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Northern Ireland Foundation

Working for a cohesive Northern Ireland society

In the 01/03/2015 edition:

A citizens’ debate to be part of

By nifoundation on 24 Feb 2015 10:45 am

20130215 IMG_5917

A citizens’ debate to be part of
by Quintin Oliver for Northern Ireland Foundation
19 February 2015

John le Carre once observed: “A desk is a dangerous place from which to view the world”, which leads one to ponder how best to dismount from that desk and engage in the dirty world of real politics; and it is in local communities where we can find amazing people “doing politics” every day.

Mums are squeezing out the week, to fit the measly dole money they have, dads are brokering between bickering teenagers and grannies inspiring their neighbours with a commitment to caring for others, looking out for their neighbours.

They live in joined-up communities; it’s the state that seems wilfully to create unhelpful silos, bureaucratic boundaries and unhelpful paperwork.

That kind of local politics takes place every day in every community, as grinding poverty grinds communities down. More than half of those now designated as experiencing poverty in Northern Ireland are already in work — they are not work-shy scroungers; they are surviving against all the odds.

Meanwhile, our politicians are struggling to create a more favourable framework for their voters to flourish; Stormont House, fiscal autonomy, devo-max, welfare reform, flags and the past are huge issues for their consideration and dissection — they deserve our support; the ‘Make it Work’ project addresses that important endeavour. But most citizens aspire to more.

This is where the Civic Conversation strives to fill the space between these two domains – the formal political sphere and the informal community politics of families and neighbourhoods. If creativity is “joining up issues that weren’t meant to be joined up”, then this is, indeed, an act of creativity, not just to understand the issue, but to change the terms of debate for the better; to connect; to enliven the sinews of a fairer society.

So, step down from your desk, walk round to Common Grounds cafe in University Avenue, Belfast and drink in the nectar of debate, argument and ideas: join our #CivicConversation.



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National reconciliation: “Patriotism is not enough”

By nifoundation on 20 Feb 2015 04:54 pm

National reconciliation: “Patriotism is not enough”
A Journey Towards Healing seminar
by Allan Leonard for Northern Ireland Foundation
19 February 2015

In the second of a series of seminars organised by Niamh Mental Wellbing, Reverend Dr Gary Mason facilitated a civic engagement in a packed room at Skainos on the Newtownards Road, Belfast.

The discussants were Declan Kearney (Sinn Féin), Reverend Harold Good (former President, Methodist Church in Ireland) and Nelson McCausland MLA (substituting for Jeffrey Donaldson MP).

For Mr Kearney, national reconciliation is for Protestant, Catholic, Dissenter and those of no religious affiliation and beyond. His concern is that the journey of reconciliation gets reduced to a political blame game.

Yet the prospect for reconciliation “could make us all winners”, he continued, but only if based on mutual respect and the assistance of civic society.

He saw the Stormont House Agreement as a catalyst for reconciliation, by establishing the framework for such a process.

And he agreed with Rev. Mason’s assertion that we must all be willing to engage in “uncomfortable conversations”.

Mr Kearney called for a genuine unity of purpose, required now more than ever: “It’s time to make reconciliation the new phase of the peace process.”

Reverend Good began by mooting the question, do we really need reconciliation? The strong consensus in our society is, yes we do.

But what does national reconciliation actually mean?

He applied a broad dictionary definition, that of friendship between former adversaries.

Citing the progress in the relationships between the northern and southern parts of this island, as well as between the British and Irish governments, he said that the real challenge is to reconcile within this part of the island.

So what would a reconciled community here look like? Rev. Good held up a copy of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement booklet, saying, “This is a good starting point.”

Furthermore, he described the origins and practice of National Reconciliation Week in Australia, which commemorates relatively recent events.

“How about we commemorate the 1998 Agreement?” Rev. Good asked the audience.

To achieve reconciliation here would require two attitudes, he suggested:

  1. Be realistic — but just because we’re not going to reconcile the narratives doesn’t mean we can’t be reconciled as a people
  2. Be serious — do we really want it; but to reconcile is an action verb not a noun

The Reverend ended with three words of theology — confession, grace and forgiveness; or for the secular — honesty, generosity and forgiveness. He doesn’t know of an alternative word for forgiveness.

And what is forgiveness? Rev. Good suggested that only those who forgive and those who have been forgiven know what it is.

Rev. Good concluded by quoting an inscription on a statue of nurse Edith Cavell that was executed for assisting both sides during World War I: “Patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred or bitterness towards any one.”

Nelson McCausland (DUP) began by reflecting how the topic of national reconciliation has not gained much traction in contemporary political discourse.

He made two major points to the audience:

  1. There are different views of what a nation might be; it does not need to be one nation for one island, giving the example of Scottish, English and Welsh nationalism on the neighbouring island
  2. Reconciliation does not need to be for unification, citing the current majority support for the maintenance of the Union

Mr McCausland called for reconciliation within a better and shared Northern Ireland, a place that is different from the rest of the United Kingdom and from the rest of Ireland. Here we have a mixture of peoples from elsewhere — English, Irish, and Scottish.

For him, forgiveness is preceded by demonstrations of remorse and repentance: “When I became a Christian, I repented and asked for forgiveness from God.”

Finally, Mr McCausland prefers any change in society to be incremental, because of the fear that can be caused by the proposal of sudden, major change.

The first of two formal responders was Dr Donna Hicks, who emphasised the role of dignity in both the creation and resolution of conflict — the restoration of dignity in society is the crucial link.

The Harvard University associate saw the 1998 Good Friday Agreement as not an emotionally acceptable agreement, reflected in the unaddressed issues — “the wounds that are still alive and need to be acknowledged”.

Dr Hicks acknowledged that jumping straight from hatred to forgiveness could be too much to ask, yet the recognition of dignity by all sides can serve a useful interim step in the process.

The next responder, former PUP leader Mr Brian Ervine, described nationality as something like beauty in the eye of the beholder, “and there’s some ugly ladies here!” He compared the historical one-party (Unionist Party) “corrupt state has now been replaced by a two-party corrupt state”.

For Mr Ervine, the Good Friday Agreement meant a spirit of generosity that has since evaporated: “Everyone is back in their silos; we need to have a shared culture, heal the wounds.”

To emphasise his point, he described a Quaker leaflet that depicted two donkeys, tied to each other, pulling apart with the consequence of neither reaching the piles of hay. Then when the donkeys approach each pile together, they eat twice. Interestingly, this very image was used in 1975 Alliance Party literature:

20150219 National Reconciliation - Two Donkeys

 

In the further question and answer session, the issue of the definition of a victim was discussed, with a criticism that current attempts by the DUP to codify a definition “is going the wrong way” and will take away recognition from more than the intended group.

Rev. Good went further, saying that to politicise the hurt, pain and grief of others is near unpardonable. Rather, there needs to be generosity in our attitudes and support of victims and survivors.

He answered the major objection to the Eames-Bradley Report — the proposal for a financial payment to those who have suffered — with an example elsewhere whereby recipients didn’t cash their cheques but framed them. It was the act of acknowledgement that mattered.

I directed my question to Mr McCausland, suggesting that the major changes in southern society — rapprochement with the British Government, dropping of their irredentist claims to the North, the increasing secularisation of its people — presents an opportunity in their reflection coming up to the centenary of its proclamation of independence.

“If reconciliation with northern nationalists is too much, then perhaps pursue it with southern nationalists. I reckon you’d have a willing audience,” I suggested.

He responded by acknowledging how Ireland today is far from deValera’s Free State for a Catholic nation, and that commemorations in the Republic will be far more tempered than those he remembered for the 50th in 1966. “But we’ll sit and watch” how they act.

Thus reconciliation with the Republic not yet on the contemporary unionist political discourse. “I wouldn’t just sit by and watch,” I replied.



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Building relationships matter in urban planning: A Landscape Institute lecture

By nifoundation on 09 Feb 2015 06:55 pm

 

20150209 Landscape Institute - Landscape Futures

Building relationships matter in urban planning: A Landscape Institute lecture
by Allan Leonard for Northern Ireland Foundation
9 February 2015

Appropriately for his role as Chair of the OFMdFM Committee at the Northern Ireland Assembly, Mike Nesbitt MLA welcomed those in the Long Gallery attending the Landscape Institute lecture on “Building a United Community: Design & Delivery of Shared Space”.

Mr Nesbitt told the audience, “Treat this building as your own; you should, it’s yours. And treat this subject as your own, because you are the experts.”

Indeed, this begged the question of the connection between urban planners and public policy making.

Paul Mullin explained how the regional branches of Landscape Institute are encouraged to pursue matters relevant to their locales. For example, his Northern Ireland branch made a formal submission to the Together: Building a United Community (T:BUC) policy consultation, and for which they’ve been invited to make a presentation to Mr Nesbitt’s committee later this week.

Today Mr Mullin described the difference between all that can be counted, versus what is worth counting. He displayed a slide of two juxtapositioned images, each with a rounding road, a row of houses and playing children. The first was with Cave Hill in the background; the other was a 20-foot interface at St Gall’s Avenue. His point was that the contents may be similar (number of houses, children), but contextually there’s a world of difference.

Slyvia Gordon (Chief Executive, Groundwork) described how her organisation managed to reinvigorate Alexandra Park, the only park in Europe with an interface barrier.

Opened in 1888, Alexandra Park was once a tree lined, open space where folk got together and networked, then became distorted with the Troubles. Changes in demography were abetted by competing communities living cheek-by-jowl. The open spaces of the park became venues for social unrest and violence. An interface barrier was established on 1st September 1994 (the day of the IRA cease-fire!).

Kate, from the Alexandra Park Steering Group, described how its members worked together. At first they were able to get the gate opened from 9am-3pm, i.e. when children were in schools. With positive results and encouragement from the local community, this progressed to have it opened from dawn to dusk.

This steering group still meets, building relationships and trust, and developing further plans.

Dr Milena Komarova, from the Institute for the Study of Conflict Transformation and Social Justice, at Queen’s University Belfast, began by explaining that the word ‘conflict’ may not be the best descriptor, because most urban spaces have to deal with various conflicts. It’s just that ethno-nationally divided cities can easily mask ‘ordinary conflict’, such as socio-economic disadvantage.

And one response is to pursue urban regeneration through economic-led initiatives. The Solidere project is Beruit — briefly described in Dr Komarova’s lecture today and more extensively discussed in the book, Divided Cities — is criticised for concealing (or even underlining) social divisions.

I immediately think of the £400m Victoria Square Mall project, also cited as part of Belfast’s regeneration. While it is undoubtedly a commercial success, how much has it improved the lives of Belfast residents?

Another local example of unaligned thinking were plans for Crumlin Road. Within the physical boundary of this project, the professionals applied their best thinking. But Dr Komarova argued that it was a missed opportunity, because of the lack of any linkage to any other existing or planned regeneration projects along its bordering spaces.

Mobility and connections among spaces matter. They give sense to form.

Neil Porter described three commissioned projects of his company, in Nottingham, Amsterdam and Beirut.

The Old Market Square in Nottingham was an example of how changing the physicality of a space can transform it. The hard edges and incongruent steps and barriers were replaced with slopes and water features.

The Amsterdam project was about figuring out how best to get people back into a former industrial site. His company’s role was to serve as a neutral actor, giving advice to the local communities.

But their Beirut project, Garden of Forgiveness, remains unrealised.

The challenge is to find ways to share a contained space between a symbolically significant church, mosque and synagogue, in the heart of the city. Mr Porter described his inspiration coming from those he spoke with during his walks along the Green Line — how these urban residents would escape for the weekend to the mountainside, the hills, the sea. He has incorporated these elements in his design for this space.

Yet just as contested cities can serve as microcosms and focal points of wider conflict, the Israel Defence Forces’ bombing of southern Lebanon, as well as the civil war in neighbouring Syria, have put this visionary project on hold.

This fact underlined a message in all three presenters’ experiences — building relationships matter in urban planning.

For Ms Gordon, she said that this means making T:BUC a priority in Northern Ireland, properly resourced to regenerate contested sites to community assets.

20150209 Landscape Institute - BBC Alexandra Park

 



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