New book explains the paramilitary prisoners’ push for peace in N
Thu, 03 Mar 2011 13:58:00 GMT
“…we interviewed some 150 former paramilitaries who had served often lengthy jail terms...”
The book was launched at a special event at Queen's University, Belfast, on Thursday 1 July 2010. Former paramilitaries from both sides of the political divide were among those in attendance.
Leader of the Research Project, Professor Jim McAuley
It was in Ulster's prisons, among those jailed for their role in paramilitary organisations, that an important impetus for the peace process was set in motion. That is the surprising finding of a new book for which a team of academic investigators adopted an innovative approach to the saga of Northern Ireland, concentrating not on the political big-hitters who hogged the headlines, but on the rank-and-file of the conflict.
Awarded £80,000 by the Leverhulme Trust, Professor Jim McAuley and Dr Catherine McGlynn, of the University of Huddersfield, joined by Professor Jonathan Tonge of the University of Liverpool and Dr Peter Shirlow, of Queen’s University, Belfast, interviewed some 150 former paramilitaries who had served often lengthy jail terms. The result is a book entitled Abandoning Historical Conflict? subtitled Former political prisoners and reconciliation in Northern Ireland.
One of the most frequent comments from the ex-prisoners interviewed was that they did not want the next generation in Ulster to undergo the same experience that they had. The numbers of them who have been reconvicted for paramilitary offences is extremely low and many of the former prisoners have been actively involved in ensuring the success of the peace process, often participating in restorative justice schemes and reconciliation projects.
It was while they were in prison – serving terms as long as 20 years – that many paramilitaries were forced for the first time in their lives to think hard about the path they had taken, according to Professor McAuley, who led the research project.
As a result, they have undoubtedly played a significant role in the continuation of the peace process, he added.
"The really interesting thing is that none of them, Republican or Loyalist would say that they have given up on their fundamental political positions. But what they are agreed on is that the time for violent transformation is over."
The status of jailed paramilitaries in Ulster varied over time. At some periods they were regarded as political prisoners, at others, they were treated purely as criminals, especially while Mrs Thatcher was in power.
"But it was noticeable that in the run up to the Good Friday Agreement their status again changed and they were more or less recognised as de facto political prisoners. They organised their own activities in prison and quite a lot of those involved self-education projects," said Professor McAuley.
This helped to bring about a change of outlook and Professor McAuley says that the overall findings of the new book are optimistic – "They clearly identify how people can make a transformation from war to peace."
Most of the analysis of the Ulster peace process has been "top down", he said, emphasising the roles of politicians such as Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern. This is one reason why the Leverhulme Trust-funded project, which resulted in the new book, was important.
"It was apparent – as it is in any peace process – that progress will only happen if you convince the people on the ground that that is right the direction to go in. And there was a lot of fairly intensive debate among the prisoners themselves on the merits of the peace process. It certainly wasn’t obvious that the prisoners would go along with what was happening on the outside."
Professor McAuley has been researching Ulster politics, especially Loyalism, for 25 years. He and his colleagues drew on their network of contacts in the Province in order to find a roster of 150 interviewees, fairly equally-divided between Loyalist and Republican.
"I don't think this was a project that we could have done cold. The strength of it is that we could draw on our contacts. Other people would not have been able to do that."
