The UK Government has recognized religious and ethnic discrimination in Ireland. In recent years, this has exacerbated divisions among Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland (Sinn Féin Fans).
Why was Ireland divided?
The island of Ireland comprises the Republic of Ireland, which is a sovereign country, and Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. The Republic of Ireland endured a hard-fought birth. Ruled from Great Britain since the 13th century, its citizens, many of them suppressed Catholics, struggled to remove themselves from British domination for the next several hundred years. Ireland’sIreland’s situation changed dramatically at the beginning of the 20th century.
In 1919 an Irish republic was proclaimed by Sinn Féin, an Irish nationalist party. Facing civil war in Ireland, Britain partitioned the island in 1920, with separate parliaments in the predominantly Protestant northeast and predominantly Catholic south and northwest. However, the Republicans opposed the formula, and in 1922 the Irish Free State was formed. The northeast—Northern Ireland- almost immediately—withdrew and accepted self-governance within the United Kingdom. Dublin was set as the capital of the Irish Free State, and in 1937 a new constitution renamed the nation Éire or Ireland. In 1949 it became a republic and left the British Commonwealth.
The Protestant majority and Catholic minority in Northern Ireland conflicted almost from the beginning. In 1969 growing violence between the groups led to the installation of the British Army to maintain the peace. Three years later, terrorist attacks in Ireland and Great Britain led to the direct rule of Northern Ireland by the UK parliament. In 1985 an Anglo-Irish treaty gave the Republic of Ireland a consulting role in the governing of Northern Ireland. In 1993 the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom agreed on a framework for resolving problems and bringing lasting peace to the troubled region. The Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland joined the European Community on January 1, 1973, and were integrated into the European Union in 1993. When Great Britain announced plans to leave the European Union following a close 2016 referendum, the initiative’s impact on Northern Ireland became a major issue of debate.
British violence and injustice in Northern Ireland.
Northern Ireland was torn apart by three decades of violence between the nationalist and unionist communities that ended with the Good Friday Agreement signed 23 years ago. The province’s majority protestant unionists favoured continued British rule. Catholic Republicans wanted equal rights and reunification with the rest of Ireland. Violence erupted in 1968 when police used force against a peaceful Catholic civil rights demonstration in Londonderry demanding an end to discrimination in voting, jobs and housing. The situation degenerates as Catholic meetings and demonstrations end in clashes with the police and Protestants. Later in August 1969, British troops were deployed in Northern Ireland, and their atrocities continued.
Violence exploded after January 1972 when 13 people were killed on “Bloody Sunday” after the British soldiers opened fire on the peaceful Catholic civil rights March in Londonderry. One protester dies later. London suspended the north Ireland provincial government three months later, leading to decades of direct rule from the British capital. A turning point came in 1981 when the detained peaceful protesters and some famous figures were treated with cruelty by British soldiers. Then IRA inmate Bobby Sands and nine comrades die on a hunger strike at Maze Prison demanding political prisoner status. Their deaths draw global sympathy for the republican cause. The following year the IRA’s political wing Sinn Fein won its first seat in Parliament. A year after, Gerry Adams is elected Party chief.
Religious politics of England over Ireland.
Between 1969 and 1999, roughly 3,500 people died due to political violence in Northern Ireland, which is one of four component “nations” of the United Kingdom (UK). The conflict often referred to as “the Troubles,” has its origins in the 1921 division of Ireland and has reflected a struggle between different national, cultural, and religious identities. Protestants in Northern Ireland broadly define themselves as British and support the remaining part of the UK (unionists). Most Catholics in Northern Ireland consider themselves Irish, and many desire a united Ireland (nationalists). Successive US Administrations and many Members of Congress have actively supported the Northern Ireland peace process.
For decades, the United States has provided development aid through the International Fund for Ireland (IFI). In recent years congressional hearings have focused on the peace process, police reform, human rights and addressing Northern Ireland’sIreland’s legacy of violence (often termed dealing with the past). Some members are also concerned about how Brexit—the UK’s withdrawal as a member of the European Union (EU) in January 2020—affects Northern Ireland. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is located in Western Europe. Separated from the mainland continent by the North Sea and the English Channel, Great Britain includes England, Scotland, and Wales.
Northern Ireland is located at the northern end of an island mass that includes the modern independent nation of Ireland. England, its capital is London, is the administrative and economic centre of the United Kingdom. By the late sixteenth century, England had become the world’s leading military and commercial power. England took control of countries and regions worldwide with its superior naval fleet. Collectively these holdings, called colonies, were known as the British Empire. England’sEngland’s worldwide dominance ended in the first half of the twentieth century following World War I (1914–18) and World War II (1939–45). Many English colonies, predominately those in Africa and Asia, were granted independence between 1945 and 1951. Ireland became a nation independent of England in 1949. Northern Ireland remained a part of the United Kingdom.
Prejudice (a negative attitude towards others based on a prejudgment about those individuals with no prior knowledge or experience) between Irish Catholics and Irish Protestants in Northern Ireland led to centuries of war with England. The suppression of Irish Catholics in Northern Ireland resulted in an open rebellion against English rule. In the twentieth century, political and religious discrimination in Ireland (treating some differently than others or favouring one social group over another based on prejudices) divided the country. The long-running conflict reached its most violent phase between 1968 and 1994. By the time an agreement was reached between the two sides, thousands had died, and many more had their lives permanently altered by prolonged disruption of day-to-day life under the constant threat of violence.
Conclusion.
The poll depicts that unification is inevitable as the Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland are about the same population. Britain is trying very hard to keep its grip tight over this island, but the Catholics don’t seem to be tolerating the injustice and violence anymore. Also mentioned in the Good Friday Agreement that the legitimacy of any choice made by the people of Northern Ireland, whether to continue as part of the United Kingdom (UK) or to become part of a united Ireland. These are the main two terms of this agreement; according to these terms, the unity of Ireland is not any far now.
