Northern-Ireland finally united?

In the morning edition of the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten there was an article about Northern- Ireland and how the Catholics and Protestants are now putting behind (or trying) all that happened during the years of “troubles”. Approximately 3,500 people died during the troubles that did not really end until 2005 when the Irish Republican Army (IRA) agreed to be disarmed. Since then the British and Irish governments have cooperated to try to find out how to deal with the conflict between Catholics and Protestants in the region.

Earlier this week a commission with members from both the Irish and British parliament presented what they had worked out. They want to give the families of all the victims circa 12,000£ each. However it's what the commission defines as victims that are making people furious. The families till the IRA members will also receive compensation for their pain. Especially Protestants have protested against this policy. They are comparing this as if the families of the 9/11 terrorists should receive compensation for having lost their relatives when they decided to attack the US. Instead of reconcile Protestants and Catholics the compensation plan has made old hate blaze up again.



To be honest I don't blame the people of Northern Ireland for hating this new conciliation plan so much. Especially the women in the article Michelle Williamsons who lost both her parents in the Shankill road bombing, who will have to accept that the parents of the IRA member who killed her parents should receive compensation doesn't make sense at all. At the same time I think it is important to try to move on into the future. If you are going to dwell on what happened in the past it's going to be hard to make progress. But with a history like the one Northern-Ireland has you should not forget it either. In my opinion they should make a new proposition for a reconciliation agreement. Relatives of civilians who lost their lives should receive compensations, but not those who happened to have a son who blew himself up in the air killing 10 people just because of their faith. They are victims as well but they should not get compensation because a family member is a murderer. Other than that the annual memorial day is a good idea, same with the fund that was established to solve unsolved murders.



I personally do not think that the Protestants and Catholics in Northern-Ireland will ever be united for a long long time. It's only 10, 5 years since the Omagh bombing where 29 people lost their lives. Time might move on but peoples hate and distrust will stay the same for a long time.