world, the bin Ladens of the world, will not change their ways, regardless of how hard we try to explain to them that peace begins with them.

If you aren't please tell me how you are going to not have a war.

Peace is produced by war.

Let us move from the era of confrontation to the era of negotiation.