Contents page 1 — “The Brexit is for Northern Ireland to be a disaster” page 2 — “Both groups were able to maintain their face” On a page
Twenty years ago, the good Friday agreement officially ended the nearly 30-year-long conflict in Northern Ireland. Since then a fragile peace between Protestants and Catholics prevails in Northern Ireland. How much of the Brexit threatens this peace? We have spoken with the political scientists Thomas Noetzel of the University of Marburg.
TIME ONLINE: In Northern Ireland, the Parliament argues. The Catholic part of the government wants to stay in the European Union, the Protestant wants you to leave. More and more often is to read the fears, the violence on the border, could erupt again. It could lead to a renewed outbreak of the Northern Ireland conflict?
Thomas Noetzel is a Professor of Political theory and the history of ideas at the Philipps-University of Marburg. © Private
Thomas Noetzel: there is a possibility. Finally, the conflict revolved particularly around the question of nationality. As the United Kingdom and also Northern Ireland in 1973, with Ireland part of the European Union, could be defused with this question for the time being. Among other things, because the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland disappeared. But still a part of the people of Northern Ireland feel as the British and the other Irish. These people will be taken to the buffer that the EU offers, it may well be that the situation escalated again. The Brexit is a disaster for Northern Ireland – and not just economically.
TIME ONLINE: The Northern Ireland conflict broke out in the sixties and lasted longer than 30 years. Voltages but there is much longer, namely since the English in the 16th century. Century Ireland is conquered. How did the conflict?
Noetzel: He has a variety of causes. Protestant Englishmen populated in the beginning of the 17th century. Century, Northern Ireland and tore the lands of the Catholic Irish. Decades later, in turn, the English king James II was the Catholic reformation in England and supported the insurgent Catholics in Ireland. It came to a civil war in which William of orange the king of England defeated and the dominion of England and Ireland took over. This victory to celebrate the British Protestants in Northern Ireland today in the annual parades. Criminal laws that told the Catholics to stay in school and work in public Offices under followed. A two-class society emerged, the Northern Ireland until today characterizes. Although the criminal proceedings were abolished, the laws of the time, the oppression lived but, for example, in the Form of a lack of choice still for long.
Northern Ireland Ireland is an island, several of the States
Ireland is geographically, first of all, about 450 times 260 km island in the Atlantic ocean. The Republic of Ireland (capital Dublin), Belfast in the South and Northern Ireland (the capital), the part of the United Kingdom.
Although Northern Ireland belongs to the UK, it has its own government and currently being debated fiercely whether the country should remain in the EU even if the UK outlet. Because the referendum to Brexit, the very small majority of the British people had voted for a withdrawal from the European Union – the Northern Irish, however, were the majority to remain. At the same time, but decided not to secede from the UK. Therefore, it is more unclear how to do it with Northern Ireland. It came to the exit of the British from the EU while remaining in Northern Ireland, would be the intra-European border through the middle of the island of Ireland.
