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Main issues at stake in Northern Ireland peace talks

April 8, 1998
Web posted at: 4:56 p.m. EDT (1656 GMT)

The issues involved in the 21-month negotiations are complex with roots buried deep in history, but the British and Irish governments have boiled them down into three "strands."

Strand One: Deals with internal Northern Ireland matters and envisages creation of an assembly with perhaps 90 members. What the Unionists think? The Ulster Unionists want a low-key, mainly administrative assembly led by elected committees. Unionists insist that the committees would be fair and reflect the parties' share-out of seats in the assembly with safeguards for the Catholic-based nationalist minority. What the Nationalists think? But John Hume's Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), the main nationalist party, says this would entrench unionist control at local level under continued rule from London. Instead, it wants a strong cabinet-style power-sharing administration with law-making functions.

Strand Two: Deals with "north-south" structures on the island. The governments are proposing a new all-Ireland "ministerial council" in parallel with the planned Northern Ireland assembly to stimulate cooperation-operation in areas such as tourism and economic development. What the Unionists think? Unionists resist the idea of a powerful council, saying it should simply have a consultative role across the border. Unionists say a dynamic north-south council would be an all-Ireland government in embryo, something which is anathema to them. They want Ireland to recognize Northern Ireland as part of Britain and to drop its constitutional claim to the territory. What the Nationalists think? Nationalists say a "north-south council" must be a stand-alone structure with an executive, high-powered role. Their fear is that a low-key Northern Ireland assembly lacking status and power, and subject to unionist control, will stymie the potential of the all-island ministerial body. Sinn Fein, the political wing of the Irish Republican Army, which wants an end to British rule, says Dublin must not water down its claim to Northern Ireland.

Strand Three: Deals with "east-west" links, with proposals for a new pact covering British-Irish inter-governmental relations and a "council of the isles" linking London and Dublin in a loose structure with devolved assemblies in Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland. What the Unionists think? Unionists see the latter as bolstering the province's position within Britain.

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