Barack Obama: 'Work still to be done in Northern Ireland'

[Baluarte]

Barack Obama: 'Work still to be done in Northern Ireland'

US President Barack Obama has said urgent work is still needed in the peace process in Northern Ireland

In a statement, ahead of the 15th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, he said people and political parties had to work together to build trust.

He said America would continue to be a friend and partner in the process.

The April 1998 agreement was signed after nearly two years of political talks.

In a statement, President Obama said: "As Easter approaches, we mark the 15th anniversary of the signing of the Good Friday Agreement.

"The people of Northern Ireland and their leaders have travelled a great distance over the past 15 years.

"Step by step, they have traded bullets for ballots, destruction and division for dialogue and institutions, and pointed the way toward a shared future for all.

"There is urgent work still to be done - and there will be more tests to come.

"There are still those few who prefer to look backward rather than forward - who prefer to inspire hate rather than hope.

"The many who have brought Northern Ireland this far must keep rejecting their call."

Mr Obama said "every citizen and every political party" needed to work together in service of "true and lasting peace and prosperity".

He said the United States would be there as a friend and partner "at every step of the way".

"That is the message I will carry with me when I visit Northern Ireland and attend the G-8 Summit in June," he added.

"On behalf of the American people, I salute the people and leaders of Northern Ireland and the model they have given to others struggling toward peace and reconciliation around the world.

"I pledge our continued support for their efforts to build a strong society, a vibrant economy, and an enduring peace.

[Eddie Quist]

The only work needed to be done is for occupied Ireland to be immediately reabsorbed into the Republic, Britain to compensate Ireland with some €250 billion for this and to resettle in Britain any Orange cunt who wants to stay British.

[Albion]

The only work needed to be done is for occupied Ireland to be immediately reabsorbed into the Republic, Britain to compensate Ireland with some €250 billion for this and to resettle in Britain any Orange cunt who wants to stay British.

Most people in England, Scotland and Wales would be glad to see NI part of the republic. As for compensation, send the request to Edinburgh, Unionists that shout the loudest are all of Scottish origins.

[rhiannon]

I love the UK/Ireland. This cannot be helped as it is my most significant ancestral homeland.

However, in regards to the troubles in Northern Ireland....

My own sympathies have always lied with the Catholics in this struggle for independence. Eire should be her own.

[Loki]

Northern Ireland is the best Ireland. Papism is poison.

Go Orange!!

[rhiannon]

Northern Ireland is the best Ireland. Papism is poison.

Go Orange!!

But you're not Protestant either, rather you're an atheist, so why side with the Protestants? I choose the Catholics because they are simply fighting to retain their independence as a country apart from Britain. Ireland shouldn't have to abide the British Monarchy if she has no wish to.

If living in a Protestant country is that important, there are three other countries in the UK to choose from

[Baluarte]

Free Ireland indeed.

[Albion]

I love the UK/Ireland. This cannot be helped as it is my most significant ancestral homeland.

However, in regards to the troubles in Northern Ireland....

My own sympathies have always lied with the Catholics in this struggle for independence. Eire should be her own.

Yes, this is the typical American view. It is however, naive. The Protestants have been there for 300 years and include some native Irish in their ancestry, they can't exactly be ignored.
As for the Catholic Irish, people have this romantic picture in their head that they are pure Celts descended from Iron Age tribes, which is not the case. The Irish absorbed various waves of English, Scottish and Norse settlers, the first republicans were also Protestant, not Catholics which came latter to the movement.

It would be preferable if Ireland were indeed united, perhaps with NI being autonomous still, but within the republic and not the UK. But for most purposes it already is separate from the UK - services in Ireland tend to be cross-border or exclusive to NI and separate from the rest of the UK. It has a large degree of autonomy and power-sharing with Dublin, much of Westminster's legislation specifically excludes NI.

[Loki]

But you're not Protestant either, rather you're an atheist, so why side with the Protestants? I choose the Catholics because they are simply fighting to retain their independence as a country apart from Britain. Ireland shouldn't have to abide the British Monarchy if she has no wish to.

If living in a Protestant country is that important, there are three other countries in the UK to choose from

Protestant by culture/heritage

[rhiannon]

Yes, this is the typical American view. It is however, naive. The Protestants have been there for 300 years and include some native Irish in their ancestry, they can't exactly be ignored.
As for the Catholic Irish, people have this romantic picture in their head that they are pure Celts descended from Iron Age tribes, which is not the case. The Irish absorbed various waves of English, Scottish and Norse settlers, the first republicans were also Protestant, not Catholics which came latter to the movement.

It would be preferable if Ireland were indeed united, perhaps with NI being autonomous still, but within the republic and not the UK. But for most purposes it already is separate from the UK - services in Ireland tend to be cross-border or exclusive to NI and separate from the rest of the UK. It has a large degree of autonomy and power-sharing with Dublin, much of Westminster's legislation specifically excludes NI.

Thank you for this reply. Albion....and for not taking offense to my post. It is hard for me to choose loyalties to any one nation over there, because they are all part of my family tree. I grew up in the 1980s when U2 was super huge and doing all those songs about the troubles. I first learned about them largely because of my initial interest in the band and its history. There used to be a lot of violence in NI, although it seems to have dissipated some in recent years.

I hate to see one group subjugated by another for whatever reason. In Ireland and Northern Ireland, the Catholics have historically been the underdogs, and yet, most Irish are still Catholic by majority. It is a complicated situation I guess