ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses three themes which span the timeframe between the signing of the Anglo-Irish and Good Friday Agreements. The three themes relate to: a number of entrenched human rights challenges in Northern Ireland; the role of human rights concerning conflict resolution negotiations; and the extent to which the conflict resolution efforts in Northern Ireland were more concerned with ending physical violence than with building positive peace. The extent to which the old, familiar human rights problems continued to form part of the political discourse in Northern Ireland may be gauged by reference to the number of reports, press releases and statements concerning such problems issued by governmental and non-governmental agencies in the period under review. The Anglo-Irish Agreement signed on 15 November 1985 has been the subject of great controversy ever since it was announced. A detailed examination of the negotiations that led to the Peace Agreement is clearly beyond the scope of this chapter.
