The EU Heads of State have called for “flexible and imaginative solutions” to accommodate the “unique circumstances on the island of Ireland” in the Brexit negotiations. At their April summit, they reaffirmed their support for “the goal of peace and reconciliation enshrined in the Good Friday Agreement” and their intention to “protect the achievements, benefits and commitments of the Peace Process” as a matter of “paramount importance.”
This vital commitment to protecting peace and prosperity in Northern Ireland has been reiterated by the chief EC negotiator, his EP counterpart, the EU President and almost every political and civil society leader from Belfast to Brussels, London to Dublin.
This can leave no-one in any doubt that the ‘special situation’ of a part of the UK located on the island of Ireland whose citizens can be both British and Irish, whose economies are uniquely intertwined and whose history, culture and people are inextricably linked must be given due recognition, respect and accommodation.
Concern that an EU frontier separating North and South would seriously impede cross-border trade and movement of people is overshadowed by a real fear that the progress of the Good Friday Agreement could be thrown into reverse.
The failure to reach agreement to restore the NI Assembly is another indication of the fragility of the peace process which must be protected at all costs.
Granting Northern Ireland Honorary EU associate membership as a European Place of Global Peace-Building is a proposal which, with the backing of London, Dublin, Belfast, Brussels and every other EU capital, could be the “flexible and imaginative solution” required.
It would protect the peace process by allowing NI to remain part of the UK and part of the EU.
It would avoid an EU frontier on the island by moving it to Great Britain entry points and, in keeping with the consent principle of the Good Friday Agreement and the majority remain vote in NI, it would allow NI citizens to retain their rights as Europeans.
Finally, it would ensure lasting cooperation and support from London, Dublin and Brussels for peace and prosperity through the continuation of EU programmes for peace-building, cross-border cooperation and all other measures benefitting EU citizens including farmers, fishermen, workers and students.
White Dove will give the peace process the stability and encouragement it needs
Honorary EU Associate Membership for NI would not only protect the peace process and counter any negative impact of Brexit but it would promote peace-building worldwide.
By making NI the launch-pad of a new EU-led global peace initiative, NI could share its peace and reconciliation experience with the rest of the world and extend the massive EU financial investment in peace-building far beyond the region.
In this way, the EU could also showcase its success and export the lessons learned.
The EU Summit agreement to permit NI to return to the EU if there is consent to a united Ireland has been described as a useful housekeeping exercise. However, in the spirit of the Good Friday Agreement, it might also be appropriate to recognise the will of the majority in NI to remain in the EU and in the UK.
Honorary EU membership would do that and would avoid further destabilising the delicately balanced NI political institutions by maintaining the status quo but only if the request is put by the UK and Ireland at the behest of the Northern Ireland Assembly/Executive.
The current ‘talks process’ offers yet another opportunity to agree a common position on this issue.
European citizens are said to be searching for ‘a reason to believe’ in the EU.
When EC President Jacques Delors set up the first PEACE Programme after the ceasefires in 1994, the people of Northern Ireland were given reason to believe peace was possible. Four years later, the Good Friday Agreement was signed and peace has been dropping slowly ever since.
The EU role in the peace process has been critical to its success.
This is not only due to massive EU investment and political support but also because EU Membership facilitated UK/Ireland relations and EU funding promoted cross-border and cross community cooperation.
It would be a major step backward and a tragic shame if this progress was slowed, halted or reversed in any way by Brexit.
To achieve this, the EU should spearhead a global peace-building initiative, modelled on the PEACE programme, dovetailing with the EC Solidarity Corps and reflecting the success of ERASMUS.
It would be entitled ‘White Dove’, after the Irish pilgrim Columbanus who left for Europe in the sixth century, and could be launched from Northern Ireland at a Belfast Conference aimed at recognising the EU’s past and potential peace-building role.
In this way, White Dove will give the peace process the stability and encouragement it needs, it will give the EU a world leadership role and, above all, it will contribute to global peace and security.
Jane Morrice is an EESC member and author of the EESC Opinion on the role of the EU in the Northern Ireland peace process.