Northern Ireland parties seal power-sharing deal

GarzaUK · 03-26-07, 05:32 PM

Northern Ireland parties seal power-sharing deal - Yahoo! News UK

Quote:

BELFAST (Reuters) - Northern Ireland's main Protestant and Catholic parties agreed on Monday to start sharing power on May 8 after their leaders put aside decades of hostility to hold a historic first meeting.

Hardline Protestant cleric Ian Paisley, leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), sat side-by-side with Gerry Adams, head of the mainly Catholic Sinn Fein, to announce the ground-breaking deal to govern the province.
"We must not allow our justified loathing of the horrors and tragedies of the past to become a barrier to creating a better and more stable future for our children," Paisley said after the meeting at Belfast's imposing assembly building.

Britain and Ireland have pushed Northern Ireland's feuding parties for years to agree to share power, seeing it as a crucial step towards cementing peace in the province of 1.6 million people that has been torn by years of violence.

This may belong in the Europe forum, but I had to share everyone my absolute joy in what happened in a small troubled corner of Europe today!!

As a Northern Irish man who grew up with the last 10 years of the terrorist war, (I still remember the loyalist terrorists marching and training on our streets) I am in a mixture of shock, happiness and relief.
The war lasted 30 years, a war between British unionists and Irish nationalists, the peace process took 10 years. 10 years of false hopes, scandals, breaking down and starting up again. So, so long.

Two men, both sworn enemies for decades, sat down today, and together did a deal for peace. I feel a sense of acheivement, I don't know why, I didn't force to them talk to one another or broker a deal. Maybe I feel an acheivement of being a citizen of Northern Ireland, these two radicals were entwined in my life, these two men are the two demons of our small country. And they made peace. If they can do it, we all can do it. Israel and Palestine if we can do it , you can do it too!!!

Now both men have delivered us our society’s greatest achievement. A future without the horror of the past. A future where terrorism, bigotry and radical religion are part of the past.

Peace, peace at last. We have waited 45 years for it.

I'm away for a celebration drink!

Voidwar · 03-26-07, 09:40 PM

good for you and yours

Hatuey · 03-26-07, 09:54 PM

Yeah cheers mate. However I have to ask...how fragile is this peace? Will one screw up destroy it?

Red_Dave · 03-27-07, 09:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GarzaUK

Northern Ireland parties seal power-sharing deal - Yahoo! News UK

This may belong in the Europe forum, but I had to share everyone my absolute joy in what happened in a small troubled corner of Europe today!!

As a Northern Irish man who grew up with the last 10 years of the terrorist war, (I still remember the loyalist terrorists marching and training on our streets) I am in a mixture of shock, happiness and relief.
The war lasted 30 years, a war between British unionists and Irish nationalists, the peace process took 10 years. 10 years of false hopes, scandals, breaking down and starting up again. So, so long.

Two men, both sworn enemies for decades, sat down today, and together did a deal for peace. I feel a sense of acheivement, I don't know why, I didn't force to them talk to one another or broker a deal. Maybe I feel an acheivement of being a citizen of Northern Ireland, these two radicals were entwined in my life, these two men are the two demons of our small country. And they made peace. If they can do it, we all can do it. Israel and Palestine if we can do it , you can do it too!!!

Now both men have delivered us our society’s greatest achievement. A future without the horror of the past. A future where terrorism, bigotry and radical religion are part of the past.

Peace, peace at last. We have waited 45 years for it.

I'm away for a celebration drink!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/grap...03/27/matt.gif