Another Direct Ruling of Britain over Northern Ireland

The peace efforts in Northern Ireland have come to a severe deadlock again.

As of the midnight of Oct. 15th(8 a.m. on Oct. 15th KST), the local government of Northern Ireland, including its executive and legislative bodies, discontinued to function for an unlimited time. Thus, the direct ruling by the British government has taken its place.

Under the Northern Ireland Peace Agreement, the British central government relegated its power to the local government and parliament. Nonetheless, Catholics and Protestants have kept fighting with each other, putting the function of the local government on hold 4th time by this.

Sources say that, by this measure, the local government has got to face the greatest risk ever since the agreement. Some newspapers reported that the direct ruling by the British would last for more than one year.

In preparation for its direct governance, the British government has appointed parliamentarian Angela Smith and Ion Pierson heads of its Ministry of Northern Ireland in Belfast.

What triggered this reaction on the part of the British government were the espionage activities by members of Sinn Fein, who are also the officials of the local government, within the local government and the legislative body. The Sinn Fein party is a political organization of the IRA, which in turn is a paramilitary body of the Catholics of Ireland.

Resented Protestants requested that the central government should expel the two Sinn Fein officials out of the local government.

David Trimble, Chief Minister of the local government and a Protestant, met with British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Oct. 8th and threatened to withdraw his party, which occupies the majority, out of the local government, unless the British government would eliminate all the Sinn Fein members in the local government within one week.

Fearing that the government of the Northern Ireland would spin out of the control of the central government, Prime Minister Tony Blair, after consultation with the Northern Ireland’s Prime Minister who represent the Catholics, has decided to stop the functioning of the local government.

▽ Origin of Confrontation in Northern Ireland = The history of the power struggle in Northern Ireland traces back to the year of 1170. In that year, the British army invaded a northern area of Ireland. In 1541, the King of England also ruled Ireland as its king. In the 17th century, the British government adopted a policy, under which British Protestants were moved into the northern part of Ireland in large number. In the following year of 1801, it forcefully merged with Ireland.

The Catholics in Ireland, however, established the IRA in the 20th century, and, after a fierce war which lasted for years, finally regained independence from Britain.

But Britain did not recognize the independence of the 6 Northern Ireland regions, since many Protestants lived there. Ever since, the blood struggle between Catholics and Protestants of Northern Ireland has continued, costing both sides 3,600 lives from the year of 1969.

From June of 1996, 8 political fractions began peace talks to finish the bloody battles in Northern Ireland, and, finally in April of 1998, reached a peace agreement.

Jei-Gyoon Park phark@donga.com