The People's Peace Process

1 For a review of some of these issues, see Bill McSweeney, `Interests and Identity in the Construction of the Belfast Agreement', Security Dialogue, vol. 29, no. 3, September 1998, pp. 303-314; also Sean Byrne, `Power Politics As Usual in Cyprus and Northern Ireland: Divided Islands and the Roles of External Ethno-Guarantors', Nationalism and Ethnic Politics, vol. 6, no. 2, 2000, pp. 1-24.

2 Methodological issues being dealt with elsewhere include: working with political parties as informants in a conflict setting; questionnaire design and calculating consensus; data analysis and presentation of results; complex and simple questions; ranking problems and solutions; reports and questions to be avoided; pre-testing instruments; research ethics and working with the media; costs and the importance of independent funding.

3 C. J. Irwin, `Ulster People Could Decide Way Forward', Belfast Telegraph, 3 December 1996. Also by the same writer and in the Belfast Telegraph see: `The FEC.... Fair to Meddling?', 20 November 1996; `Hitting A Brick Wall', 22 October 1996; `Ulster Amnesty Rejected', 30 September 1996; `The Battle for the Middle Ground', 12 September 1996; `Changing the Force of Habit', 2 August 1996; `The Parade Question', 4 July 1996.

4 T. Hadden, C. Irwin & F. Boal, `Separation or Sharing? The People's Choice', supplement with Fortnight 356, Belfast, December 1996.

5 C. J. Irwin, `Still Polls Apart, People Longing for Real Talks to Start', Belfast Telegraph, 9 April 1997. Also by the same author and in the Belfast Telegraph see: `Referendums Could Bypass Politicians', 9 April 1997; `Drumcree Three, Rule of Law is What People of Northern Ireland Want', 8 April 1997; `Wide Support for Bill of Rights', 8 April 1997; `Truce Holds Key, Sharp Divisions on How Talks Replace the Guns', 7 April 1997; `Voter's Query Parties' Push', 7 April 1997; `Few Believe Peace is at Hand', 7 April 1997.

6 Although Catholics and Protestants are conceptually very different from Nationalists and Unionists, this distinction is generally `suspended' by pollsters in Northern Ireland, where less than 1% of SDLP, Sinn Féin, DUP and UUP voters are from the `other' religion. Consequently, religion can be used and is used as a convenient demographic short hand for broad political affiliations in Northern Ireland.

7 C. J. Irwin, `The People's Vote', Belfast Telegraph, 12 September 1997; `Yes Vote for Talks', Belfast Telegraph, 11 September 1997.

8 C. J. Irwin, `The Search for a Settlement: The People's Choice', supplement with Fortnight 368. Belfast, February 1998; `A Comprehensive Settlement', Belfast Telegraph, 14 January 1998. Also by the same author and in the Belfast Telegraph see: `Constitutional Issues', 14 January 1998; `What Hope for Council of the Isles?', 14 January 1998; `Feasibility and Reality of North-South Bodies', 13 January 1998; `Why Ulster Now Wants to Have New Assembly', 12 January 1998; `Reforming RUC Quite “Acceptable” ', 10 January 1998; `Protecting the Rights of the People', 10 January 1998; `Steps We Need to Take to Win Peace', 10 January 1998;

9 C. J. Irwin, `Little Support for SF Agenda', Belfast Telegraph, 1 April 1998. Also by the same author and in the Belfast Telegraph see: `Majority Say Yes to the Search for Settlement', 31 March 1998; `Compromise or Common Ground?', 31 March 1998; `Alternatives to a Comprehensive Settlement', 31 March 1998.

10 C. J. Irwin, `Implementation of the Belfast Agreement', Belfast Telegraph, 4 March 1999. Also by the same author and in the Belfast Telegraph see: `What are the Fears of Failure?', 4 March 1999; `Why the Peace Package is Important', 4 March 1999; `Ceasefires, Paramilitary Activity and Decommissioning', 3 March 1999; `Education, Health and Jobs', 3 March 1999; `93% Say: Make the Agreement Work', 3 March 1999.

11 C. J. Irwin, `A Better Way to Implement the Belfast Agreement', Belfast Telegraph, 17 May 1999.

12 C. J. Irwin, `Lords of the Arctic: Wards of the State, A Postscript', Northern Perspectives, vol. 17, no. 1, January-March 1989, pp. 19-20; `Lords of the Arctic: Wards of the State, A Summary Report', Northern Perspectives, vol. 17, no. 1, January-March 1989, pp. 2-12; `Lords of the Arctic: Wards of the State', Demographic Review Secretariat, Ministry of Health and Welfare, pp. 1-88. Ottawa, October 1988; `Lords of the Arctic: Wards of the State, The Growing Inuit Population, Arctic Resettlement and Their Effects on Social and Economic Change', in Update Number Five, The Review of Demography and its Implications for Economic and Social Policy, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Ottawa, 1988.

13 The setting up of a Royal Commission to investigate the plight of all Canada's `first nation' peoples was first proposed in the editorial `To Confront a Crisis', after an unpublished draft of `Lords of the Arctic: Wards of the State' was leaked to the press - Globe and Mail, Toronto, 15 October 1988.

14 For example, see Sean Byrne & Michael Ayulo, `External Economic Aid in Ethno-Political Conflict: A View From Northern Ireland', Security Dialogue, vol. 29, no. 4, December 1998, pp. 421-434.