It has been difficult to achieve peace in Northern Ireland because the two sides have vastly opposing views. The conflict between the Catholic nationalists and the Protestant unionists was created because of their opinions. The Catholics were seeking independence from Britain and the Protestants were loyal to the crown. The hatred between both sides also led to drastic events such as Bloody Sunday.

Ireland was divided and the IRA was formed in 1969, devoted to both removing British forces from the Northern Ireland and to unify Ireland. They sought the establishment of a republic, and used armed forces to oppose British rule. Because of this, the IRA were considered to be a terrorist organisation by many, as they also used bombings and assassinations to force the British government and achieve their rights. The IRA was formed as the clandestine armed wing of the political movement Sinn Fein. 

The peace treaty was created to allow regular meetings between ministers of the Irish and British governments on matters affecting Northern Ireland. The treaty outlined cooperation in four areas: political matters, security and related issues, legal matters, and the promotion of cross-border cooperation. The treaty states that any change in the status of Northern Ireland would only come about with the consent of the majority of the people in Northern Ireland. 

In my view, peace can never truely be achieved in Northern Ireland, accounting for the radically different views of the two sides. For as long as the Catholics and Protestants hate one another, complete peace is in-achievable among Northern Ireland.

Shizuka &a Mathilda

Following more than a decade of violence, in the early 1980s, the Irish and British Governments began working closer together to find a political settlement that would be acceptable to the whole community in Northern Ireland.

This resulted in the Anglo-Irish Agreement, which was signed by both Governments in November 1985. It allowed the Irish Government to put forward views and proposals on Northern Ireland affairs.

It also put in place structures to help the two Governments work towards finding a lasting solution to the conflict.

The agreement is made up of two inter-related documents, both agreed in  on Good Friday, 10 April 1998:

1 a multi-party agreement by most of Northern Ireland's political parties (the Multi-Party Agreement);

2 an international agreement between the British and Irish governments (the British-Irish Agreement).

The agreement set out a complex series of provisions relating to a number of areas including:

▪ The status and system of government of Northern Ireland within the United Kingdom. (Strand 1)

▪ The relationship between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. (Strand 2)

▪ The relationship between the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom. (Strand 3)

With the peace process in play the conflict has stopped but the segregation and tension still remained. This is why Im my opinion the even has been lessened in conflict and violence, however the uncertainty and tension still remains in the residents of Ireland.

Peace in Ireland has been difficult to achieve because of a variety of reasons including poverty, divided loyalties and because of the obvious discrimination between Protestant and catholic factions. 

Poverty in Ireland has caused selfishness which may have resulted in some people in Ireland being distrusting. An example of this is that many people in Ireland can not afford proper education or housing fees so there houses begin fall apart. Lack of education can cause people to make rash decisions without thinking about the future results. 

Discrimination in Ireland has caused people to become distrusting and uncomfortable. An example of this is that someone from their own faction, such as the Catholics, will not go close to the opposite factions area as many fear that they may be beaten or even jailed.

 In Ireland the Catholics and the Protestants have different loyalties because of this there rules are different and there political views are different. An example of this is that in Ireland the Protestants are allowed to hold parades the celebrate battles where the Protestants defeated the Catholics. These parades can cause more trouble in Ireland as the Catholics find this extremely disrespectful but in Northern Ireland this is completely legal

The unionist population felt itself to be in a secure position of dominance in Northern Ireland society. Even the most deprived working class Protestants reckoned they were superior to Catholics. The Catholic population, by and large, accepted this and didn't really take part in a society from which they were excluded. This all changed with the civil rights movement of the 1960s.

In the 1960s Northern Ireland went through a troubled time known as "The Troubles" or internationally as "The Northern Ireland Conflict". Unionists/loyalists, who are mostly Protestants and have British nationality, wanted Northern Ireland to remain within the United Kingdom. Irish nationalists/republicans, who are mostly Catholics, wanted Northern Ireland to leave the United Kingdom and join a united Ireland. 

The main participants in the Troubles were republican paramilitaries such as the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) and the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA) and loyalist paramilitaries such as the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF).

In the mid-1960s, a non-violent civil rights campaign began in Northern Ireland. It comprised groups such as the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association (NICRA) and many others. Some of their stated goals were:

an end to job discrimination(They had evidence that Catholics/nationalists were less likely to be given certain jobs)

an end to discrimination in housing allocation(They had evidence that unionist local councils gave housing to Protestants ahead of Catholics/nationalists)

Members of the IRA helped create NICRA and push its movement.

There was violence between the two sides for a while, a significant act was Bloody Sunday. Bloody Sunday was the shooting of thirteen unarmed male civilians by the British Army at a anti-internment rally in Derry on 30 January 1972. The march had been organised by NICRA.

Bloody Sunday greatly increased the hostility of Catholics and Irish nationalists towards the British military and government and it significantly elevated tensions. As a result, the IRA gained heaps more support, especially recruits from local places.

In the 1981 Irish hunger strike, ten republican prisoners died of starvation. The first hunger striker to die, Bobby Sands. The catholics reckon he's a legend because of this, they think of him as a mytar.

The Anglo-Irish Agreement was a 1985 treaty between the United Kingdom and Ireland which helped bring an end to the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The treaty gave the Irish government an advisory role in Northern Ireland's government while confirming that there would be no change in the constitutional position of Northern Ireland unless a majority of its people agreed to join the Republic.

The Good Friday Agreement a big development in the Northern Ireland peace process of the 1990s. Northern Ireland's present system of government is based on the agreement. The agreement also created a number of institutions between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, and between the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom.

The agreement is made up of two inter-related documents.

A multi-party agreement by most of Northern Ireland's political parties (the Multi-Party Agreement);

An international agreement between the British and Irish governments (the British-Irish Agreement).

The Good Friday Agreement more or less “technically ended the conflict”. I say technically, because while officially there is peace, both sides are still bitter towards each other.

More than 3,500 people were killed in the conflict, of whom 52% were civilians, 32% were members of the British security forces, and 16% were members of paramilitary groups

The peace treaty stopped conflict, but is has not stopped tension and segregation. Peace in Ireland is hard to achieve, as there is poverty, divided loyalties and discrimination between Protestant and catholics(members from either sides wont want to go close to the other side). 

There will never be peace, as long as the two sides hate each other. While there is a peace treaty, it does not change the fact that both sides still have bitter feelings towards each other, meaning there isn't really any peace. 

Why do i say they hate each other? Well, the Protestants still hold parades to celebrate battles where the Catholics where defeated. The Catholics understandably find this disrespectful, thus creating tension. Another example is the walls that still stand.

The clash of ideologies means that the two sides never agree with each other, meaning there will always be conflict, thus no peace.

The paramilitary tactics used still leave a mark on their society. There cannot be peace when both sides refuse to leave their pasts behind them

The peace treaty may have ended conflict, but it has just allowed the hatred that both sides feel to build up, and eventually, if nothing is done(both sides need to change their opinions of each other) that anger might just boil over.

Joshua Yeo David, the fluke 

Since 1969 Irish Catholics have wanted the separation of the Island of Ireland from the United Kingdom whilst British Protestant unionists wanted the island of Ireland to remain as British and a part of the United Kingdom.

The formation of the IRA or Irish Republican Army which was an Irish Catholic movement supported by political party Sinn Fien and largely led the fight against British occupation on the Island of Ireland.

Whilst the IRA largely was a peaceful organisation at first as they progressed their tactics became increasingly violent and gruesome. The group was notoriously responsible for the use of deadly force and attacks against both civilians and the British police. 

Explosives and firearms were commonly used and contributed significantly to the death toll of 3,000. Events such as Bloody Friday in which 22 bombs throughout Belfast were detonated in the space of 75 minutes killing 9 people and injuring 130 and the symbolic bombing of the Old Bailey courthouse which killed a civilian. Earned the IRA a position as not only a dominant political movement but also as a terroist organisation. Such attacks heavily impacted on the IRA’s media realations. They were listed an illegal organisation and were banned from interviews and making public appearances. Those who had neutral or supportive views of the IRA changed their ideals due to these attacks. However the IRA saw it as a way to get the changes they demanded. 

However, British forces also used deadly force against civilians. The use of reckless shooting was common amongst British forces but they were never prosecuted for their crimes unlike many of the IRA operatives including Michel Gilmarten. Bloody Sunday is just one example of the crimes committed by the British Protestants.  Bloody Sunday or Bogside massacre was one of the deadliest offences caused when British forces opened fire on a peaceful protest shooting 28 unarmed civilians and killing 14. The. British fired not only on the protesters but also on those helping the wounded. Others were also shot with rubber bullets and run down with armoured vehicles.This attack also had large consequences in the form of multiple “revenge” attacks from the IRA as well as a back clash from the public which became more lenient towards the IRA. 

Times known as the “the troubles” were considered the most violent. Intense fighting and bombings dominated headlines and kept Northern Ireland and the British government on edge. During these times civilians were subject to random searches as well as being limited from doing the most basic things such as driving a car to shopping. During these times more than 1700 people were murdered as a result of the of the fighting.

Large walls separating catholics and Protestants were placed around Northern Ireland specifically in Belfast to segregate between themselves. People of either sides were not allowed to cross over into each other's territories. Civilians movement was limited and segregated. Large murals symbolising the territories of Protestant and catholic neighbourhoods were also painted everywhere only adding to the already tense atmosphere. Segregation was also rife from as young as the ages of 4. Schools were either Protestant or catholic and both taught their own curriculum and their points of views but not each other's.

Many peace agreements have been put in place to stabilise and end the fighting both within Ireland and with Britain.  

The Good Friday agreements is considered as the document that ended the war. The British handed over the Island of Ireland and excluded it from the United Kingdom. However Northern Ireland would after 6 months have the opportunity to rejoin the UK which they did. This agreement allowed Ireland to create is own parliamentry system, government and banking system becoming independent of British Protestants. 

Agreements have eased the tensions and officially ended the war in Northern Ireland and as a result segregation is lowered and Irish and British civilians are more tolerant than compared to 20 years ago. As a result violence has drastically dropped and its is getting rarer to see armed  police or individuals in public. However the wounds are not healed whilst the physical violence has declined both the physical and psychological walls exist and peace and calm does not truly exist but on the surface. If peace is to ever occur it will only be after both the Protestants and catholics truly understand each other.