April 10th will mark the 25th anniversary of the Belfast Agreement, commonly called the Good Friday Agreement, that ended the Irish “Troubles”. The conflict in Northern Ireland had deep roots in history. Great Britain had ruled Ireland for centuries dating back to the 17th century, when two differing political views emerged from the Protestants (Unionists), and Catholics (Republicans) who wanted Irish Independence.
During WWI in 1916 the Irish Republicans seized buildings in Dublin in the “Easter Rebellion” and declared it an Irish Republic. The British Army counterattacked and over 2,000 people were killed or wounded in the fray. The British executed 15 of the Republican leaders and instituted a harsh period of martial law.
In 1919, the IRA began a two-year guerilla campaign retaliating against the British army and Loyalists. Two years later, the Free State of Ireland was created in Southern Ireland as a dominion of Britain. It later became the Republic of Ireland in 1949. Northern Ireland remained a part of the UK. At the time of this split the population of Northern Ireland was more Unionist Protestant than Nationalist Catholic.
In Northern Ireland, with the Protestant Loyalists in most positions of authority, the Catholics felt increasingly discriminated against. They were finding it difficult to get homes and jobs. By the late 1960s the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association was formed to protest the discrimination. The Unionist community held their own protests in response.
The Royal Ulster Constabulary, known to be rough Protestant sectarians tried to squash the protests. The tension between the two sides turned violent, resulting in “Bloody Sunday” beginning a 30-year period known as “The Troubles.”
The Tit-for-tat violence continued until all parties were brought together for negotiations in the 1990s eventually signing the Good Friday Agreement which was based on a series of fundamental principles including:
- the parity of esteem of both communities
- the principle of consent underpinning Northern Ireland’s constitutional status
- the birthright of the people of Northern Ireland to identify and be accepted as British or Irish, or both, and to hold both British and Irish citizenship
This 1998 agreement effectively ended the widespread violence of the ‘Troubles’.