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| Image courtesy of Sippakorn |
In October 2011, a number of experts from Britain, Northern
Ireland and Ireland gathered to debate the Northern
Ireland Peace Process in an Age of Austerity at
a roundtable at Birkbeck College, University of London. Contributors to the
roundtable provided articles for a Political Quarterly special issue in early
2012. Articles concentrated on how tougher economic times would affect
dissident Republicanism and Protestant paramilitarism, as well as on the
broader question of how the Peace Process would be affected by government
cutbacks. This was followed by a successful discussion
of the papers by leading Northern
Ireland politicians, journalists and academics at the Political Studies
Association conference in Belfast in April. The general view, with some
dissent, was that many of the dynamics that were driving both the Peace Process
and sectarian violence had a long trajectory, and would not be greatly affected
- for good or ill - by economic austerity.
As we enter 2013, the themes discussed in the special issue
continue to resonate. The tempo of dissident Republican activity remained high
throughout 2012, with numerous successful and foiled attacks. In November,
David Black, a 52-year-old father of two, was shot on the M1, becoming the
first prison officer to be murdered in Northern Ireland in almost 20 years.
Dissident republicans joined forces to form a reconstituted IRA, promising
further attacks in the New Year. Meanwhile, Belfast City Council's decision in
December 2012 to cease flying the Union flag apart from on designated days led
to weeks of rioting by loyalist protesters. Though Unionist politicians
condemned the violence, many supported the aims of the protesters. The violence
reflected a theme of continuing Unionist angst over their demographic, economic
and political decline which began in the dying days of the Stormont period. As
with much else in the province, the vagaries of peace and conflict appear to be
rooted in long-term dynamics.
Details of the special issue can be seen here and you can read four of the articles that came out of the
conference here free:
Martyn Frampton: Dissident Irish Republican Violence: A Resurgent Threat?
Henry Patterson: Unionism after Good Friday and St Andrews
Eric Kaufmann
Birkbeck
