Posted by Jim on October 12, 2018
“ This is a useful reminder for Members of Congress about the strange arrangement between the DUP and the British Government of Prime Minister May.”—Fr. Sean McManus
Tory-DUP deal was doomed
Irish News Editorial. Belfast. Friday, October 12, 2018
When Theresa May signed up to a confidence-and-supply deal with the DUP following the Westminster election in 2017, she must have known that at some point the priorities of both sides would no longer converge.
The prime minister had been left with few options after her dreadful showing in that snap election and needed the 10 DUP MPs to keep her government going.
For their part, the DUP drove a hard bargain, securing a £1 billion cash injection for Northern Ireland and for a while all seemed harmonious.
However, such forced political relationships rarely run smoothly and we are at the stage where suspicion and distrust is poisoning the atmosphere.
There was a wobble in December when the prime minister had to make a humiliating climbdown on the backstop wording in the face of DUP anger.
That episode will have told Mrs. May that the largest Unionist party is not afraid to flex its muscles if it believes there is any movement outside its “blood red lines”.
In recent days we have seen the rhetoric stepped up as the crunch time nears when the prime minister will either find an agreed outcome or walk away without a deal, something that is generally accepted would be disastrous.
The DUP this week threatened to vote against the budget later this month if Mrs. May concedes to a deal that treats Northern Ireland differently to Britain.
And to show that it is serious, the party abstained from a vote on an amendment to an agriculture bill on Wednesday night.
This was a warning shot which did not impact on the overall outcome but the stakes will be much higher if the DUP helps to defeat the government on the budget, which could lead to a no-confidence motion.
Sammy Wilson has made it clear the party is prepared to see Mrs. May jettisoned if she does not take their concerns on board.
The party seems to think the worst that could happen is a change of Tory leadership but that ignores the real possibility of another election which could result in Jeremy Corbyn arriving in Downing Street.
Are the DUP really prepared to take that chance?
It is a big gamble and obviously the stakes are high as we enter the end stages of negotiations.
Theresa May, who met key cabinet colleagues last night to rally support, has some tough decisions to make in the coming days and weeks.
The DUP is playing its strongest card, but the prime minister, in the middle of finely balanced negotiations, may not appreciate being held to ransom by the party.
Posted by Jim on October 10, 2018
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Posted by Jim on October 9, 2018
“This joint survey by the University of Edinburgh and Cardiff is most revealing…. Just what do ‘ nionists’ in both England and Northern Ireland mean when they go on and on about their devotion to ‘ the Union.’ Not to mention what it reveals about their attitude to the Irish Peace Process.
The article from today’s Irish News of Belfast states:’The joint survey by the University of Edinburgh and Cardiff University found that 87 percent of the overwhelmingly unionist advocates for leaving the EU believe the collapse of the peace process is justifiable if Brexit is delivered.’
And, in regards to the Unionists/Loyalists/”Protestants” in Northern Ireland, the article says:’If even Unionists in Northern Ireland care less about the territorial integrity of the UK than pursuing Brexit, then it really raises questions about the type of union we’re in, and, indeed, what unionism means.’ That recalls the old saying,’Unionist loyalty is not to The Crown, but to the half-crown’ (‘a former British coin and monetary unit equal to two shillings and sixpence’ as my online dictiianary says). In other words, the Union was all about guaranteeing their economic advantage and Orange supremacy. In a way, like how Jim Crow laws guaranteed White supremacy in the Deep South.The Unionists in The North must start building up the Beloved Community, embracing equality, justice and solidarity. They must finally shed the George Wallace mindset.“—Fr. Sean McManus
North’s Leave voters would “sacrifice the peace process”
John Manley. Irish News. Belfast. Tuesday, October 9, 2018
LEAVE voters in Northern Ireland regard sacrificing the peace process as an acceptable price for Brexit, new research claims.
The joint survey by the University of Edinburgh and Cardiff University found that 87 per cent of the overwhelmingly unionist advocates for leaving the EU believe the collapse of the peace process is justifiable if Brexit is delivered.
According to one of the academics who conducted ‘The Future of England Study’, unionists’ preference for Brexit over the territorial integrity of the UK “raises questions about the type of union we’re in, and indeed what unionism means”.
Styling itself the largest and longest-running study of English constitutional attitudes, the research shows that self-professed unionists, most notably Leave-voting Conservatives, were largely unconcerned about the risks to the union posed by Brexit.
It highlights how Theresa May’s “precious union” has little meaningful support among the British prime minister’s own supporters or those in other parties who regard themselves as unionist.
The research found clear majorities of English Conservatives would support Scottish independence (79 per cent) or the collapse of the Irish peace process (75 per cent) as the price of Brexit.
In Northern Ireland, 86 per cent of Leave voters believe Scottish independence would be acceptable if meant securing the UK’s withdrawal from the EU.
Professor Ailsa Henderson from the University of Edinburgh said the data suggested that, in the pursuit of Brexit, Leave supporters across the UK would be relaxed about a fundamental transformation of the union.
She said there was evidence that Brexit was “dislodging long-held red lines about the union”.
“If even unionists in Northern Ireland care less about the territorial integrity of the UK than pursuing Brexit, then it really raises questions about the type of union we’re in, and indeed what unionism means,” she said.
Posted by Jim on
This Editorial, below, from the Irish News of Belfast on the 50th anniversary of the origins the Civil Rights Movement in Northern Ireland is important reading for Members of Congress and Staffers.
“What might have been” is a refrain that haunts all of us involved in the struggle for justice, equality and peace in The North… what might have been if those in power—the British Government, the Unionist Government, and the discredited RUC (Royal Ulster Constabulary) had acted differently, with respect, decency and fairness. What if basic justice had been established in the Protestant State of the Six Counties?
Alas, that would have been a contradiction in terms, because the whole purpose of carving out those six counties —violently ripping them away from the rest of Ireland—was to institutionalize sectarianism and anti-Catholicism, thereby maintaining England’s foothold on the island of Ireland, and Unionist supremacy in the Six Counties.
Even now, 50 years later, the Unionists/Loyalists/“Protestants” are doing everything possible to make sure the Beloved Community is not built up in Northern Ireland. And that, combined with Brexit, is making a United Ireland inevitable.
—Fr. Sean McManus
Fateful march cannot be seen in isolation.
Irish News Editorial.Belfast. Saturday, October 6, 2018
The 50th anniversary of the civil rights march in Duke Street, Derry, on October 5 1968 has provided an opportunity to reflect on the events of that day, regarded as pivotal in the history of the Troubles, and to assess if the lessons of that turbulent period have been learned.
Reading and listening to the accounts of those who witnessed that fateful march, there was a strong element of regret that matters unfolded in the way they did and played a part in the catastrophe that engulfed us in the ensuing decades and led to the deaths of almost 4,000 people.
Could it all have been avoided? If the march hadn’t been banned by Stormont or if it had been cancelled by the organisers, which the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association advocated, or – crucially – if the RUC had not attacked peaceful protesters in full view of television cameras which broadcast images of police brutality around the world, would we have been plunged into the nightmare of violence that followed?
Certainly, the march and its bloody outcome cannot be viewed in isolation. These were times of tumult and unrest, not just in Northern Ireland.
Many Catholics felt they were treated as second-class citizens by the unionist regime at Stormont. The campaign for civil rights was non-sectarian, calling for an end to gerrymandering, discrimination in housing and one man one vote, which also applied to working-class Protestants.
These were legitimate grievances and reform was long overdue. Had Stormont acted sooner and reacted differently, perhaps decades of pain could have been avoided.
In looking back to that time, it is depressing to hear some unionists continue to dismiss the concerns of nationalists, particularly in housing allocation which was a touchstone issue.
The obduracy, arrogance and state of denial that existed then caused those in power to make serious misjudgments.
They read the situation wrong, failed to make timely and justified concessions and, as we know, militant forces subsequently took hold, with disastrous results.
It was 50 years ago but we still need to learn from our history.
