The conflict in Ireland: British-Irish Dimensions

Tato Chkhaidze, Georgia

One might argue but to my mind even today the situation is similar to what it’s called ‘the Hobessian nature of the state’ - it is about ‘all war against all the rest’. Conflicts around the world still have ethnic, political and as many characters as one could imagine.

The very calm and non problematic Britain has had and probably still has the Iris conflict. The problem of Ireland lies IN THE ACT OF 1920 when it was divided into 2 parts - North the dominion of The British and South Ireland, which ‘gained’ the status of the free state. The main conflict is and was between the unionists (loyalists) and the republicans, who followed the dream of the united Ireland. In other words, the conflict was between the oppressed Catholics and dominant Protestants. The conflict started because Catholics rights were violated, they started protests through peaceful forms but were answered by powerful forces of UVF. So Catholics seemed defenseless and here was IRA to ‘’help”  them. Today IRA is labeled as the terroristic organization, but in the beginning IRA tactics were sincerely defensive rather than offensive. The political wing - Sin Fein also played an important role, and later gained 10 % of electoral votes. But the only way was the political talks than the terroristic acts. So the labourist Blair had tried to negotiate with the terrorists as a second side (quite unusual for political talks as the 2 sides have to be states of parties etc). 

The last Belfast so called Good Friday agreement followed the Anglo-Irish and Framework agreements (the most important ones), was the resolution for the conflict, in a way that it stated that  any decision about the future of the island of Ireland will be made by the people of North as well as South Ireland by the referendum. The problem of Ireland is not solved yet as the referendum has not taken place. Why? Because demographically Catholics are far fewer than Protestants so in case the referendum is held Protestants who are the majority will vote for the Union with Britain. Only then will the referendum make sense, when Catholics will become equal or more in quantity than they are now.

So the perspectives are that the final resolution will be by no means made peacefully by the referendum as the will of the Irish people is prior to anything that might be artificially imposed upon them. Last but not the least, the RIRA (that is the offspring of IRA, having the only significant military power now) should decommission entirely and the Catholics, who are for the partition, should outnumber the unionist Protestants. Let’s wait, the time will show but as it seems the all war against all the rest should be regulated but the peaceful processes.