For years the outlawed Irish Republican Army has refused to recognize the - authority of the Irish Republic's Parliament, contending that doing so would bestow legitimacy on the British partition of Ireland. That has not stopped the I.R.A.'s political wing, Sinn Fein, from contesting seats in the 166- member Dail, the assembly. But once elected, Sinn Fein winners have always boycotted the Dail. Last week Sinn Fein reversed its policy and said its candidates will take seats if elected.
The vote was a victory for Sinn Fein's president, Gerry Adams, 38, who had argued that electoral participation is the "only feasible...
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