Letter: Culture and politics have failed the people of Northern Ireland
A letter from George Millar:
The Irish community in the British Isles are viewed as softly spoken, friendly and polite.
In Northern Ireland we have two communities from both an Irish and Anglo/Irish background. Visitors would find people engaging and helpful.
The stark reality is we have two communities divided by their cultural identity who are unwilling to pursue a path to reconciliation and compromise to improve the lives of all its people.
We have to ask what are the obstacles that continue to divide people. There are institutions both religious and cultural that exist on the island of Ireland who have to ask themselves what steps have we taken to build relationships to end this cycle of continuous conflict.
The Good Friday Agreement was seen as a model to break down the barriers that continued to divide people. Sadly, 28 years later after its signing in 1998, we are witnessing continued division in Northern Ireland. The signatories to the agreement, including the UUP and the SDLP, were swept aside to be replaced by the DUP and Sinn Fein.
The St Andrews Agreement, negotiated between the DUP and Sinn Fein in 2006, has only reinforced division and entrenched attitudes in Northern Ireland. History tells us this division has been reinforced through generations of families and communities unwilling to compromise and reconcile their differences.
Examples are the unwillingness of politicians to end segregated education that perpetuates and reinforces sectarian division.
We have to accept that the Good Friday Agreement was a negotiated armistice to end the violence and not a political agreement to bring together the Anglo/Irish pro-United Kingdom political parties and those Irish parties pursuing a united Ireland agenda.
The British and Irish governments, along with the American government, have to accept that they have failed to reconcile the warring political factions in Northern Ireland to bring about stable government in Stormont.
What is more important to the people of Northern Ireland? Is it politicians who want to address health, education, economy and infrastructure to improve the lives of ordinary people; or is it the politicians who are only interested in pursuing ideological divisive politics?
The 40% of the electorate who choose not to vote in elections are only sustaining the toxic political structures and institutions in Northern Ireland. We deserve better from all our politicians and civic leaders.
George Millar, Newtownards