From Sunningdale to Good Friday: The Challenge of the Relationship Between Politics and Paramilitaries for Achieving Peace in Northern Ireland During The Troubles
Abstract
The British government made three official attempts to end the conflict in Northern
Ireland, known as The Troubles: the Sunningdale Agreement of 1973, the Anglo-Irish
Agreement of 1985, and the Good Friday Agreement of 1998. Drawing on media coverage
and the actual text of each agreement, as well as the considerable body of scholarly
research on each individual process, this project identifies the issues confronting
the British government in all three instances: which organizations in Northern Ireland
to include at the negotiating table, what role the British government would play in
Northern Ireland in the treaty’s aftermath, what security measures to take to stop
the violence while ensuring human rights, how to address the political challenges
posed by paramilitary organizations, and whether or not to include other nations in
negotiating the peace, as well as in Northern Ireland’s affairs once the Troubles
ended.
The Good Friday Agreement succeeded where its predecessors failed primarily because
of the decision to include representatives of paramilitary groups despite their history
of complicity in violence. All sides finally agreed to participate in a political
power-sharing arrangement that militants on both sides long viewed as a betrayal to
the cause for which they willingly killed and died. The Good Friday Agreement’s utilization
of the Republic of Ireland and international authorities strengthened the commitment
to new political structures. Finally, the British removal of Direct Rule and military
occupation, as well as reforms to Northern Ireland’s policing and justice, signaled
the end of The Troubles. This project concludes by discussing recent events since
the end of The Troubles that potentially affect the maintenance of peace in Northern
Ireland.
Type
Master's thesisDepartment
Graduate Liberal StudiesPermalink
https://hdl.handle.net/10161/16676Citation
McKaughan, Cynthia Rudd (2018). From Sunningdale to Good Friday: The Challenge of the Relationship Between Politics
and Paramilitaries for Achieving Peace in Northern Ireland During The Troubles. Master's thesis, Duke University. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/16676.Collections
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Rights for Collection: Graduate Liberal Studies