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Northern Ireland: Autonomy as a Conflict Management Tool in a Stable State, Ethnonational Guarantors, and Low-Level International Assistance

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Territorial Self-Government as a Conflict Management Tool

Part of the book series: Federalism and Internal Conflicts ((FEINCO))

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Abstract

This chapter examines the use of territorial self-government in Northern Ireland. It provides a concise overview of the conflict, focused on the role of territorial self-government. It then addresses how the 1998 Good Friday/Belfast Agreement provided for TSG to meet the needs of nationalists in Northern Ireland to have a strong connection to Ireland while respecting unionist desires to maintain the link with Great Britain. However, it also highlights that these arrangements were an uneasy compromise and that the British and Irish governments, and friendly states particularly the US, had to provide reassurance that the institutions would be faithfully implemented. It finds that the relationship between the guarantee provider and guarantee seeker, rather than the theoretical strength, of a guarantee determines whether it is effective.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    The Agreement is also known as the Belfast Agreement. This volume refers to it as the Good Friday Agreement as this is most commonly used outside or Ireland and the UK.

  2. 2.

    This book uses the term ‘nationalist’ to describe those who are either ‘nationalist’ or ‘republican’ and ‘unionist’ to describe those who are ‘unionist’ or ‘loyalist’. While distinctions between these groups is very important in understanding the conflict generally they are not central to the analysis of this chapter and thus the simplified terms are used.

  3. 3.

    Walsh, D., & O’Malley, E. (2013). Religion and Democratization in Northern Ireland: Is Religion Actually Ethnicity in Disguise? Democratization, Vol. 20, No. 5, 939–958.

  4. 4.

    Whyte, J.H. (1980). Church and State in Modern Ireland 1923–1979 (2nd ed.). Dublin: Gill and Macmillan, 24–61.

  5. 5.

    Girvin, B. (2008). Contraception, Moral Panic and Social Change in Ireland, 1969–79. Irish Political Studies, Vol. 23, No. 4, 555–576.

  6. 6.

    Craig, J. (1934). Northern Ireland House of Commons, Vol. XVII, Cols. 72–73.

  7. 7.

    English, R. (2004). Armed Struggle: The History of the IRA. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 73.

  8. 8.

    Though this was reduced to ninety MLAs in the 2016.

  9. 9.

    Cox, M., Guelke, A., & Stephen, F. (Eds.). (2000). A Farewell to Arms? From ‘Long War’ to Long Peace in Northern Ireland. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 43.

  10. 10.

    The St Andrew’s Agreement changed the election procedure for the First and Deputy First Minister. The new procedure provides for a First Minister nominated by the largest party of the largest designation in the Assembly and a deputy First Minister nominated by the largest party of the second largest designation in the Assembly thus still providing for cross-community representation as long as ‘Nationalist’ and ‘Unionist’ remain the main designation which parties in the Assembly chose to self-identify.

  11. 11.

    Demographic changes driven by both variable birth and emigration rates between the communities mean Catholics have increased from 34% in the 1920s to 45% in 2015. This means institutional arrangements need to protect and possible future Protestant minority from domination as well as protecting the current Catholic minority.

  12. 12.

    The Good Friday Agreement (1998). Agreement between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Government of Ireland. Article 1, Section I (1998). Accessed 31 December 2017, https://peacemaker.un.org/uk-ireland-good-friday98.

  13. 13.

    The Good Friday Agreement (1998). Section V. Accessed 31 December 2017, https://peacemaker.un.org/uk-ireland-good-friday98.

  14. 14.

    Ibid. Strand One, Sections 32–33.

  15. 15.

    While Sinn Féin , the largest nationalist party since 2003, does not take its seats in the Westminster parliament, operating a policy of abstentionism, since rule changes in 2001 it has occupied its offices at Westminster.

  16. 16.

    Democratic Unionist Member (2016). Interview with Dawn Walsh. Belfast, January 18.

  17. 17.

    Ulster Unionist Member (2015). Interview with Dawn Walsh. Belfast, December 2. A Joint Ministerial Committee was established in 2013 to facilitate meetings of the equivalent ministers from the Westminster parliament and devolved administrations to facilitate coordinate and cooperation.

  18. 18.

    For an in-depth discussion of how the institutions provided for in the GFA meet the needs of the two main communities and are suggestive of ways to improve consociational arrangements, see Walsh, D. (2015). How a Human Needs Theory Understanding of Conflict Enhances the Use of Consociationalism as a Conflict Resolution Mechanism: The Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland. Ethnopolitics, Vol. 15, No. 3, 285–302.

  19. 19.

    Murphy, P. (2015). Interview with Dawn Walsh. London, October 15.

  20. 20.

    Sinn Féin (1988). SDLP-Sinn Féin Talks: Sinn Féin Document One. Dublin, Sinn Féin. Accessed 31 December 2017, http://www.sinnfein.ie/files/2009/SF_SDLP_talks.pdf.

  21. 21.

    SDLP member (2016). Interview with Dawn Walsh. London, July 16.

  22. 22.

    Ulster Unionist member (2015). Interview with Dawn Walsh. Belfast, December 2.

  23. 23.

    SDLP member (2016). Interview with Dawn Walsh. London, July 16.

  24. 24.

    Adams, G. (2003). Hope and History. London: Brandon.

  25. 25.

    Murphy, P. (2015). Interview with Dawn Walsh. London, October 15.

  26. 26.

    The Sunningdale Agreement (December 1973). Tripartite Agreement on the Council of Ireland—The Communique Issued Following the Sunningdale Conference. Accessed 31 December 2017, http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/events/sunningdale/agreement.htm.

  27. 27.

    Democratic Unionist Party Member (2016). Interview with Dawn Walsh. Belfast, January 18.

  28. 28.

    Godson, D. (2004). Himself Alone, David Trimble and the Ordeal of Unionism. London: HarperCollins.

  29. 29.

    Adams, G. (2003). Hope and History. London: Brandon, 320.

  30. 30.

    Ahern, B. (2008). Speech by Bertie Ahern, then Taoiseach, to the Institute for British-Irish Studies (IBIS) Conference ‘From Conflict to Consensus: The Legacy of the Good Friday Agreement’ at University College Dublin (Thursday 3 April 2008). Dublin: Department of the Taoiseach. Ahern, Bertie. (2000). Statement on Northern Ireland by Bertie Ahern, then Taoiseach, to the Dáil, 15 February 2000. Dublin: Department of the Taoiseach.

  31. 31.

    Murphy, P. (2015). Interview with Dawn Walsh. London, October 15.

  32. 32.

    Ulster Unionist Member (2015). Interview with Dawn Walsh. Belfast, December 2.

  33. 33.

    Democratic Unionist Party Member (2016). Interview with Dawn Walsh. Belfast, January 18.

  34. 34.

    The Good Friday Agreement (1998). Strand Three, Sections 1–3. Accessed 31 December 2017, https://peacemaker.un.org/uk-ireland-good-friday98.

  35. 35.

    Godson, D. (2004). Himself Alone, David Trimble and the Ordeal of Unionism. London: HarperCollins, 340.

  36. 36.

    Sinn Féin Member (2016). Interview with Dawn Walsh. Belfast, January 18.

  37. 37.

    Democratic Unionist Party (2007). Getting it Right, 2007 Manifesto. Belfast: DUP.

  38. 38.

    Pollack, A. (2010). A Solid Statement that North-South Cooperation is Here to Stay. Armagh: Centre for Cross-Border Studies. Accessed 31 December 2017, http://crossborder.ie/a-solid-statement-that-north-south-cooperation-is-here-to-stay/.

  39. 39.

    The Good Friday Agreement (1998). Constitutional Issues, Annex A, Schedule One. Accessed 31 December 2017, https://peacemaker.un.org/uk-ireland-good-friday98.

  40. 40.

    Mitchell, G. (2000). Making Peace. London: University of California Press, 143.

  41. 41.

    Ibid., 175.

  42. 42.

    Powell, J. (2009). Great Hatred, Little Room: Making Peace in Northern Ireland. London: Vintage Books, 32.

  43. 43.

    Northern Ireland Act (1998). Part V, Section 52. London: Stationary Office.

  44. 44.

    Kerr, J. (2001). [2001] NIQB 3. Accessed 31 December 2017, https://www.courtsni.gov.uk/en-GB/Judicial%20Decisions/PublishedByYear/Documents/2001/2001%20NIQB%203/j_j_KERF3332.htm.

  45. 45.

    In 2009 the functions of the Judicial Committee of the House of Lords were transferred to the new Supreme Court , with the exception of some issues related to the internal workings of the House of Lords. The Sewell convention is a political convention which indicates the UK Parliament would not normally legislate with regard to devolved matters except with the agreement of the devolved legislature. The Sewell Convention provides that the UK Parliament may not legislate for devolved matters without the consent of the devolved legislature affected.

  46. 46.

    The designation of Irish government’s involvement in Northern Ireland as ‘international’ is not intended to express a position regarding the rightful future constitutional position of the region, rather it reflects current legal reality. The complex nature of British and Irish government involvement in the region and how this can be best understood, particularly in a comparative context, is discussed in the conclusion of this chapter.

  47. 47.

    Tannam, E. (2007). The European Commission’s Evolving Role in Conflict Resolution, The Case of Northern Ireland 1989–2005. Cooperation and Conflict: Journal of Nordic International Studies Association, Vol. 42, No. 3, 337–356. Unionists vehemently opposed this Agreement, while some of the opposition stemmed from unionist exclusion from the negotiations which led to the Agreement, most of it stemmed from the acceptance of the Dublin government’s role.

  48. 48.

    Bunreacht na hÉireann (The Constitution of Ireland) Articles 2 & 3. Accessed 31 December 2017, https://www.constitution.ie/Documents/Bhunreacht_na_hEireann_web.pdf.

  49. 49.

    Ulster Unionist Member (2015). Interview with Dawn Walsh. Belfast, December 2.

  50. 50.

    The Sunningdale Agreement (December 1973). Tripartite Agreement on the Council of Ireland—The Communique Issued Following the Sunningdale Conference. Accessed 31 December 2017, http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/events/sunningdale/agreement.htm.

  51. 51.

    McGarry, J., & O’Leary, B. (1993). The Politics of Antagonism: Understanding Northern Ireland. London: Athlone, 200.

  52. 52.

    Christopher McGimpsey & Michael McGimpsey Plaintiffs v. Ireland, An Taoiseach and Others Defendants [S.C. No. 314 of 1988].

  53. 53.

    Democratic Unionist Party Member (2016). Interview with Dawn Walsh. Belfast, January 18.

  54. 54.

    Mitchell, G. (2000). Making Peace. London: University of California Press, 19.

  55. 55.

    Godson, D. (2004). Himself Alone, David Trimble and the Ordeal of Unionism. London: HarperCollins, 304.

  56. 56.

    Adams, G. (2003). Hope and History. London: Brandon, 320.

  57. 57.

    Sinn Féin Member (2016). Interview with Dawn Walsh. Belfast, January 18.

  58. 58.

    The Good Friday Agreement (1998). Section 2, Annex B. Accessed 31 December 2017, https://peacemaker.un.org/uk-ireland-good-friday98.

  59. 59.

    Department of the Environment, Community & Local Government (2013). Referendum Results 1937–2013. Published by the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government. Dublin: Department of the Environment, Community & Local Government.

  60. 60.

    Ulster Unionist Member (2015). Interview with Dawn Walsh. Belfast, December 2. Trimble, D. (1998). Antony Alcock Memorial Lecture University of Ulster, April 24. Accessed 31 December 2017, http://www.davidtrimble.org/speeches_alcock.pdf.

  61. 61.

    Cunningham, D. (1999). Changing Times in Bandit Country as the DUP Left Without Security. Irish Independent, December 14.

  62. 62.

    Adams, G. (2003). Hope and History. London: Brandon, 152.

  63. 63.

    Sinn Féin Member (2016). Interview with Dawn Walsh. Belfast, January 18.

  64. 64.

    Adams, G. (2004). Speech by Gerry Adams, then Sinn Féin President, at St. Malachy’s College, North Belfast, Thursday 15 January 2004. Belfast: Sinn Féin.

  65. 65.

    Godson, D. (2004). Himself Alone, David Trimble and the Ordeal of Unionism. London: HarperCollins, 566.

  66. 66.

    Ahern, B. (2000). Article by Bertie Ahern, then Taoiseach, Which Appeared in the ‘Irish Times’ on 14 February 2000. Dublin: Department of the Taoiseach.

  67. 67.

    McGarry, J., & O’Leary, B. (2004). The Northern Ireland Conflict: Consociational Arrangements. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 39.

  68. 68.

    Wolff, S. (2005). Complex Autonomy Arrangements in Western Europe, in S. Wolff & M. Weller (Eds.), Autonomy, Self-Governance and Conflict Resolution. London: Routledge, 128.

  69. 69.

    There is arguably a direct link between IRA disarmament and the TSG institutions in that the GFA provided that disarmament would be completed within two years of the referenda (May 2000) or political parties associated with non-disarming groups would be excluded from the institutions.

  70. 70.

    Reynolds, A. (1999). The Irish Government and the Peace Process, 1992–1994: A Political Perspective. Working Papers in British Irish Studies, Vol. 30, 1–13.

  71. 71.

    Though there had been some involvement by earlier administrations.

  72. 72.

    O’Kane, E. (2007). Decommissioning and the Peace Process: Where Did It Come From and Why Did It Stay So Long? Irish Political Studies, Vol. 22, No. 1, 81–101.

  73. 73.

    Mitchell, G. (1999). Statement by Senator George Mitchell in Belfast, Concluding the Review of the Northern Ireland Peace Process, 18 November 1999. Belfast. Accessed 31 December 2017, http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/events/peace/docs/gm181199.htm.

  74. 74.

    Decommissioning was the term used in Northern Ireland to refer to paramilitary disarmament.

  75. 75.

    Walsh, D., & Doyle, J. (2018). The Role of External Actors in the Operation of Consociationalism. Ethnopolitics. Vol. 17, No. 1, 21–36.

  76. 76.

    Byrne, S. (2000). Power Politics as Usual in Cyprus and Northern Ireland: Divided Islands and the Roles of External Ethno-guarantors. Nationalism and Ethnic Politic, Vol. 6, No. 1, 1–23.

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    Dawn Walsh

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Walsh, D. (2018). Northern Ireland: Autonomy as a Conflict Management Tool in a Stable State, Ethnonational Guarantors, and Low-Level International Assistance. In: Territorial Self-Government as a Conflict Management Tool. Federalism and Internal Conflicts. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-77234-9_2

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