(London)Derry

We visited Derry, as it is called by Catholics, or Londonderry to Protestants. Visited the site of a former army barracs that will be transformed to something usefull and got a tour from the Bloody Sunday museum.

The city is known for being home of much of the freedom movements that happened in the 60's. There were regular protests. The Catholics in Derry formed Free Derry--the entirely self sustaining Catholic section of the city were the army and police were not allowed within.

The height if this conflict was Bloody Sunday. Where the army resistance against the people of Free Derry reached a new level of violence. According to our guide there was a different patrol that evening that did not know that the rioting should end at supper time, because everyone feared their mothers as much as the British. Details of the event:
http://www.larkspirit.com/bloodysunday/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloody_Sunday

Dublin Elections

Today I went to Dublin with Conor, Rob and Terry to help with the election. We met up with other Sinn Fein members in a house that was set up to be the base of operations in the district. After tea and some planning, Rob and I took to handing out leaflets to people at the shopping center across the street.

Handing out the leaflets was interesting. People actually wanted what we were hanging out. The only ones who didn't take the leaflets say they had already voted, with a smile. Although some said they already voted with less of a smile, so I would be less sure they voted for Sinn Fein. Some people just ignored us or didn't want it, but it was a rarity. I picked up only 2 or 3 from the ground that were dropped on the street walking back and forth for over an hour.

After working a while, Connor dropped us of in the center to have a look around and look for a hostel to stay Saturday night. All are full! There is a church converted to an tourism info center and the only hostels or hotels available were too far and expensive or not very nice. Overhearing this problem, some Sinn Fein people offered to arrange for us to stay with them while they are making room for people anyway for another event. In the center we visited Trinity College, the Post Office that Irish took a hold of at the Easter Rising, and the Littlest Pub in Dublin. The Littlest Pub was smaller than my bedroom in NJ. It had a counterpart in Boston that sent customers back and forth with no business relation that recently closed. Talking to the bar tender there, as well as the hostel agent at the Tourist Info building it seems the area we were in was not a very good one. When Rob read the name of the bus stop of the paper in his pocket we would get faces and referent to anyone canvassing there are a "Brave Man". Though, being from North Belfast, it probably doesn’t seem too bad.

We took a bus back from the center around 6, when the canvassing really kicks up as people are getting back from work. Rob and I went in a van with four Sinn Fein members knocking on "Green" houses asking if they had voted, who for, if they needed a ride, etc. Stan, the leader of this group took all this information down and it was recorded at the house. There were sheets on the walls and every "Green" voter was listed and all who were believed to have voted were highlighted. Most were highlighted by the end of the night.

It would be very easy to get caught up in the spirit of Sinn Fein, and many people do. Volunteers flood their events, in fact 50 Northern Islanders came today to help with the election. Conor said one of the things he likes so much is the crazy people you get in Sinn Fein. That after the disarming of the IRA, the leaders encouraged those who were not already involved to join Sinn Fein.

Learning about Irish politics was very interesting. We were encouraging people to vote (or Vótáil) for Joanne Spain 1. That is on the ballot, mark her number 1 choice. All candidates are ranked in preference. So if a voter's top choice does not get enough votes to get in, their second choice is then counted. This process takes days to count and determine election winners as ballots need to be counted multiple times. The interesting result of this system is that every vote counts. People do not feel they are throwing away their vote if they give their #1 to an it dependant or candidate in a smaller party. As a result Ireland does not have the two party dominated system the US has, there 8 parties running candidates in Dublin Mid West district alone. People seemed to really believe in politics and be much less cynic than in the US were with only two choices, voters often choose the lesser evil. While walking door to door many people talked of meeting the Sinn Fein politicians, even I met Joanne twice that day. Being so in touch with voter wants be more feasible because the country is so much smaller. The wants vary less in a country the size of NJ than a country the size of the USA. While walking door to door many people talked of meeting the Sinn Fein politicians, even I met Joanne twice that day.

On the ride home Rob brought up Conor's new counselor position. Interesting things he told us were that at Intercomm people are encouraged to bring their political views with them. They are all from different backgrounds and they work together. Him being a counselor is look as a positive thing, another connection, and his unionist collages only offered their support.

Racism vs. Sectarianism

NICEM and the crime researcher this morning were both on the side how racism is worse than sectarianism. That the number of incidents are almost equal and far out of proportion. This was very startling news to me. While I was aware there was a racism problem in Northern Ireland, I was under the impression that sectarian violence between Nationalist/Catholics and Unionists/Protestants was the biggest problem in Belfast.

Then I think if how those working on the Sectarian problem have acknowledged that the violence has dissipated. However this is because the two communities have been separated from each other by walls and separate facilities. This is not a good way to continue be cause it is more expensive, requiring duplication, and because it is not a healthy society. Raising a child or even living a life without ever leaving a few streets is too isolated to be able to get a healthy view on the world.

Notes: NICEM Lecture

NICEM Visit - Wednesday, May 23, 2007 at 1:00 PM

Intro

Started by Chinese support group and then Indian support group, Travelers are the largest minority group

20 employees

Independently funded projects that run until funding runs out

Projects

Interpreting - 200 languages, currently self sustaining, contract w/ police

Police and Lobbying team to ensure all people are consulted

Migrant worker support

Floating support - over NI

Racial Harassment - help and support people who have experienced integration

Immigration support - let people know what need to know here

Questions

Anti racism classes taken by community groups and government

Minority groups

Chinese, Indian, African - have been migrating here for generations

Africa, middle east - Seeking Asylum, only 200, most sent to Scotland due to lank of recourses, refugees can go anywhere

Polish, Portuguese, Slovakian - Migrant workers

Pilipino, Indian - Recruited Nurses

Communities encouraged not to go to police, but to report incidents to local community leaders.

Minorities then do not want to go to police either. Besides may not want to go b/c perceptions from home country.

NI is lacking human recourses. Polish immigrants recruited to keep economy from collapsing,

Great hospitality vs. racism - people like the nationality, but do not want them living next door, marring into family, working above or taking job

"Brutishness" tests online, required to become citizen

EU can work w/o papers, get benefits after a year

Non EU need permit, employer needs to justify why hiring this person over anyone in whole EU, and pay

Notes: Hate Crime in Northern Ireland Lecture

Lecturers:

Neal Jarman, Conflict Research

David Lennox, Community Safety Unit, Northern Ireland Office

Research crime statistics to be used for how police handle situations

Sectarianism

Official cease fire in 1995

Since shifted from extreme, military violence to debating and armed social street violence

Protestant and Catholic is a code, it is not a religious war, it is about nationalism

Originally the reverse ratio in the south if Ireland and unequal treatment of Protestants was an concern, but it has not been an issue.

More people are immigrating

Violence

People grown up in legacy of violence. Where it is what has been used, and been successful

Representative violence used - do not care about the effect on the individual, that person represents a group and the act instills freer on the group

Violence has been legitimized as effective way of doing things

Racism

Highest proportion of incidents in Europe

2006 - 2007 1,600 Sectarian incidents | 1,000 Racism incidents

Many more Protestants and Catholics in NI

Political Agenda

Role of political leaders and parties

Highlights racism more than sectarianism

Sectarianism needs to be higher on agenda

---------------------------------------------------------------

School enrolment is going down, but proportion of non-white are going up

Holy Cross Incident where school girls not allowed to go to school, racist mural

Survey, more people want to live in mixed communities than with own religion

However more feel uncomfortable with neighbor in minority ethnic group

Good Friday Agreement - 1998

Compromise and put 4 parties in power

Northern Ireland Act - Section 75: Needs to ensure every new policy that comes out of government doe not adversely affect any religions, minority, gender, etc. group

Government Initiative

Police

Lack of trust in police

50:50 recruitment now

Independent advisory groups

Fully integrated and revised with training on sectarianism, racism, and violence

PSNI

Domestic violence exceeds sectarian

Day One at Intercomm

Today I went to Intercomm for the first day of community service. Conor had told Rob and I to arrive between 9:30 and 10, we got there at 9:25 and the only person in the office called Conor who's reaction was "They're there already!" We talked for a while at the reception, then when Conor got there we were given desks and went to the Kitchen for tea and coffee where we talked a while longer. Then we went in to talk to the director, Liam and talked for a long time. Liam insisted Conor buy us lunch. I had the best food I've eaten in Ireland and 2 Guinness. This lunch was maybe two hours. In the afternoon we were taken on a long walking tour of the interface areas of Northern Belfast. We saw how the smallest part of a Catholic house being exposed to the a Protestant street would subject it to being attacked, and surly vice versa. We briefly walked through a gate, to a Protestant street, where the curb stones where painted red white and blue. And the houses meeting the wall were abandoned.

While last time we had just been taken around the New Lodge area, this time we were taken all around North Belfast. We also saw the walls that were from when the city center was closed up at night. At a certain hour the gates were closed and anyone in of out was staying that way for the night.

Some interesting things we saw were memorials to people who had died. One in particular was a garden type memorial with kids playing in it, and names of people killed listed, names of people in the IRA in the middle. From here there was an apartment building in view, interesting b/c most people live in brick houses. The British army had been stationed an top of that apartment building.

There are many walls in North Belfast and the Catholic and Protestant areas change as quickly as you turn a corner. Some of these interfaces have moved, as the Catholic population is growing faster, sometimes the lines can't be moved because no catholic wants to move across a Peace Wall. Because of the over population on one side, there is a under population on the other side of the walls. Protestant houses are left abandoned near the walls, where stones are thrown back and forth, while 3 generations will live together in a Catholic house. After being bombed in the second world was houses were rebuild on both sides exactly the same, the value on the Catholic side of these houses is twice as high because there is such greater demand.

At the end were back at the center. Making me more aware of how close North Belfast, which still is putting up Peace Walls, is to the Center, where I am everyday. Taking a bus the two seemed more disconnected.

http://www.nisra.gov.uk/

http://www.intercommireland.org/

A wall in the park

Yesterday we climbed the mountain in the background of the city. Today we visited Intercomm where I will be starting my community service tomorrow. We were given a lecture and question and answer period that cleared up almost anything that was missing in my understanding of how things worked in Northern Ireland. After Conor took us to the interface areas and the park there.

The park is the only one in Europe with a peace wall through it. The peace wall was put up because there was so much rioting going on in the park between Protestants and Catholics. It runs right in the middle of the park, a road leads up to it and disappears. There is rather impressing spray painted art on the wall.

In the interface area there is Catholic and Protestant streets all very close. The The catholic street we went down leaving the park had a row of houses on one side and a peace wall on the other. The windows had wire mesh over them, to protect them from stones thrown over the wall. Some houses were even abandoned, very unusual for Catholic areas. 70% of people on the list who are in dire need for housing are Catholic. There are Protestant houses which are empty and Catholics houses with three families in them.

It was such a problem of drivers going down one Catholic street and shooting someone and just going on their way, one side of the street needed to be blocked off. Conor grew up in the area and told us of having to move out one family at night because their house had been broken into from several windows and doors and raided and the family beaten up.

Racism is replacing sectarianism. An Indian grocer down this street was killed my Protestants who knew nothing about who he was of how he lived. He was very neutral toward Catholics and Protestants.

Mike talked to a woman on the street as we returned through the park. She asked what he thought of the Peace Wall, and when Mike asked what she thought she said she didn't think about them. I suppose if it seems normal people don't think about things; and the Peace Walls have been up for enough years to be "normal" in North Belfast.

Notes: Intercomm Reconciliation Lecture

Politics of the Conflict and Reconciliation

Monday, May 21, 2007 at Noon

Conor and Liam Maskey - Intercomm: http://www.intercommbelfast.com/

Sid trotter and Cathrin - Link: Community group related to Intercomm working with Protestant / Catholic / Loyalist relations.

North Belfast Background

7 or top 10 wards (districts) in deprivation

1/4 of deaths happen in 1 square mile of here

Address social and economic problems which developed along the "peace lines" of N Belfast during the previous 30 years of community conflict by delivering economic regeneration, reconciliation, and social reconstruction

Intercomm Programs

Peace building programme - provide education programs for social advancement

N Belfast developing leadership initiative - Encourage people to engage in decision making that effects everyday life

Conflict intervention programme - people go to interface and try to stop problems if there is conflict

Rebuilding civic society initiative (RCSI) - Finding jobs

Community development (worktrack new deal) - place in after school programs and work

Home aid for vulnerable and elderly (HAVE) - Elderly very trusting and people took advantage of. Given package to help feel safe

Internships

Woman enterprise and vocational education (WEAVE) - business and craft training to manage micro enterprise

Intercomm Enterprises Inc - Non profit, forms physical barrier and rebuilds abandoned homes. Abandoned homes are popular place for rioting

Intercomm Enterprises Inc - raises awareness and funds for Belfast

Belfast-Jerusalem Civil Society Partnership (B-JCSP) - looks at other examples of conflict resolution

Questions

Funded by grants mostly, want to start generating money to self sustain. Can rent out this room for video conferencing.

Looking at other examples of conflict resolution in the world.

Intercomm founders Liam and Billy (murdered 6 years ago) faced death threats and alienation from their own communities

Unemployment - www.nirsa.gov.uk or http://www.nuim.ie/nirsa/

Weapons more of a government bartering point than real issue. It's about people and mindsets. Can decommission guns, but still will know how to make a bomb from grocery store materials, more important to decommission mindsets. Guns kept at dumps, for pickup, not in homes.

1/5 expected in 2020 to be immigrants in N Ireland

Currently Non Irish go to Catholic / Protestant schools and practice own religion. They are still pressured to choose a side, i.e. "Are you a Catholic Jew or a Protestant Jew?"

John Paul Lederach - Canadian author

Working class has more to gain by working together. "Not in a Social Revolution sense, though if that happened better for it" -- Interesting Socialist view.

After Lecture

Visit interface area and meet with local activists

See park, only one in Europe w/ a Peace Wall through it