Lessons from the Northern Ireland Peace Process is an excellent book. There are many studies dealing with this subject, many of which have the term “lessons” in their titles. This edited volume takes its place among the more important of these works by scholars such as Christopher Farrington, Adrian Guelke and Thomas Hennessey, among others. The importance of lessons of the Northern Ireland conflict is profound and controversial. Northern Ireland can be considered a relatively successful example of conflict resolution in a violent low-intensity war that lasted about 30 years, culminating in the Agreement of 1998 and the subsequent establishment of executive, legislative and international institutions. Importantly, the system of policing and law enforcement has also been reformed to provide symbols acceptable to both communities and for proportionality in personnel. The most crucial policy question for the international community is the extent to which the Northern Ireland peace process can be a model for other violent intrastate conflicts in countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and many others.
With respect to the constitutional status of Northern Ireland, the Agreement specifies that Northern Ireland will remain a part of the United Kingdom until a majority in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland vote in separate elections for unification of the two jurisdictions, at which point the British and Irish Governments are committed to pass enabling legislation to that effect. In recognition of the differing identities, members of the unionist/nationalist (roughly Protestant/Catholic) communities may hold both British and Irish citizenship. The power-sharing Assembly and Executive provide for a First Minister and Deputy First Minister from the respective communities. Legislation cannot be passed unless it has the support of both sides in the Executive and Assembly. While the primary significance of the book relates to lessons for other political systems wracked by ethnic violence, there are useful chapters that also include lessons for the participants and citizens within Northern Ireland.
A central question addressed in several chapters is the extent to which the Northern Ireland case is comparable to other serious conflicts in the world. As noted in the book, each conflict is unique and the specific context of violent struggles varies significantly. This question of comparability is addressed in important studies such as John McGarry’s Northern Ireland and the Divided World: Post-Agreement Northern Ireland in Comparative Perspective. The central point to be made is that Northern Ireland is very different from hotspots such as Iraq and Afghanistan. As part of the United Kingdom, the Northern Ireland political system exists as a constituent member of a successful democracy. Its people are educated, have experience with elections and have at least basic economic well-being through various government services. Rather than being in a neighborhood of hostile countries, the United Kingdom in 1973 became part of the European Common Market, which became the European Union in the early 1990s. Moreover, the British and Irish Governments have worked closely and cooperatively to resolve the conflict. The USA, a friend of both countries, played an instrumental part in the peace process. Furthermore, the Republic of Ireland is ambiguous about the desirability of unification and does not push it. These and similar features and characteristics make the Northern Ireland conflict very different from most of the violent struggles confronting the world community.
All of the chapters are competently researched and written by able scholars. Contributions by John Doyle, Paul Dixon, Landon Hancock and William Hazleton are particular strong and helpful. William Hazleton emphasizes the particularistic nature of these kinds of conflicts and notes that there remains substantial disagreement on causes of the Northern Ireland conflict. This, of course, suggests that definitive lessons cannot be drawn even with respect to Northern Ireland, although Hazleton argues that the analysis of Northern Ireland can, at least, allow participants and analysts in other settings to ask pertinent questions. Further, given the complexity of these kinds of conflicts, any historically based lessons are not unambiguous. Also, comparisons can be used for propaganda purposes. Hazelton notes that on occasion a successful peace process, such as the South African case, can be an external source of motivation for rebels to move toward negotiation, while acknowledging that domestic variables are more important.
Landon Hancock’s chapter uses three data sets in arriving at conclusions about the impact of ceasefires as well as the Agreement itself. First, an open-ended interview that focused on changing identities was conducted on 25 Northern Ireland residents in 2001. Second, a content analysis was performed on editorials from 1994 through October, 2001 in the Irish News and the News Letter, newspapers representing the nationalist and unionist/loyalist communities. Third, larger-scale surveys conducted by the Social and Community Planning Research group and the Northern Ireland Life and Times were analyzed for the period 1989 through 2000. One finding showed that as a result of the ceasefires the Agreement respondents were more willing to self-identity as nationalists. Rather than being a sign of increased polarization, Hancock argues that given the recognition to their identity in the Agreement, nationalists may feel more comfortable self-identifying as nationalists. The upshot is that the significance of nationalist identity may have been reduced, leading to the possibility of adopting new identities. The analysis of editorials showed that identities moved from being monolithic and exclusivist to more inclusive. Although Hancock’s analysis shows more positive public attitudes over time toward mixing, the chapter points out that problems such as residential segregation impede the process of building common identities and that the working-class loyalist community believe the Agreement has benefited nationalists much more than it has the unionist community. Overall, however, he sees a significant positive change in attitudes.
Wendy Ann Wiedenhoft Murphy and Mindy Peden point out in their chapter on the Ulster-Scots diaspora that the Agreement changed the conflict from a fight over territory to conflict over culture and identity. One key international component of the Agreement was to establish links between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom to accommodate unionist identities and offer balance to the new North–South institutions that were essential for the nationalist community. These bodies are mainly consultative because only decisions agreed on by the participating members can be implemented. The British–Irish council includes representatives of Scotland’s devolved institutions and constitutes an acknowledgement of the close historical ties created by migration and commerce between Northern Ireland and Scotland. Other jurisdictions are also represented in this body. Weidenhoft Murphy’s and Mindy Pedens focus on the Ulster-Scots diaspora deals with an important component of a widening and more complex set of identities in Northern Ireland that could soften the increased rigidities in identities of the two communities that emerged during the violent struggle. Their analysis of the history and significance of the Ulster-Scots diaspora constitutes an informative contribution toward understanding the potential for greater mutual respect and accommodation in Northern Ireland.
Paul Dixon writes a nuanced critique of the neoconservative interpretation of the peace process, which argues that a harsh security policy coupled with a refusal to negotiate with terrorists until they meet preconditions is the key to victory. In particular, there should be no negotiations when terrorists think they are winning. In this view, the successes of the British Government were due not to a willingness to negotiate, but primarily from the application of stringent security policies and excellent intelligence work, among other things. Dixon is particularly critical of the views of John Bew and Martyn Frampton, including those expressed in their book (with coauthor Inigo Gurruchaga) Talking to Terrorists: Making Peace in Northern Ireland and the Basque Country. Dixon maintains that the Irish Republican Army (IRA) was not militarily defeated and that the hard power emphasis of these authors is incorrect. Dixon argues that the “orthodox” approach of negotiation and compromise taken by the British Government was key to the success of the peace process. At various points throughout the troubles the British Government had significant contacts with the IRA, and these contacts ultimately led to accommodation and compromise that brought an end to the violence. Many would argue that excessively harsh measures such as the internment operation of 1971 and the unwillingness to compromise with hunger strikers in 1980 and 1981 played into the hands of the IRA by alienating the nationalist community. Of course, there are other possible interpretations that might combine aspects of both perspectives to include negotiation, compromise and the intelligent use of security forces. This excellent chapter will be of special interest to scholars and practitioners who focus on terrorism.
For many reasons, policing is one of the most sensitive areas of government, especially because the police must sometimes use force and violence. From the unionist perspective, the members of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) were heroes who fought a dangerous war against the IRA. Most nationalists, however, viewed the RUC as a biased and unrepresentative body. The struggle to reform the police was one of the most contentious and difficult aspects of the peace process. As Doyle explains, the process of reform included all factions, including Sinn Fein, the political wing of the IRA. The process was overseen by an international commission and took many years to complete, well after the Agreement was ratified in 1998. Among the key changes were fiercely debated changes in the badge, uniform and name, from the RUC to the Police Service of Northern Ireland. Even though unionists are the majority in Northern Ireland, recruitment would follow a 50 per cent each formula to help achieve proportionality. An Oversight Commissioner was appointed from outside the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland to help ensure successful and fair implementation. While acknowledging that Northern Ireland is unique and that the methods and decisions used do not constitute a blueprint for other societies, Doyle argues that there are many useful ideas that can be gleaned for this case, perhaps most centrally that the reform of the security forces must be acceptable to all segments of society.
Mary-Alice Clancy’s chapter deals with the lessons of third-party intervention. It focuses on the role of the USA and proceeds from the viewpoint that there were positive as well negative aspects of the US role. Clancy argues that the British and Irish Governments sometimes used the USA as a means of pressuring the parties to sign the Agreement. She makes a point emphasized by many students of the Northern Ireland conflict that comparatively little is known about what happened. Complexity, secrecy and a range of issues make a complete understanding unlikely, especially at this early juncture. In sum, she sees the role of the USA as ambiguous. This chapter provides evidence and arguments that the role of the USA and other international actors should not be assumed to be entirely positive, but rather must be critically scrutinized.
The chapter written by Olga Skarlato, Eyob Fissuh, Sean Byrne, Peter Karari and Kawser Ahmed is based on a survey research project completed in 2006 in which > 1,000 representative people were interviewed. The authors hypothesize that international economic support for peace-building and reconciliation can be important, and they seek to determine the degree to which economic aid has facilitated reconciliation and how much it is likely to help in the future. Among their findings is that the professional class in Northern Ireland believes that the Agreement supports the peace process much more than do members of the semi-skilled class. It also confirms that the Catholic community is more positive regarding the contribution of the Agreement to the peace process. Protestants, they note, tend to believe that the Agreement primarily benefits Catholics and see their culture and British identity as threatened. The authors conclude that economic aid could be of assistance in building reconciliation, but that much bitterness, distrust and division still exist. They argue that such programs are more likely to be successful if they are developed in greater collaboration with ordinary members of the community. As the authors point out, there are deep divisions between the communities that lessen prospects for success. This chapter will be of special interest to those concerned with ways to encourage greater inter-communal cooperation and trust.
Timothy White has done an admirable job in his role as editor. Not only has each author written an interesting and useful chapter, there is also closer adherence to a common theme and more referencing to one another’s chapters than is usually found in edited volumes. Substantively, White’s introduction presents summary-broad lessons, such as the necessity to be inclusive in negotiations and in settlement and to set as few preconditions as possible. He also points out that the lessons scholars learn often differ from the lessons learned by the participants. His concluding chapter provides a useful recap of some of the lessons, but also presents useful insights. For example, although unanticipated events and consequences can spiral into violence, the introduction of new variables by peacemakers can also result in the development of a successful peace process.
In his chapter, written with Andrew Owsiak and Megan Clark, White and his coauthors observe that the peace process in Northern Ireland is not complete. In addition to the elite accommodations and compromises that led to the Agreement, lasting peace requires reconciliation within the population as a whole as well as the development of a civil society. Some might view these three authors as a bit overly optimistic on the potential for the development of a common identity in Northern Irish society and on the positive role for an uncovering of truth as a means toward reconciliation. Done to excess or unwisely the effort to uncover past wrongs can open up old wounds. Nevertheless, they make a useful and sophisticated case; for example, following Adrian Guelke, they note that Northern Ireland was different from South Africa, where much reconciliation occurred prior to the establishment of the Truth Commission. Illustrating the point that all conflicts have unique features, Northern Ireland had no leader, such as Nelson Mandela, who could have achieved much initial reconciliation.
Of course, this review can only highlight a few of the key points in this fine book. Reading this volume will be useful not only for students of the Northern Ireland conflict, but to a much wider audience, including academics, journalists and governmental and other participants who deal with peace processes. As emphasized above, each conflict is different and most conflicts do not have many of the positive domestic and international forces that have been at work in Northern Ireland. Also, the peace process is not complete. The Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Fein as the two governing partners can work together on some issues, but there remain many areas of fundamental disagreement and logjam. Various issues, such as how to prevent violent confrontations over parades and when and where flags can or must be displayed, have not been resolved. But there are numerous useful ideas in this volume that readers will find of interest. Additionally, the book would be suitable for some university courses such as those focused on conflict and negotiation. It is clear that Lessons from the Northern Ireland Peace Process is an important addition to the literature on the Northern Ireland conflict as well as the broader field of conflict studies.
