Forthspring plan Belfast-based Institute for Nonviolence
Forthspring https://www.forthspring.org/, a cross-community centre at the Catholic-Protestant interface on the Springfield Road, Belfast, is transforming to an Institute for Nonviolence. New Director, Dr Kate Laverty, is bringing to the fore her work with the Martin Luther King Institute for Nonviolence in the USA https://www.nonviolenceinstitute.org/ Her experience in promoting nonviolence principles in her youth work practice will serve as a springboard to launch the new methodology in Forthspring as it enters its 30th year later in 2025. For anyone interested in being part of this evolution, get in touch. Contact: Dr Kate Laverty, Director, 07746984833, director@forthspring.com See also article by Kate Laverty in email and web editions of this issue.
Resistance continues to Triple Lock axe
The ‘Save Irish Neutrality, Save the Triple Lock’ campaign involving a wide variety of groups continues to work in opposition to Irish government plans to axe it. While a Social Democrat motion in the Dáil to hold a plebiscite/referendum on the issue was voted down through a government counter-motion, the government plans to move legislation through the committee stage so there is still time for citizen pressure to work. A comprehensive rebuttal of government arguments is made in various resources including the August 2024 document from the Transnational Institute https://www.tni.org/en/publication/saving-the-triple-lock
Mothers Against Genocide manhandled at Dáil
There were eleven arrests and three legal charges, plus some police cautions, on 30th March at the end of a Mothers Against Genocide all night Mothers’ Day vigil on Palestine outside the Dáil in Dublin. The group had already announced their intention to leave a couple of hours later. What some found particularly distasteful was that photos of dead Palestinian children were treated like dirt by by the Gardaí. See coverage at https://www.facebook.com/search/posts/?q=mothers%20against%20genocide and other media.
Missing Peace toolkit
The Glencree Centre for Peace & Reconciliation (Glencree), together with its consortium partners from five different countries in the Missing Peace project, have launched a new resource to help youth workers, educators and community practitioners engage young people in peacebuilding and reconciliation. The 68-page Missing Peace Project Toolkit, developed as part of the EU-funded Missing Peace project, provides 12 interactive activities designed to foster dialogue, critical thinking and conflict resolution skills. Further information and a link for downloading can be found at https://glencree.ie/homepage-highlight/missing-peace-toolkit/
Mairead Maguire in Gaza fast
Nobel Peace laureate Mairead Maguire is undertaking a 40 day liquids only fast for Gaza and the world’s children suffering from the violence of hunger and war. “Refuse to hate, refuse to kill each other and demand instead dialogue and negotiation. Today in Gaza, the policy of starvation of 2.5 million people, by Israeli policies, is continuing and it is killing the children, we see it and it is breaking our hearts!!!”. https://www.peacepeople.com/nobel-peace-laureate-maguire-starts-40-day-fast-for-gaza-and-the-worlds-children-for-peace/
Frank Aiken lectures
There has been a change of date for the Frank Aiken Evening previously announced (e.g. in last issue) to take place on 27th March. This will now take place on Wednesday 2nd April. “The Legacy of Frank Aiken – The Role of Small Countries in Times of Danger and Uncertainty” – An Evening of Talks and Discussion hosted by Lex Innocentium, 21st Century and the Irish School of Ecumenics now takes place on Wednesday, 2nd of April 2025, at 7.00 p.m. in Room G16, Loyola Building, Trinity College Dublin Speakers include Dr. Stephen Kelly, Dr. Patrick Bresnihan, and Dr. John Maguire. Lex Innocentium, 21st Century website is at https://lexinnocentium21.ie/
Thales to open third NI site
With war in Ukraine and rearmament in many countries, business and profits are booming for the lagest arms company on the island of Ireland, Thales. They have announced new investment and the intention to set up a third site in Northern Ireland, recruiting 200 more workers. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgl0z7gxpg2o See also Thales fact file in email and web editions of this issue.
Adi Roche on 14 years after Fukushima
Adi Roche, Voluntary CEO of Chernobyl Children International (CCI), in a statement issued for the 14th anniversary of the Fukushima disaster, said “It’s devastating to see that patterns laid down by Chernobyl are being mirrored now in Fukushima. Any potential explosion or meltdown at any nuclear power plant, by accident or design, would cause irreversible damage to the environment and human life that will last for thousands of years. Though Fukushima happened because of a natural disaster, and Chernobyl was a man-made disaster, their long lasting impact are the same. Now, recent attacks in Ukraine have shown us how little mankind have learned about the fragility of nuclear power and now innocent children are, once again, paying the highest price.” See https://www.chernobyl-international.com/fourteen-years-after-fukushima-the-unfolding-nuclear-nightmare-and-parallels-with-chernobyl/
lMeanwhile CCI reports that, not being the recipient of any state aid, they are unaffected by governmental aid cuts but that “However, in the communities where we work, the effects of these cuts are devastating and we anticipate that we will see a knock-on effect in the demand for our support over the coming months. “ https://www.chernobyl-international.com/
Good Relations Awards 2025
The Northern Ireland Good Relations Awards presentation event took place on 25th March at Shankill Shared Women’s Centre, Belfast. Here are the six award winners: CRC Exceptional Achievement Award – Kathy Wolff: Volunteer of the Year – Cooper McClure; Youth Award – Emma Baptista; Community Champion – Jonah Atos; Connecting Communities – Jubilee Community; Housing for All – Portstewart Community Association. Full details are available on the CRC website at https://www.community-relations.org.uk/news-centre/good-relations-awards-2025-winners-announced
ICCL petition on facial recognition use by Gardaí
ICCL/Irish Council for Civil Liberties have a petition opposing the Minister for Justice giving the Gardaí permission to use facial recognition technology (FRT). They state “FRT has been shown to exhibit significant racial bias leading to wrongful arrests, surveillance and discrimination. Studies have shown that these technologies are less accurate in identifying people of colour. This can result in severe consequences for innocent people. This is not just a technical issue but a systematic injustice built into these technologies that reinforce racial inequality. Recent developments in Hungary have also highlighted the dangers that FRT holds for minorities, where attempts are being made to ban pride events. FRT has been proposed to track members of the LGBTI+ community who gather publicly, which will also disproportionately affect racial minorities within that community.” See https://www.iccl.ie/i-do-not-consent-to-frt/
CAJ human rights news
You can catch up with valuable insights on various human rights issues in Northern Ireland with the March issue of the CAJ/Committee on the Administration of Justice newsletter Just News which is available at https://caj.org.uk/publication_type/our-newsletter/ (where you can also subscribe for updates). Issues covered include the Irish government and legacy issues, extremism, the ongoing effort to get the NI Executive going on an antipoverty strategy, racism and Sperrins goldmining.
Voters in Republic want more climate action
A poll taken in January shows a clear majority of voters in the Republic, 55%, want the government to take more action on climate change than the last government, compared to only 21% who want less action. This includes 59% of Fianna Fail voters and 55% of Fine Gael voters. Interestingly there was little difference between urban and rural voters; three in every four rural voters want the same or more climate action, 72%, compared to 81% of those living in cities. See https://www.friendsoftheearth.ie/news/new-poll-shows-fianna-fail-and-fine-gael-voters-want-more-cl/
Major German peace congress
A major online German-language peace congress takes place at Easter time. See https://friedenistmoeglich.de/ Entitled “Wie geht Frieden? “ (‘How does peace go?’) with a wide variety of speakers and activities…..as some of those involved speak in English (German subtitles added) those reading this but not speaking German may still view videos with interest. The Northern Ireland peace process, and history, feature along with a myriad of other situations.
Church and Peace call on justice and peacebuilding
Church and Peace, the European church peace network, has called for an orientation to justice and peacebuilding in the current environment. Their statement includes “The European Union’s aim is to promote peace, its values and the welfare of its peoples. For that reason it is irresponsible, according to the Board of Church and Peace, to declare a ‘pre-war situation’ and so legitimize massive armament, especially as this might be a self-fulfilling prophecy.” https://www.church-and-peace.org/en/2025/03/in-view-of-current-developments-church-and-peace-calls-for-clear-orientation-to-justice-and-peace/
Inclusion in the Northern Ireland peace process
An academic article “Inclusion in the Northern Ireland Peace Process: A ‘History of the Present’ “ by Catherine Turner (Professor of Law at Durham University) is available at https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/17502977.2024.2365512?needAccess=true appearing in the Journal of Intervention and Statebuilding. This 21 page article has some useful insights on the peace process, the resultant consociational form of government, the role of civil society, and how narratives have narrowed.