Visiting Northern Ireland re-emphasized for me how much work towards meaningful inclusion of young people in democratic processes and decision making needs to be done because at the center of all institutions throughout and after the conflict were people below the age of 25, as the highest demographic, the most affected and involved. A reminder that school curricula should be an instrument for young people to be well equipped to not repeat the cycle of conflict and cement their future involvement as instigators of peace rather than conflict, towards achieving sustainable peace for the world. 

The aspect of ethical commemoration; valuing life at an equal standard in loss and in security is necessary at all local and government institutional levels to remove the absolutist mindset that is a colonial legacy passed on between generations, the hope is that we consider all lives equal and in that spirit do not justify violence/killing as a mean to an end of oppression and unjust systems by skillfully informing public debate/discourse on dealing with the past in Northern Ireland and the rest of the world suffering loss as a result of conflict.   

The way words are used in storytelling as a form of remembering play an important role in determining how a group of people is perceived and can be an avenue to learn, through this trip and assigned viewings like say nothing I was reminded why it is important to be careful how we frame and communicate about conflict and commemoration but it also clearly defined the role of the different tracks of diplomacy in fostering intended collaborative communication for peace beyond the community level without choosing or leaning towards a side, using a neutral stance to mitigate conflict and resolve grievances in the different sides of the community. It is with experiential knowledge today that I commit to continue learning from the past and understand my role in communicating without bias for peace to prevail. 

The only challenge I faced was a tedious visa process as a ugandan student to be able to visit Northern Ireland required visa fees and took over 3 weeks to get my passport back which also made it hard for me to get a second visa to visit the republic of Ireland missing a day of the trip in Dublin, but despite all this I enjoyed the rest of my stay.

On a personal level, though, everyone deserves to experience being a Derry girl between the hills and the river Foyle of the beautiful green Derry city, the rain on a sunny day in Belfast city home of the legendary Titanic, and the cross-generational traditional music culture of Northern Ireland. The instrumentation and the voices are absolutely breathtaking; you will leave singing and dancing, I know I did! 

Kelly, G. (2005). Storytelling as the vehicle? In Healing Through Remembering, Healing Through Remembering. Healing Through Remembering. https://healingthroughremembering.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Storytelling-as-the-vehicle_2005.pdf 

 Arthur, P. (1990). Negotiating the Northern Ireland Problem: Track One or Track Two Diplomacy? Government and Opposition, 25(4), 403–418. http://www.jstor.org/stable/44482532 

Professor Paul Arthur

Paul Arthur is Professor Emeritus of Politics at the University of Ulster and the former Director of its Graduate Course in Peace and Conflict Studies. His research interests have included the politics of Northern Ireland, British-Irish relations, and the nature of political violence.He started off the discussion with a historical walk down memory lane where he talked about how he’d participated in the civil rights movement march that led to bloody Sunday where he then went on to explain the pillars of peaceful protest (Popova, 2015) namely; 1. determining where injustices are alive, 2. Negotiation, 3. self-purification, 4. taking action, with an emphasis on self-purification he explained that a lot of the troubles conflict was because people were not well trained to purify themselves from violence so what would have been a peaceful protest built up a conflict of continued retaliation. The problem was that there was no shortage of solutions, but all based on a British solution which was factionalized and intimidatory and a big part of it being willful ignorance he went on to explain that Northern Ireland needed a full reform. 

The role of the US government in the peace processes of Northern Ireland stands as a success story of U.S diplomacy. The United States wholeheartedly supports peaceful means for finding a just solution that involves both parts of the community of Northern Ireland, as well as the Governments of Great Britain and Ireland. In the event of such a settlement, the U.S. Government would be prepared to join with others to see how additional job-creating investment could be encouraged to the benefit of all the people of Northern Ireland. In a statement made by Carter in August 1977 (P. J. McLoughlin, Alison Meagher, 2019) events such as the celebration of St Patrick’s day at the white house echoed how much the US stood with people of Irish descent having Peace, as well as political pressure across the UK exerted by the USA. 

Track 2 diplomacy is an unofficial, informal interaction between representatives of adversary groups that aims to develop strategies and create an environment that could contribute to the resolution of their conflict, it can serve as a forum to bring together the different elements to the Northern Ireland problem and put it in touch with a wider community which might have some expertise and good will to expend (Arthur,1990) through unofficial backdoor partnerships with international actors and local paramilitaries, the establishment of technical committees made up of experts to deal with issues without suffering at the hands of bureaucracy, the role of arts; film and writing in telling the stories of the Northern Ireland conflict has created and continues to create massive awareness on conflict dynamics as well as the steps that have been taken such as the Anglo-Irish agreement that set the pace for the good Friday agreement to ensure that Northern Ireland today is not involved in violence. 

A light moment with Professor Paul Arthur

References 

Popova, Maria. (2018). “Martin Luther King, Jr. on Justice and the Four Steps to Successful Nonviolent Resistance”, The Marginalian (2018, March 18th) Martin Luther King, Jr. on Justice and the Four Steps to Successful Nonviolent Resistance – The Marginalian 

McLoughlin, P. J., & Meagher, A. (2019). “The 1977 “Carter Initiative” on Northern Ireland.” Diplomatic History, 43(4), 671–698. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27212432 

Arthur, P. (1990). “Negotiating the Northern Ireland Problem: Track One or Track Two Diplomacy?” Government and Opposition, 25(4), 403–418. http://www.jstor.org/stable/44482532 

The Northern Ireland conflict(the troubles) is often considered to have been a clash between the protestants and catholic communities within the 6 counties of northern Ireland, with the third party being the British army, which was seen from both sides as the keeper of peace and protection in the 70s when violence had erupted, it is with this context that we recognize each of the individuals on either sides had a different experience and role at the time, we then delved into understanding what the status quo today is post the good friday agreement.

In a powerful afternoon panel discussion comprised of a former Irish republican prisoner who grew up as a Catholic in a Protestant neighborhood, a former loyalist prisoner from North Belfast, and a former British soldier posted in the region at the time of the troubles shared their lived experiences and present day experiences, moving the discourse from the concept of “them versus us” to “we as a community” in Northern Ireland. They each acknowledged that the conflict went beyond religion and was more of a constitutional issue, recognizing that there were no significant differences between Catholics and Protestants at the core. They spoke about the power of collaboration with each other today in understanding their roles in the Troubles and taking accountability for the flaws of all sides in the story, telling these stories to help young people understand what they can do differently today, especially since they had all joined these entities before turning 18. They emphasized how young people can engage in bridging the gaps across communities and move away from the absolutist mindsets and ideologies that had taken root in Belfast during the Troubles. 

Reconciliation is an overarching process that includes the search for truth, justice, forgiveness, healing, and so on; therefore, both a goal and a process (Bloomfield et al, 2003). reports highlight that despite significant peacebuilding efforts segregation in education, economic deprivation and structural inequalities still hinders its success(Watt,2023), on the aspect of reconciliation the panelists explained that reconciliation is not about forgiving and forgetting or memory revision, but about accepting the past and looking forward, aware of the deep-seated trauma of division and advocating for more dialogue and social integration between the different sides of the communities as the path to healing while also recognising that there is new aspects in the community like immigrants.

The panelists ended the discusion sharing some of their regrets, which included ending contact with friends and family, harming many people, including their own neighbors, and the impact of the unresolved trauma on their loved ones.with an expression of gratitude for the interconnected era of social media, which has made young people more aware of the present circumstances, histories, and empowered them to advocate for peace, both within their communities and internationally,they hope that collaborative discussions such as this will resonate with young people within and outside of Northern Ireland to be active participants of dialogues that foster peace. 

Resources. 

Bloomfield, D., Callaghan, N., Chea, V., Freeman, M., Hamber, B., Hayner, P. B., Huyse, L., Uvin, P., Vandeginste, S., & White, I. (2003). Reconciliation After Violent Conflict: A handbook (D. Bloomfield, T. Barnes, & L. Huyse, Eds.). International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance. https://www.idea.int/sites/default/files/publications/reconciliation-after-violent-conflict-handbook.pdf 

Ann Watt.Reconciliation and deprivation – twin challenges for Northern Ireland. (2023, May 25). Pivotal Public Policy Forum.Reconciliation and deprivation – twin challenges for Northern Ireland | Pivotal Public Policy Forum  

a group picture with the panelists and participants of the trip

The tree in the background represents branches of collaborative peace built through the shared space.

Hi, my name is Princess Inshuti. I’m currently pursuing my Master of Arts in International Studies at Chapman University. Originally from East Africa, Uganda, Kisoro home to the beautiful mountain gorillas shared across Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.   

Previously, I had the opportunity to serve as an EAC (East African Community) Youth Ambassador, where I actively participated in regional peace and security dialogues and youth consultations, contributing to discussions on peer review processes under the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM). I also took part in the Kenya Ya Amani campaign during the 2022 Kenyan elections, an initiative that focused on meaningful youth participation in the election process and peaceful voting. These experiences gave me firsthand insights into youth inclusion, democratic processes, and the vital role of dialogue in preventing conflict. 

As a young person from a region familiar with the conflict trap, I look forward to exploring the narratives that have shaped Northern Ireland’s journey through conflict and towards peace. I’m eager to learn how the region has navigated historically unjust systems, religious divisions and to find peer lessons that can inform peacebuilding efforts in diverse settings around the world. 

Personally, I’m excited to engage with people from different backgrounds and learn from their lived experiences, reinforcing the power of storytelling and intergenerational communication in addressing conflict. I hope to gain practical skills in fostering strategic dialogue and understanding, skills that are essential for meaningful research in conflict resolution, and for enabling communal participation in peacebuilding efforts. 

I anticipate that navigating sensitive discussions and cultural nuances will be a challenge, but I see this as an invaluable opportunity to grow and refine my abilities in strategic peace communication and reconciliation. I look forward to sharing ideas and learning from others’ experiences and research in the field as we work together towards a more just, peaceful, and inclusive world.