Northern Ireland’s Lessons for Lasting Peace: Tackling Inequality and Exclusion

The conflict in Northern Ireland, which led to over 3,720 deaths and 47,000 injuries, is often thought of as a conflict over territory and constitutional status. In truth, its roots lie deeper in issues of inequality and human rights abuses, exacerbated by actions of the security sector. Twenty-five years into the peace process, significant progress has been made in addressing these issues, but neither inequality nor human rights abuses have been fully resolved.

Regarding inequality, the very first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, James Craig, explicitly declared in 1934 that the region was a “Protestant State for a Protestant People,” leading to the allocation of resources and power along sectarian lines. Catholics faced discrimination not only in voting rights but also in property ownership, housing, and employment.

The Role of the Security Sector: A Catalyst for Violence

The security sector also played a crucial role in the conflict. The onset of the violence is closely linked to the presence and actions of British security forces in Northern Ireland. The Royal Ulster Constabulary’s violent response to the peaceful Civil Rights Movement in the late 1960s triggered riots, leading to the deployment of the British Army. This escalated into tragic events like Bloody Sunday in Derry in 1972, when British soldiers shot and killed 13 unarmed protestors. The truth of that day was obscured as the narrative shifted to falsely portray the protestors as armed, thereby justifying the killings and denying justice to the victims and their families.

It took over 30 years and £191 million for the Bloody Sunday Inquiry to reveal the truth and formally acknowledge the families’ loss: the protestors were unarmed, and the Army had fired first. On the day the inquiry’s findings were released, U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron delivered a landmark speech in Parliament, offering an official apology and condemning Bloody Sunday as “unjustified and unjustifiable” in 2010. This unprecedented move marked a significant moment in the conflict’s history, as it formally recognized the wrongdoing.

Both socio-economic inequality and grievances related to policing and justice were crucial in driving and prolonging the conflict. Consequently, addressing these issues became central to the peace process and the Good Friday Agreement. Grassroots input and community involvement were essential in this effort, as securing community support for a new police service was vital for its success.

Transforming Policing: Community-Driven Reforms and the Path to Accountability

An Independent Commission was tasked with engaging communities to develop recommendations for a new police service in Northern Ireland. Human rights were established as a key guiding principle for these reforms. New oversight bodies, such as the Policing Ombudsman and Policing and Community Safety Partnerships, were created with community and political representatives to ensure accountability. Many former members of the Royal Ulster Constabulary were offered compensation packages to retire early, and a recruitment campaign aimed to ensure that 50 percent of recruits were Catholic. The reformed police service was downsized, adopted new uniforms and logos incorporating both Irish and British symbols, and was renamed the Police Service of Northern Ireland rather than being called a police “force.”

Community input also drove the negotiation and inclusion of provisions in the Good Friday Agreement tackling inequalities and human rights abuses. A coalition of non-governmental organizations, trade unions, and community activists pushed for equality and participation to be central to the agreement. Their efforts secured a legal commitment to consider equality of opportunity in policymaking and mandated consultation with affected communities on policy decisions impacting their lives. Additionally, employers with workforces of more than 10 employees were required to monitor hiring practices to prevent discrimination.

The Price of Peace

What often goes unrecognized is the sacrifices made by communities in Northern Ireland to achieve peace. They played a crucial role by sharing their knowledge, designing solutions, and rallying their wider community towards reconciliation and peace. However, the credit for peacebuilding efforts too often goes to Presidents, the Prime Minister, and other politicians, overshadowing the immense contributions of ordinary people. Achieving peace required a massive leap of faith, which included difficult compromises. Many had to forgo justice by accepting an agreement that allowed those who had killed their loved ones to be released early from prison, often to a hero’s welcome. Additionally, peace required the relinquishing of territorial claims, with the Irish government amending its constitution to remove its claim to Northern Ireland.

Too often, this narrative goes unheard. We must ask: to what extent is peace serving those who paid this price? While the violence has mostly subsided, and there have been notable successes, these achievements often resulted from collaborative efforts. Rigorous employment monitoring has led to workplaces being recognized as crucial spaces where communities interact despite many people still living in single-identity housing estates and sending their children to single-identity schools.

The Power of International Solidarity

Investment codes of conduct, such as the McBride Principles, highlight the importance of international solidarity. Developed in the 1980s by New York City Comptroller Harrison J. Goldin, these nine fair employment principles were designed for U.S. companies operating in Northern Ireland and eventually became law across the United States. The McBride Principles played a crucial role in challenging and breaking the structural patterns of inequality by mandating fair hiring practices and focusing on underrepresented groups in the workforce. Despite these advancements, much work remains to address the lingering issues fully.

Socio-Economic Challenges Post-Conflict

Addressing socio-economic inequalities is crucial for tackling the root causes of violence. However, two decades after the peace agreement, the areas that experienced the highest number of conflict-related deaths—West Belfast and North Belfast—remain among the most impoverished. Suicide rates have surged in the years following the conflict, now being the highest in the United Kingdom, with economically deprived areas experiencing three times as many suicides as non-deprived areas. The post-conflict trajectory of Northern Ireland’s devolved government has been turbulent, with numerous periods of collapse, leading some to lose faith in the promise of a devolved, power-sharing government that represents all traditions.

Global Lessons: Strategies for Building Lasting Peace

Our successes and failures provide critical lessons for building sustainable peace:

• They highlight the necessity of establishing a human rights-compliant police force to address not only street conflict but also gender-based and familial violence. 
• They stress the importance of community involvement, not just in designing peace agreements but also in ensuring their implementation through adequate and sustained funding over the decades. 
• Finally, they underscore the value of building partnerships, extending beyond the “usual suspects” to include international experts, local groups, and the private sector. This approach helps leverage knowledge, attention, and investment to meet the needs and rights of those most affected by the conflict, who took a courageous step by voting for peace 26 years ago.

*Nicola Browne, Atlantic Fellow for Social and Economic Equity, was hosted by the Center on International Cooperation (CIC) at New York University for the AFSEE–CIC Visiting Fellowship in July 2024.