While the Unionists in Northern Ireland dawdle!

The Unionist community, and their political and religious leaders in the northern Ireland polity must be aware that their long-held stranglehold over political and social issues is coming to an end.  It’s a given that over time, history and progress undermines flawed institutions and movements based on prejudice, domination and fear. Unionism in the Northern Ireland polity is no exception. Its glory days have been eclipsed by progressivism, fueled by successive generations of better educated and informed voters who value inclusiveness and equality above tribalism and misplaced loyalties, the essence of Unionism.  

In 1969, when the civil rights movement took root in Northern Ireland in response to the ongoing discriminatory and violently unjust policies directed at the Catholic minority by the Unionist dominated government, marked the moment in time when Unionism began its slow decline to irrelevance as a political force.  By then it had overplayed its hand and lost.

Successive events including a 30-year low grade war, the presence of the European Union and its economic impacts and political mandates, Brexit, and a rapidly changing demographic have set the stage for a sea-change in Northern Ireland’s future, a sea-change away from Unionism.

To give some prospective to the decline of Unionism in Northern Ireland since the state was established in 1920, its share of the vote has been as follows.

In the General Election of 1921, its share was 66.9%.

In the General Election of 1969, its share was 67.4%.   

In the Assembly Elections of 2022, its share was 40.1%.

In the Local Elections of 2023, its share was 38.4%

While the Unionists parties in Northern Ireland dawdle, Sinn Fein the largest of the nationalist parties in Northern Ireland has been playing ball with the British government and European Union officials. They have enthusiastically embraced every initiative put forward to resolve perceived issues with Brexit and its side show, the Northern Ireland protocol.

Now, that Sinn Fein is the largest political party in Northern Ireland, they are first in line to greet members of the Royal family and senior British government official visiting the region.  As loyal British subjects, they are doing the tasks that used to be within the purview of Unionist politicians. The lesson here for Unionists is that the British government will play ball with whichever party is willing, irrespective of perceived cultural ties or loyalties.   

Sinn Fein touts itself as being the party of Irish reunification. If its leaders are sincere in that regard, why have they not put forward a proposal on how to achieve reunification?  All they do is periodically call for a border poll. In reality, Irish reunification is not a priority for them, rather their focus has been on building the organization to achieve political superiority in both entities in Ireland. They have achieved that goal in Northern Ireland and may very well do the same in the next election cycle in the Republic of Ireland.  When or if they achieve that goal, they will probably claim that the country is united, albeit under the Sinn Fein umbrella. Of course, the gullible will clap.

The Sinn Fein of today bears no resemblance to its former self, the Provisional Sinn Fein of 1972.

In 1971, Daithi O’Conaill and Ruairi O’Bradaigh high ranking members of Provisional Sinn Fein, issued statements calling for an alternative form of government for the nine counties of Ulster. Their statements heralded the launching of Eire Nua, a proposed federal based system of government for an eventual reunited Ireland. The first step in that process was for the people of Ulster to set up a regional parliament for the nine counties of Ulster.

 By 1972, Eire Nua had become the official policy of the Republican Sinn Fein. Numerous meetings were held with Unionists leaders to discuss Eire Nua.  A number of their leaders agreed that Eire Nua would be the preferred solution to reunification if indeed reunification became inevitable.  

In the early 1980s, Republican Sinn Fein, under new leadership, rejected Eire Nua as a “Sop to the Unionists”. Many of those leaders who rejected Eire Nua are the puppeteers who manipulate the truncated Republican Sinn Fein of today from the shadows.

There is no reason to believe that Sinn Fein would be amenable to a solution for Irish reunification that would grant Unionist or for that matter the people of Northern Ireland any degree of autonomy.  Their goal is unbridled control. A federal system of government for a thirty-two county all-Ireland Republic is anathematic to the present-day leadership of Sinn Fein. A continuation of the centralized power base in Dublin is what they want, sugar-coated by the addition of the six north-east counties.  

Going forward, Unionism in Northern Ireland is a diminished force. Its outlandish self-serving demands that lacks support amongst the general public, the farming and business communities are now being ignored by the powers that be in London. Instead of looking to their past history for solutions to present-day problems, they should be looking at ways to herald in a new era of peace and prosperity for the citizens of Northern Ireland and for that matter all of Ireland.

Other than Eire Nua, no other solution has been proposed to achieve Irish reunification until now. Below is a brief description of the new Eire Athaontaithe (Reunited Ireland) proposal.

1. The federal option proffered herein would be thirty-two counties all-Ireland Federal Parliamentary Republic comprised of three distinct regions namely, 1) the Ulster Region encompassing  the nine counties of Ulster, 2) the Munster/Connacht Region encompassing the eleven counties of Munster and Connacht, and 3) the Leinster Region encompassing the twelve counties of Leinster. 

2. The union of Connacht and Munster into a federal region would lend economic equity and political balance to what would be lacking in a standalone Connacht and to a lesser extent, in a standalone Munster.

3. The proposed federation would be underpinned by a new constitution that would provide for the allotment of governmental powers between the national and regional governments. The new constitution would be the nation’s supreme authority that all government entities and the people at large would obey and bear allegiance to.

This new proposal would offer the people of a reunited Ulster the opportunity to have control over their own affairs, the same as the other two regions.  It would obviate the probability of being absorbed into the Dublin political juggernaut that stifles local control while slavishly catering to the interests of the elitists in Dublin and its environs to the detriment of the rest of the country.    

If Unionists political leaders stop grasping at straws and decide to adopt a proactive stance going forward, they should take a close look at this proposal and see that it offers a better future for all the people of Ulster.

It would be ironic, but nevertheless appropriate if Protestant politicians were the ones to vie for Irish reunification and close the loop that other Protestant politicians of the past including Wolfe Tone, Robert Emmet, Roddy McCorley, William Orr and countless other martyred Protestants gave their lives for.

At the present time Unionism is on the losing end of change. The past no longer exist, nor are there positive lessons there that can be applied to present-day problems. Redemption for Unionism is to give itself a new purpose, one that embraces the reunion of the Irish people of all traditions and creeds across existing artificial divides.  That would be a winning and noble strategy.

Ireland, north and south is fast becoming an integrated pluralistic society. Barriers such as religious absolutism, bigotry, misogyny, ignorance, class distinction and misplaced loyalties have given way to egalitarianism, interdependence and cooperation. There is no going back to Unionism, religion absolutism, monarchism or any other archaic doctrine of the past. We are in a new era looking for new leadership.