Northern Ireland

In the case of Northern Ireland, devolution is on the political agenda, but it does not provide an easy solution to the problems. In fact, there was a devolved government there between 1921 and 1972, but it did not work out well. The Protestant majority ran the government as a sectarian regime, and discriminated against Catholics. In the end, the minority lost patience and started a civil-rights protest movement. There was violence, and Britain troops were sent in. The old IRA (Irish Republican Army), which had fought to free Ireland from the British 50 years earlier, was revived in a new form, the Provisional IRA, and started a guerrilla and terror campaign. In response, the Protestants formed their own paramilitary groups, the Ulster Defence Association, the Ulster Volunteer Force and the Ulster Freedom Fighters. More that 3,000 people died in the resulting war, know as the Troubles.

To the great relief of all the people of Northern Ireland, a peace agreement was made on Good Friday 1998. The aim was once more to devolve government to Belfast, with power shared between the rival groups. After long negotiations, a new executive, including both Protestants and Catholics, was formed in December 1999. At the same time the IRA agreed to discuss disarmament, and the Irish Republic changed its constitution to give up its claim to the North, as part of a united Ireland.

The position of the British government on Northern Ireland has always been difficult. Many outsiders consider it a colonial power, which should withdraw completely. But if that had been attempted, there was a real fear that led to the setting up of a Northern Ireland in 1921. The British government says that it will agree to a united Ireland if a majority in Northern Ireland wants it. At present that is impossible as there is a Protestant majority, but the Catholic population is growing faster, so in the long term simple numbers may solve the problem. The economy of the Irish Republic has also been growing faster than that of Northern Ireland, so there may be an economic incentive for change.