ARCHIVE 2004 No. 2
News, references and links on the history of Ireland
by Paul-Frederik Bach
Extracted with the permission of Irish American Information Service
References   Links   Home


The Irish American Information Service
News from IAIS
- extracted with the permission of IAIS

09/29/04 13:23 EST
DERMOT AHERN APPOINTED NEW IRISH FOREIGN MINISTER
Irish Premier Bertie Ahern has announced the appointment of Dermot Ahern as his government's new foreign affairs minister. Bertie Ahern made the announcement at the Irish parliament, the Dail, in Dublin today, as part of his cabinet reshuffle. Mr Ahern, the current minister with responsibilities for communications, the marine and natural resources, was the favorite for the post. He takes over from current foreign affairs minister, Brian Cowen.

09/28/04 15:18 EST
BRITISH INTEND TO CHANGE ASSEMBLY RULES
The British government intends to press ahead with changes to the way any future Northern Ireland Assembly is run. The details were contained in a speech which Northern Ireland Secretary Paul Murphy had been due to deliver at the Labour Party conference in Brighton today. Mr Murphy felt unwell shortly before he was due to make his address and was taken to hospital for routine tests.

It was thought his speech might be rescheduled for Wednesday, but he will take some time off to recover instead. Disagreements about the Stormont rules have prevented a deal to restore devolution. However, Mr Murphy wrote in his speech that the institutions of the Good Friday Agreement "should not be beyond amendment or improvement".

09/23/04 13:50 EST
ACRIMONY AS TALKS END WITHOUT AGREEMENT
Sinn Fein's Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness are in London for a meeting in Downing Street after last night's talks in Stormont failed to produce a solution to the current impasse. They are expected to meet with British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Last night`s talks ended in acrimony, with the DUP and SDLP blaming each other. British and Irish officials are currently considering coming up with their own proposals for resolving the row over ministerial accountability and north-south issues.

09/20/04 13:30 EST
DUP FACES HEAT FOR NO RESOLUTION AT LEEDS
Authoritative sources in Dublin have said that during the Leeds Castle talks to restore devolution to Northern Ireland, the IRA had effectively promised to put all its weaponry beyond use by the turn of the year in return for firm DUP commitments to share power with Sinn Féin. In a release today, the British and Irish governments released a joint-statement stating their belief that the issues of ending paramilitary activity and putting weapons beyond use could have been resolved. However, the insistence by the DUP to make fundamental changes to the power-sharing arrangements in the Good Friday Agreement scuppered any chance of a comprehensive deal.

09/18/04 11:42 EST
LEEDS TALKS END WITHOUT DEAL BUT PROGRESS MADE
The Irish premier Bertie Ahern said this afternoon that progress was made after 34 hours of talks at Leeds Castle ended without final agreement but admitted "it was not possible ... to secure total agreement on the institutional issues".

"Our hope is that it will be possible to close that loop and thereby secure a fully comprehensive agreement providing for the restoration of the Northern Ireland assembly and the executive. However, quite frankly it is only the parties themselves who can agree to changes to the institutions."

A new round of talks planned between the Northern Irish Secretary, Mr Murphy and the Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen, at Stormont, possibly as early as next week. Early indications are that the deal stalled because the DUP attempted to make changes to the Belfast Agreement.

09/16/04 08:46 EST
MOMENT OF DECISION FOR NORTH SAYS BLAIR
Talks began in Britain today between Northern Irish parties and the Irish and British governments. The talks, being held at Leeds Castle in Kent, are an attempt by both governments to bring the Northern Executive and Assembly back on track by next January. The governments are hopeful a deal can be done.

09/01/04 13:36 EST
NEXT THREE WEEKS ARE VITAL - MURPHY
The next three weeks are vital for breaking the deadlock in the peace process, the Northern Ireland Secretary has said. Paul Murphy was speaking ahead of a fresh round of political talks on Wednesday. The talks at Stormont, hosted by Mr Murphy, concentrated on issues arising out of a review of the Good Friday Agreement. The British Prime Minister's chief of staff, Jonathan Powell, held talks with Sinn Fein, the DUP and the Alliance Party.

08/25/04 09:21 EST
CLINTONS IN IRELAND FOR VISIT
Upwards of 1,500 people lined up outside an Irish booksellers in Dublin this morning for a book signing with former US president Mr Bill Clinton. CLinton, who played such a pivotal role in the Northern Ireland peace process, was cheered by thousands when he turned up for the event at the center city bookstore. It was his first time in Dublin since his Presidency ended in January, 2001, and there was not a dissenting voice to be heard as he autographed 1,500 copies of his memoirs, 'My Life'.

08/21/04 13:11 EST
DEVOLUTION UNLIKELY THIS YEAR - DODDS Nigel Dodds, DUP
Democratic Unionist Party MP Nigel Dodds has cast doubt on a return to devolved government in Northern Ireland before Christmas. Intensive negotiations involving the British and Irish Governments and the political parties are to take place next month to address the political impasse. However, Mr Dodds says he finds it difficult to envisage Stormont in operation by 25 December.

08/06/04 10:49 EST
COMMISSION BANS ARDOYNE APPRENTICE BOYS MARCH
The Parades Commission has barred a contentious loyal order parade from passing a nationalist area in north Belfast next Saturday. Nationalists in the Ardoyne area and Sinn Fein had said they would oppose the parade by the Protestant Apprentice Boys through the area. One band and the Ligoniel Walkers Club had applied to parade past the Ardoyne shops before boarding buses for the main demonstration in Londonderry on 14 August.

The march has passed off without major incident in recent years, but events during the return leg of an Orange Order feeder parade on the Twelfth of July, hardened the mood against any loyal order parade. On Friday, the commission ruled that the parade was barred from that part of the route between the junction of Crumlin Road and Hesketh Road and the junction of Woodvale Parade and Woodvale Road.

08/04/04 10:08 EST
NATIONALISTS TO OPPOSE LOYAL MARCH THROUGH ARDOYNE
Nationalists in the Ardoyne area of north Belfast are to oppose an Apprentice Boys' parade past Ardoyne shops on August 14. Residents took the decision to oppose the Ligoniel Walkers Club march at a meeting last night, where they also discussed the violence which followed an Orange Order parade in the Ardoyne area on July 12. The Sinn Fein president has said the Parades Commission should prevent the parade from marching in north Belfast.

07/23/04 09:53 EST
SEPTEMBER 16 SET FOR ALL-PARTY DEVOLUTION TALKS
Dates have been provisionally pencilled in for the all-party talks aimed at attempting to restore Stormont, it was confirmed today. British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Taoiseach Bertie Ahern are set to become involved in the negotiations in a three-day 'summit' on or around September 16. But Northern Ireland Secretary of State Paul Murphy and Irish Foreign Minister Brian Cowen are likely to have kick-started the intensive round of talks earlier in the month.

07/20/04 09:57 EST
IMC REPORTS 15,000 BRITISH TROOPS STILL IN NORTHERN IRELAND
British troop levels in Northern Ireland are still three times higher than the 5,000-strong garrison planned once the paramilitary threat is lifted, the Independent Monitoring Commission (IMC) has said. Overall troop levels are now at just under 15,000. In its second report published today, the IMC said half of all British military spy towers in Northern Ireland have been demolished in the last five years.

07/12/04 13:48 EST
MINOR TROUBLE AT NORTH BELFAST MARCH ROUTE
Some trouble has been reported at a contentious Protestant Orange Order march in north Belfast. Sinn Fein's Gerry Kelly made an appeal for calm as nationalist youths clashed with security forces shortly after Orangemen passed by the nationalist Ardoyne area amid heavy security this evening. Restricted by the Northern Ireland Parades Commission, members of the Ballysillan lodge were returning after attending Northern Ireland's largest Orange demonstration, in south Belfast.

Thousands of Orangemen took part in the annual Twelfth of July demonstrations throughout Northern Ireland, on the biggest day in the Protestant marching calendar. The Orangemen have been demonstrating at 19 venues across the North to commemorate Prince William of Orange's 1690 Battle of the Boyne victory over Catholic King James II.

Security was tight in the Ardoyne area in the morning and evening, as Ballysillan lodge members went to and returned from the main demonstration in the south of the city. In the nationalist Ardoyne area, creens were erected by the security forces to shield the Orangemen from nationalist protesters, while the Ardoyne shops were blocked by a line of police vehicles.

07/09/04 12:55 EST
ORANGE ORDER KEEPS 12TH PLANS UNDER WRAPS
The Orange Order has refused to reveal details of how it plans to protest at a Parades Commission's decision to place restrictions on march in North Belfast on Monday. However, a spokesperson for the Orange Order has denied it plans to block roads in and out of Belfast on Monday evening.

The Ligoniel Lodge's march passes the Ardoyne shops interface where Orange Order supporters and local nationalist residents clashed last year. The Parades Commission has ruled that only Lodge members and notified marshals can march on the return route between the junction of Woodvale Road and Woodvale Parade and the junction of Crumlin Road and Hesketh Road and that no music should be played.

07/04/04 08:02 EST
DRUMCREE MARCH PASSES OFF PEACEFULLY
The annual Orange Order parade to Drumcree church in Portadown, Co Armagh passed off peacefully today, raising hopes of a quiet summer marching season. Orangemen, who have been banned from marching from Drumcree Parish Church through the nationalist Garvaghy Road since 1998, were again barred by the barrier manned by the police and the British army.

After taking part in a church service, Orangemen vowed to continue their efforts to walk down the Garvaghy Road. Their District Master Mr David Burrowes also hit out at the decision of the Parades Commission to ban them yet again while allowing Orangemen in Belfast last week to march along a controversial route.

"Since we were stopped in 1998 the Portadown District has continued to parade to this spot each Sunday," he said.

07/03/04 14:31 EST
LOW LEVEL SECURITY OPERATION FOR DRUMCREE
Police in Northern Ireland, backed by the British army, are preparing the annual security operation for the annual Drumcree standoff with members of the Orange Order in Portadown, Co Armagh. However, the operation is to be low-level compared to previous years, reflecting optimism the parade will pass off peacefully.

06/28/04 09:03 EST
ORANGE ORDER TO MEET OVER DRUMCREE MARCH BAN
The Orange Order in Portadown, Co Armagh, is meeting this evening to decide on whether to seek a review of the Parades Commission's decision not to allow next weekend's Drumcree parade pass along the nationalist Garvaghy Road.

06/26/04 10:42 EST
IRELAND SUMMIT PASSES OFF PEACEFULLY
Despite the presence of 4,000 gardai, 2,000 Irish Defence Forces personnel and an unknown number of Secret Service agents, a small group of protesters managed to have a significant, if unintentional, impact on the US-EU security summit in Co Clare. The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern said he raised the issue of the treatment of prisoners in Iraq with President Bush at an hour-long meeting. After bilateral talks with Mr Bush this morning, Mr Ahern said in a statement: "President Bush is very much aware of the abhorrence that the people of Ireland and of Europe felt at the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by coalition forces."

06/26/04 06:44 EST
THOUSANDS PROTEST BUSH VISIT TO IRELAND
Several thousand people are taking part in anti-war protests in Co Clare today as the Taoiseach hosts a summit with president George W Bush. Buses travelled from around the country to the event, organised by the Irish Anti-War Movement and the NGO Peace Alliance. The marchers are currently stopped on the N18 around a mile away from the summit at Dromoland Castle, which is ringed by an eight foot high metal security fence.

06/25/04 07:13 EST
HEAVY SECURITY FOR BUSH TRIP TO IRELAND
More than 6,000 gardaí and trooops are on duty in the Shannon area as part of the security operation marking the visit of President Bush to Co Clare this evening for an EU/US summit. Last night President Bush told Irish television that he had embarked on the invasion and occupation of Iraq because he thought it would "make the world a better place".

06/24/04 06:52 EST
CAMPAIGNERS MOBILIZE AGAINST BUSH FOR IRELAND VISIT
Campaigners in Ireland have urged members of the public to come out in their thousands to protest at the visit of US President George W Bush to the country tomorrow to attend an EU-US summit. The Stop Bush Campaign, organised by the Irish Anti-War Movement (IAWM), Peace and Neutrality Alliance and the NGO Peace Alliance, held a press conference today on the eve of the President's visit. Mr Bush arrives in Ireland tomorrow night and leaves on Saturday afternoon.

06/19/04 06:26 EST
SINN FEIN ANGER AT TALKS DELAY
Sinn Fein chairman Mitchell McLaughlin claimed today it was unacceptable to allow unionists to set the pace for the peace process. The British government announced last night it is to hold a review of progress ahead of intensive negotiations in September.

06/18/04 13:33 EST
PREMIERS TO ENGAGE PARTIES IN DEVOLUTION TALKS
The Irish and British premiers are to host talks with the Northern Ireland parties near London next week. Agreement to hold the meetings was reached during talks today between Mr Ahern and Mr Blair during the European Union summit in Brussels. The bilateral meetings are being held in an effort to breaking the current political impasse and restore the institutions at Stormont.

06/15/04 03:34 EST
DEVOLUTION TALKS TO RESUME TODAY
A review of the Good Friday Agreement, aimed at kick-starting the political process in Northern Ireland, is due to resume. The political parties have been invited to talks which are expected to take place at Stormont today.

06/14/04 15:32 EST
EU RESULTS COMPLETE - NORTH AND SOUTH
The DUP's Jim Allister has topped the poll in the European election with Sinn Fein's Bairbre de Brun and the UUP's Jim Nicholson also taking MEP seats. Mr Allister polled 175,761 first preference votes and Ms de Brun 144,541. Both were elected on the first count. Mr Nicholson polled 91,164 first preference votes. He was elected at the third stage with 147,058 votes. It is the first time a Sinn Fein candidate has taken one of Northern Ireland's seats at the European parliament.

And in the EU election in the Republic, Sinn Féin's Ms Mary Lou McDonald won the fourth and last seat in the Dublin constituency to became the party's first MEP. Ms McDonald won her seat in the constituency along with Fine Gael's Mr Gay Mitchell, Fianna Fáil's Mr Eoin Ryan and Labour's Mr Proinsias de Rossa.

06/08/04 07:42 EST
PROGRESS MADE IN TALKS WITH GOV.T'S SAYS ADAMS
Progress has been made in talks involving Sinn Fein and the British and Irish governments on restoring devolution in Northern Ireland, Gerry Adams said today. As his party embarked on a final push for votes in the European Parliament elections, the Sinn Fein leader said parties in Northern Ireland would after polling day enter the most difficult and challenging period of negotiations since the Good Friday Agreement.

ARCHIVE

Read the full stories at The Irish American Information Service

Monday 20 September 2004

Parties genuine about reaching agreement

Northern Ireland’s political parties are genuine about trying to resolve the outstanding issues from the three days of intensive talks at Leeds Castle, Secretary of State Paul Murphy has said.

The parties will meet tomorrow (Tuesday) at Parliament Buildings with Paul Murphy and Irish Foreign Minister Brian Cowen to discuss unresolved issues around Strands I, II and III of the Agreement.

Progress was made during the talks at Leeds Castle and the two Governments issued a Joint Statement on Saturday which said that they believed the issue of arms in politics in Northern Ireland can finally be resolved.

Possible changes to the three strands of the Good Friday Agreement will be discussed this week but the Governments Joint Statement made it clear that what is on offer now is “reasonable in its substance and historic in its meaning”.

Speaking this morning, Secretary of State Paul Murphy said: “The talks at the weekend did not fail, we didn’t complete them and we need to finalise them.

“I’m not saying that we’re not facing difficult decisions, difficult negotiations over details and we’re going to start them tomorrow in Parliament Buildings.  The accountability issue is something which the parties will have to address.

“We as Governments are going to try and see whether we can come up with formulas which can provide a compromise so that people can work through it.

“But I have a very strong feeling, having been in Leeds Castle for the past three days, that parties are going, genuinely, to try and sort these issues out.”


Saturday 18 September 2004

Joint statement by the British and Irish governments at Leeds Castle, Kent

After three days of intensive discussion we believe we can resolve the issues to do with ending paramilitary activity and putting weapons beyond use. However, as a matter of urgency all parties need to conduct consultations on the possible agreement, before we can proceed. But subject to a satisfactory outcome to these consultations, we can finally and at long last resolve the issues of arms in the politics of Northern Ireland, thereby allowing the two governments to implement all the remaining elements of the Joint Declaration, agreed last year.

There is, however, not yet comprehensive agreement on how to change Strands I, II and III of the Good Friday Agreement without damaging the fundamentals of the fair and inclusive basis of the Agreement, although we believe the parties are close. Discussions will continue between the parties supported by Paul Murphy and Brian Cowen next week to bring them to an early conclusion.

But let us make one thing clear. The Governments believe that what is on offer now is reasonable in its substance and historic in its meaning. We are determined to move ahead. On the one hand there must be the complete end to violence in all its forms. On the other there must be a genuine, lasting and stable commitment to power-sharing. If agreement cannot be reached, when it is clear it should be, we will find a different way to move this process forward.


Europeans - Working Together.
Programme of the Irish Presidency

That is the theme of the Irish Presidency and this is reflected in the Work Programme for the Irish Presidency.

The Irish Presidency will see the historic enlargement of the European Union to include ten new Member States on 1 May 2004. This event marks an historic ending of the post-war division of Europe and it is important that this opportunity is taken to bring all Europeans together to build a better Europe for us all.

The Irish Presidency Programme has been drawn up in the context of the Multi-Annual Strategic Programme for 2004-2006 and the Operational Programme for the Council for 2004 which has been drawn up by the Irish and Dutch Presidencies.

The Irish Presidency Programme identifies four priority objectives. These are:

A successful enlargement of the EU to include 10 new Member States; Working Together for Economic Growth, with emphasis on pursuing the Lisbon Strategy to make Europe the most competitive economy in the world; A Safer Union, by developing the Union as an Area of Freedom, Security and Justice; Global Engagement with the Outside World. The EU will work towards the promotion of a fairer, peaceful and more secure world.

Source: www.eu2004.ie

If you wish to read the Irish Presidency programme in full, please click on the document below.
Work Programme of the Irish Presidency


The Whipping System

Whips have an important role in party business within Parliament, par-ticularly when the voting strengths of the main parties are close, as in the 1992-1997 parliament. For major votes it is imperative for government and opposition to maximise the turnout, and the Whips try to ensure that every member from their party turns out to vote.

The duties of Whips include:
* keeping MPs and peers informed of forthcoming parliamentary busi-ness
* maintaining the party's voting strength by ensuring members attend important debates and support their party in parliamentary divisions
* passing on to the party leadership the opinions of backbench mem-bers.

The term 'whip' also applies to the weekly circular sent out by each Chief Whip to all their MPs or peers notifying them of parliamentary business.

Source: The UK Parliament


Not enough clarity on IRA decommissioning
David Trimble, MP, MLA, Upper Bann, 22/10/2003

Party leader David Trimble suspended the process following Tuesday’s third round of decommissioning because of the failure of the IICD to create the necessary confidence.

Mr. Trimble said: “Our position was that we would see what people said, see what they did and then we would make a decision.

“There had been an agreement on a sequence of events which were to take place in the course of today. The sequence was to begin with statements from republicans with a speech from Mr Adams that was endorsed by the IRA.

“Now the speech was good, there were very good things in it and we were very much encouraged by that.

“Then we were expecting to have a report from General de Chastelain on transparent acts of decommissioning and there was clear agreement between us and republicans when we were talking that there should be greater transparency.

“We had made it very clear to republicans and the governments and the general that what we needed was a clear transparent report of major acts of decommissioning of a nature which would have a significant impact on public opinion and demonstrate that we were in a different context.

Unfortunately we had not had that; we have not had that at all. There possibly may have been those substantial acts of decommissioning but we have not had the transparency or an adequate report from it.

“Under the agreed sequence the next step would have been a number of statements from myself about our desire to see the administration reformed.

“Everyone knows about our desire and how hard we have worked over the last number of weeks in order to have meaningful elections to an Assembly.

“However I am sorry I have to say that in view of the failure of the IICD to create the necessary confidence and because of what the IICD has done we probably have less confidence than we had an hour ago, because of that I regret I am not in the position to make those statements.

“We are in effect putting the sequence on hold.

“What we will do is we will make arrangements to consult the party and hold a special UUC meeting.

“This will give republicans who foolishly imposed obligations of confidentiality on the IICD and the IICD the opportunity to repair the damage to the process that has been done this afternoon. I hope that opportunity it taken and I hope we will be able to resume the sequence that is put on hold.”


References in English  

Irish Proclamation of Freedom Read by Patrick Pearse from the Steps of the General Post Office, Dublin, Ireland on Easter Monday, April 24, 1916

The Irish Government, June 1997:
Bloody Sunday and the Report of the Widgery Tribunal

Full text of the Good Friday Agreement, April 10, 1998.

Investigation into the human rights in Northern Ireland, September 29, 1998
Statement by Rosemary Nelson, solicitor for Garvaghy Road residents

Nobel Peace Price Award, December 11, 1998:
Nobel Address by David Trimble, First Minister and leader of the Ulster Unionist Party
Nobel Address by John Hume, leader of the catholic SDLP

George Mitchell's Peace Principles, November 1999:
Statements of November 16 and 17, 1999, by Ulster Unionist Party, Sinn Féin, Progressive Unionist Party and IRA
George Mitchell's statement, November 18, 1999

Suspension of Northern Ireland Assembly and Executive. February 2000:
Decommissioning reports, Mandelson in House of Commons, IRA statements

Peace process resumed. May 2000
British-Irish joint statement and IRA statement.

Inspection of IRA weapons dumps, June 2000
Arms inspector's report

Two versions of Irish history

Abortion Referendum March 7, 2002

IRA Statement on Decommissioning April 8, 2002

IAIS Election Analysis 2002

Speech by Tony Blair, British Prime Minister, at the Harbour Commisssioners' Offices in Belfast, 17 October 2002.

Work Programme of the Irish Presidency, 2004.


An Irish bookshop: Read Ireland

Danish Irish Society

Wesley Johnston's History of Ireland
Ireland History in Maps
Irish History on the Web
North West Ireland - Gaoth Dobhair

The CAIN Project (The Northern Ireland Conflict)
The Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland

Sinn Féin Homepage
Ulster Unionist Party
The Irish Republican Socialist Party
Fine Gael
Ulster Democratic Unionist Party, DUP
Fianna Fáil
The Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
Progressive Unionist Party
Ulster Nation
The Social Democratic and Labour Party

The Irish Times
The Wild Geese (USA) Irish soldiers in exile



December 16, 2001  Top

About my homepage

Since my first visit to Ireland the history of Ireland was a puzzle to me. Why has this beautiful country with its charming and hospitable population become the arena of a never-ending conflict? Differences in religion, language, race or culture gave no reasonable explanation. Which coincidence has caused so much suffering in Ireland while other countries such as Denmark had nothing but trifles to quarrel about?

I started reading about Ireland and about its history in order to understand just a bit of the Irish paradoxes. Although I started from the very beginning the matter was still incomprehensible. I therefore began to write down the headlines in Danish.

In 1998 when I got my own website I wondered what to put there. My family, my career or my garden could not attract much attention. But my Danish survey of the history of Ireland would be different from most other websites, so I uploaded the whole story.

I considered my web-project to be complete by then. However the beginning of 1998 was to become a turning point in the history of Ireland. The Good Friday Agreement created optimism and a new hope of lasting peace. I therefore added new chapters on the peace agreement and on the ups and downs since then. Obviously there is still a way to go before a real peace has been achieved and right now I can't see the end of my project.

A lot of people wrote to me asking for details or references. This has proved the need for a brief Danish version of the history of Ireland. In 2001 more than 50 persons on the average have been visiting my website every day.

However about 10 % of the visitors on my website are non-Scandinavians. I have added this page in order to serve these people with some information about my project and with some of the important references.

I considered reference documents and speeches most interesting in the original English language. I also have to admit that a proper translation of the documents to Danish is not that simple. On the other hand the number of visitors to the reference pages in English has been very limited. Therefore all information in English will be concentrated in this English section of my website together with selected news.

I have no intention of making an English version of the whole story. I have neither the ability nor the capacity to write in English and several excellent sites already offer that sort of information.


E-mail me your comments and questions

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Opdateret d. 1.1.2009