The Belfast Agreement, also known as the Good Friday Agreement due to its signing on Good Friday, 10th April 1988, is a multilateral agreement between the Republic of Ireland, Great Britain, and the eight main political groups in Northern Ireland. It ended most of the violence of the Troubles, the political conflict in Northern Ireland ensuing from the 1960s, and it was the basis on which the present devolved system of government in Northern Ireland was created.
The Agreement was approved by voters across Ireland in two referendums held on 22nd May 1998. In Northern Ireland, voters were asked in the 1998 Northern Ireland Good Friday Agreement referendum whether they supported the multi-party agreement. In the Republic of Ireland, voters were asked whether they would let the state sign the agreement and thus allow the necessary constitutional amendments to be made to facilitate it. This led to the Nineteenth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland. The Agreement came into force on 2nd December 1999 and the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) was the only major political group in Northern Ireland to oppose the Agreement.
The talks were led by the leaders of the two governments, with Tony Blair as the prime minister of Great Britain and Bertie Ahern as leader of the Republic of Ireland. The discussions were chaired by US special envoy George Mitchell and were aimed at creating an agreement that would resolve differences on political issues through democratic and peaceful means. The Good Friday Agreement ended up recognising the two stances on the issue as legal and valid. These were that the majority of the Northern Irish population wished to be part of the United Kingdom, but also that there was a substantial number of people in NI and a majority in Ireland that wanted a united Ireland. It also left open the question of sovereignty so that future changes could be made if necessary.
The Agreement was made between the British government, Irish government and eight political parties/groupings from Northern Ireland. These parties were divided into political leanings, with three representing unionism: Ulster Unionist Party, Progressive Unionist Party, and Ulster Democratic Party (the latter two were smaller & associated with Loyalist paramilitaries). Two were nationalist; the Social Democratic and Labour Party, and Sinn Féin which was associated with the Provisional Irish Republican Army. The final two were independent of these political divides and they were the Alliance Party and the Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition.
The Agreement had two elements; the first was a treaty between the two states, signed by the leaders of both the Irish and British governments. The second was a more substantial agreement between the 8 Northern Irish political parties and both governments. This second one set out the framework for the creation of institutions across 3 strands which dealt with separate issues.
The first strand dealt with the creation of a democratically elected assembly. It established the Northern Ireland Assembly, which was a devolved legislature with mandatory cross-community voting on major decisions; and the Northern Ireland Executive, a power-sharing executive with ministerial portfolios allocated between parties through the D’Hondt method.
The second strand dealt with North/South Issues and problems between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. It established the North/South Ministerial Council which was made up of ministers from Northern Ireland Executive and Government of Ireland; and the North/South Inter-Parliamentary Association. This was created in October 2012 as part of the Agreement where both governments agreed to consider creating a joint parliamentary forum, made up of equal numbers from each. It also created the North/South Consultative Forum; the Northern Irish political parties who endorsed the Agreement were asked to consider the establishment of an independent consultative forum which would be representative of civil society. Members would have expertise in social, cultural, economic, and other issues, and would be appointed by the two administrations. The outline structure was agreed in 2002; and in 2006, NI Executive agreed to support its establishment.
Lastly, the third strand dealt with East-West issues between Ireland & Great Britain. It created the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference which replaced the Anglo-Irish Intergovernmental Conference created under the 1985 Anglo-Irish Agreements. It takes the form of regular meetings between British and Irish ministers to promote cooperation on all levels between governments. It also established the British-Irish Council which is made up of ministerial representatives from British & Irish governments, the UK’s devolved administrations (Northern Ireland, Scotland & Wales) & Crown dependencies, Isle of Man, Jersey & Guernsey. Finally, it expanded the British-Irish Interparliamentary Body.
The Good Friday Agreement was instrumental in resolving the political Troubles and setting up the current devolved government in Northern Ireland. Considering the many years of broken ceasefires, this Agreement was a sign of change towards political stability and a diminishing of violence.
By Keira C
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