Good Friday Agreement

Question 1

What were the terms of the Good Friday Agreement?

Answer 1

• Peace Treaty signed in 1998, established a cross-country consensus with republics and and unionists
• Troubles between NI who wanted to remain in Britain and the Republic of Ireland who didn’t
• British government and Irish government agreed to hold joint referendums
• Mutual respect, civil rights and co-operation between both sides
• It was said that NI will remain part of Britain until the majority of people in NI didn’t want to.
• Terms were put to electorate in an all-Ireland referendum - result large majority in favour of acceptance
• Prisoners to be released

Question 2

How was the agreement reached?

Answer 2

• The Mitchell Report which was presented in 1996, laid down a set of principles on which a peace process may be developed: the total disarmament of all paramilitary organisations and their renunciation of force AND the agreement by all parties concerned to accept as binding any agreement reached in an all-party negotiation.
• Decommissioning - both side would have to be assured that laying down their arms could achieve the same results as using them.
• Achieved after peace talks
• Brought all 8 political parties together
• DUP rejected the agreement - shows most were ready to compromise but not all

Question 3

What problems exist today?

Answer 3

• Brexit - breaking spirit of agreement
• Nearly 4000 people were killed and more than 47,000 injured throughout 30 year struggle, most of them young adults
• 1988 Agreement people in NI had the right to identify as Irish, British or both
• August 1998, the real IRA carried out the most deadly attacks since the start of the Troubles - 29 killed and several 100 injured in a car bomb in Omagh
• PM David Cameron apologised in 2010 after a report found the British Troops involved on Bloody Sunday guilt of ‘unjustifiable firing’. He was ‘deeply sorry’