The Other View

A friend of mine, travelling recently in central Europe telephoned me to enquire about the grave events surrounding the collapse of the "institutions" at Stormont. With many millions around the world, she was following events on Sky television and CNN. My friend was anxious for the future of Northern Ireland and its people, as hordes of media people spoke solemnly of the deteriorating political situation in Belfast.

In contrast to my worried friend holidaying abroad, the majority of people in Belfast, Dungannon, Armagh, Carrickfergus etc., appeared quite relaxed about the "crisis". Unlike other periods in the past such as the time of interment, the Ulster Workers Council strike, the Hungerstrikes or indeed at the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, most people appeared almost indifferent to political developments. The onset of winter seems to be of more concern to many than the dilemma facing our elected representatives in Stormont and the difficulty this breakdown causes the Government in London.

This is not to say that leaders of political parties and their activists, the small band of analysts addicted to Northern Ireland politics and of course the media, were not in a state of hyper activity at the time. Yet what else would one expect, these people have a vested interest in the "process", but to many ordinary people they all appear remote and inaccessible.In many ways, the lack of obvious tension - apart from some interface areas in Belfast - across the region indicates at the very least that there is no great appetite for a return to physical conflict. It can also probably be said that people believe that current difficulties are temporary and that everything will, most likely, be sorted out in time.

For a number of years now, politics in Northern Ireland has appeared to be a process of ongoing gamesmanship and ballyhoo. Deadlines are set and demands are made and then consensus breaks down once again. Yet the drama appears in reality to be never as bad as the pundits estimate it to be. Cease-fires can be restored, arms can be decommissioned, apologies can be made, crossborder bodies can be sat on, old enemies can be sat down with and television studios can be shared with those once deemed as great Satans. It is no surprise therefore that the average man or woman travelling in a black taxi believes that things will be little different this time and that the "folk on the hill" will soon be back in business doing what they enjoy.

This may be correct. Most commentators and observers are in agreement that if there was one thing the differing political parties up at Stormont had in common, it was their love for being there. Former die-hard republicans occupied the granite building with relish. Aggressive members of the DUP clung to cabinet office in spite of having to share space with Sinn Feiners. Ardent feminists had tea and scones with chauvinistic old (and young) males from every party. And the paymaster in London smiled benevolently on the lot. Surely it is believed, the impetus and the dynamic must bring them all together again to continue with their dearly loved albeit acrimonious local governing. In spite of the seemingly wide spread complacency, a few words of caution are in order. There is a growing distance emerging between politicians (and their parties) and the population in general. Stormont is still a remote and distant edifice for many.

With its architectural grandeur, ranks of posh civil servants, professional media folk and well-dressed politicians, it can hardly be otherwise. Devolved government it may be, community politics it is not.

So long as local government at Stormont (or the promise of local government as is now the case) seems capable of delivering something worthwhile and beneficial, people will probably remain indifferent or complacent. While problems and difficulties remain submerged for the most part there is every likelihood that tensions in Northern Ireland will remain below the surface. The prevailing theme will be one of political inertia.

The problem of course is that Northern Ireland, in common with almost every other community, is not assured of ongoing tranquillity or inertia. There is, as always, sectarian pressures at work in this part of the world. The inter-communal strife currently occurring in Belfast ensures that deep running differences remain unresolved. Moreover, these local conflicts continue to have the potential for spreading wider afield.

Against the ever-present back drop of historic differences in this part of Ireland, there are other major difficulties facing the area. Social services and health services are coming under ever increasing strain. Without commenting on the merits or otherwise of current hospital closures west of the Bann, people there believe they are not being treated fairly. Unemployment, while not at an historic high, has a detrimental and debilitating effect on many communities in rural and urban areas.

An event that passed almost unnoticed at the time of the suspension of institutions was the closure of Harland and Wolfe shipyard in Belfast. A pertinent fact is that while the government in London will be happy to restore the institutions at Stormont, it has no intention whatsoever of replacing the jobs lost throughout all industries in Northern Ireland over the last quarter century. Equally pertinent is the fact that should the institutions be restored, they do not have the power to restore full employment never mind prosperity to this region.Herein lies the conundrum of local government in Northern Ireland. After huge efforts to create the necessary consensus, involving compromises on many dearly held principles, the body constructed has little effective power because ultimately it is not a sovereign parliament. Objectively speaking therefore the institutions at Stormont are designed to pacify protagonists or settle a row rather than to provide the most efficient form of governance.

The reality is that the answer to Northern Ireland’s problems do not lie in merely restoring the institutions at Stormont.Concentrating on reviving local government in Northern Ireland and ignoring any other possible outcome is at best a poor use of time and effort and at worst it is a risky lapse of concentration on vital issues. Attempting to sustain what is fundamentally flawed is rarely productive. History is never kind to those determined to maintain obsolete or redundant social, economic or political structures.

It is time to review the options that might give people in this part of the world a real say in how they govern themselves. This will require a genuine commitment to examining ideas and concepts that are not currently being widely discussed, that are not frequently being reviewed by the print and/or broadcast media, that may not be applauded by the governments in London and Dublin.

Some ideas will undoubtedly challenge some of our deepest held convictions. New thinking is nevertheless essential. We need not agree for example, with the article by Paul L. Fitzsimmons in the last issue of The Other View but we have to give credit to someone prepared to 'think outside ' the very restricted box.

A new approach will of necessity be difficult. The benefit though, would be that we would at least be working on a task that could deliver lasting and permanent results rather than keep us on the Groundhog Day treadmill that the London and Dublin establishments have contrived for us.

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