Ex-IRA and British Soldiers Discuss Reconciliation Over Tea
Three-thousand seven-hundred people were killed in the 30-year conflict known as the "Troubles" in Northern Ireland. Men who belonged to those groups met in Northern Ireland last month to talk about why they took up arms and how the future can be made less bloody.Three-thousand seven-hundred people were killed in the 30-year conflict known as the “Troubles” in Northern Ireland. Men who belonged to those groups met in Northern Ireland last month to talk about why they took up arms and how the future can be made less bloody.
Ian Cobain reports at The Guardian:
With handshakes, smiles and four civil words, a small group of men came together in Northern Ireland last month in an attempt to overcome a formidable barrier that remains long after the decades of conflict came to an end.
“Do you take milk?” asked one. And with the tea dispensed, four former members of the British army and four former members of the Irish Republican Army commenced a meeting that was intended to start a process of reconciliation among men who had once been the most implacable of enemies.
In an encounter that was both undramatic but remarkable nonetheless, the men talked about the reasons they had taken up arms, the consequences of their decisions and their hopes of making a contribution to a lasting peace.
Read more here.
— Posted by Alexander Reed Kelly.
WAIT, BEFORE YOU GO…If you're reading this, you probably already know that non-profit, independent journalism is under threat worldwide. Independent news sites are overshadowed by larger heavily funded mainstream media that inundate us with hype and noise that barely scratch the surface. We believe that our readers deserve to know the full story. Truthdig writers bravely dig beneath the headlines to give you thought-provoking, investigative reporting and analysis that tells you what’s really happening and who’s rolling up their sleeves to do something about it.
Like you, we believe a well-informed public that doesn’t have blind faith in the status quo can help change the world. Your contribution of as little as $5 monthly or $35 annually will make you a groundbreaking member and lays the foundation of our work.
There is much more to be done before Ireland can make wider claims to equality, but the long-time-coming sexual rights revolution is finally changing the nation’s landscape of Catholic morality.
The flames of conflict may be out, but parts of the country continue to glow as a legacy of violence remains with survivors of a sectarian dispute that lasted almost three decades and killed about 3,600 people.
The story of the Protestant "settlements" in Ireland provides a ghostly narrative of those modern-day "settlements" in the West Bank, where the Israelis insist on fighting the world's last colonial war with the assistance of that great anti-colonial nation known as the United States.The story of the Protestant "settlements" in Ireland provides a ghostly narrative of those modern-day "settlements" in the West Bank.
There are currently no responses to this article.
Be the first to respond.