ABSTRACT
Introduction This empirical case study is based on original data gathered during summer and fall 2006 from semi-structured interviews with 98 people in Belfast, Derry, and the Border Counties involved with either or both the International Fund for Ireland (IFI) and the European Union (EU) Peace and Reconciliation, or Peace II, Fund (2000-06), and a public opinion survey of 1,023 citizens when the future of the Good Friday (or Belfast) Agreement achieved in 1998 was uncertain and before it was revived by a new deal – the St. Andrew’s Agreement of October 2006. The study, focusing on one peacebuilding track, namely economic aid, evaluates the impact of both funds on the peace process in Northern Ireland and the Border Counties in transforming the conflict, in nurturing crosscommunity contact and reconciliation, and in building sustainable economic development. The respondents have interesting stories to tell about the nature of conflict transformation, peacebuilding, and economic assistance. The book is particularly important in drawing attention to the, so far, littleanalyzed roles of both funds in making a contribution to the literature now emerging on the conflict transformation and peacebuilding aspects of both of these funding programs. The conflict transformation community has so far been reluctant to engage in economic analysis, and the theoretical literature has, therefore, struggled to understand the role of economic assistance in post-accord societies (MacGinty and Williams 2009: 11). The Northern Ireland conflict has been in a post-accord phase with an absence of politically motivated violence for a decade or more (Darby 2006a: 6). Consequently, Northern Ireland has become a legitimate area of investigation for those interested in the study of conflict transformation, peacebuilding, and conflict analysis and resolution. The mix of qualitative and quantitative methods encourages the assessment of both practitioner and public attitudes to the economic aid question in Northern Ireland and the Border area. The Border Counties are inextricably linked to the peacebuilding process in this region by virtue of the fact that both funding programs cover not just Northern Ireland but also the Border Counties (Coakley and O’Dowd 2007; Hayward 2004). The research explores five central issues: (1) public awareness of external economic assistance; (2) perceived equity of distribution and effectiveness in
building sustainable economic development; (3) community capacity building; (4) peacebuilding and reconciliation; and (5) the impact of the aid in mitigating political violence. An enduring peace in Northern Ireland can only be achieved by addressing long-standing concerns for social justice (McGarry and O’Leary 2007). Consequently, this study presents one track of the peace process – the social impact of the IFI and the EU Peace II Fund on Northern Ireland and the Border Counties. Both funds were more of political and symbolic importance in signaling external support for the peace process rather than a practical contribution to reshaping society in Northern Ireland (Arthur 2000). The study examines the genesis of the IFI and the EU Peace II-funded programs, as well as the impact of these funds on society in Northern Ireland and the Border Counties. Interesting aspects of this story include the political assumptions that underpinned the creation of these funds, and there is also a story to be told about the impact of this aid on Northern Ireland. However, given the relatively small sums involved and the sometimes trivial use to which some of the money was put, the aid is part of, but not central to, the peacebuilding process. The funds did provide an opportunity for the EU, the United States (U.S.), and a number of other countries to indicate their support for the peace process in a tangible way (Byrne 2002).
