N. Ireland's Choice
Peace plans are more than pieces of paper. If they've been negotiated with the active involvement of all sides, they embody the hopes of people who are ready to move beyond violence and conflict - people who want normal lives.
That certainly was the case with the peace plan worked out three years ago in Northern Ireland. It was a solid blueprint, requiring the participation of Catholics and Protestants. New, joint institutions of government were formed. Hopes were high. But it has been a stony road.
And if the Irish/British last-ditch proposal to get peace back on track, made public this week, doesn't get a positive response by next Monday, the 1998 Good Friday agreement could be shelved indefinitely.
The proposal calls for forward movement on issues important to both sides: further reform of the province's Protestant-dominated police force, phased withdrawal of British forces, and, crucially, verifiable disarmament of militias, notably the Irish Republican Army.
The trouble is, these steps (all in play from the peace plan's beginning) continue to meet strident opposition. No one, so far, has been willing to move very far unless the other side is seen to be moving first, and farther. This week's proposal, which has the backing of the US as well as the Irish and British governments, is designed to get all sides moving simultaneously on major issues.
It's a common-sense effort. But common sense is scarce at the extremes of both communities in Northern Ireland. An allegiance to the past, whether armed struggle or symbol-filled reliving of past victories, sets in quickly when progress is stalled. The uptick of violent incidents in recent weeks attests to that.
One of those incidents, in particular, should spur some soul-searching: the killing of a Protestant youth by Protestant drive-by thugs outside a Catholic sports club (the boy's best friend was Catholic). Such occurrences suggest that a U-turn toward separatism and conflict is worse than anything courageous reengagement with the peace process might require.
In Northern Ireland, terrorism and oppression have been deep problems. But the local political leaders who made a remarkable start toward peace three years ago were not terrorists or oppressors.
They had put those characterizations behind them, at least to a significant degree. They should now do so again, seize the proposal put forward by Britain and Ireland, and take the steps so urgently needed to write a brighter history for their land.
