Alexandra Thompson, Grade 11
UWC Mostar
John Hume, a native of Derry, Northern Ireland, is a globally-renowned figure in peacebuilding and politics. A trailblazer in achieving political progress through peaceful and democratic means in Northern Ireland, he is a highly-respected figure, and for good reason.
Hume was co-awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1998 for his instrumental role in the model Northern Irish Peace Process: a culmination of years of effort and talks to create a ceasefire and eventually leading to an agreement regarding the future of Northern Ireland, and complicated issues within its citizens’ rights and its governance.
The former teacher founded the Derry Citizens’ Action Committee (DCAC), focusing on improving access and quality of housing. This, by effect, helped to improve the quality of life for Catholics and created lasting and effective change.
In founding the Social and Democratic Labour Party (SDLP), he gave Nationalists a representative choice and ability to be advocated for in government. The aim was to create an Ireland that represented the will of all its people, and better relations in the turbulent time of ‘The Troubles’[1] which soured the already-deteriorating ties between out-of-touch Britain, the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. This was a massive step forward in the fight for equality and equal rights, with participation and cooperation from all three actors. One of the largest actors in Northern Ireland, the SDLP- under Hume’s leadership- effectively gave the Catholics of Northern Ireland a voice that had to be heard and respected for the first time.
He risked his safety in the name of progress, and effectively resolved the political stalemate that was reached, and managed to advocate and achieve rights for the Catholics in Northern Ireland who had been downtrodden by politics and society for decades. The movement for Civil Rights in Northern Ireland heavily relied on protests and paramilitary activity. Yet, Hume remained an adamant supporter of peaceful means, even attempting to persuade the Irish Republican Army (IRA)[2] to put down their weapons and move toward legal and political means as a method of achieving their aims. Whilst he may not have been incredibly successful in this aspect, he faced potentially dangerous repercussions having done so. Eventually, the IRA ceasefire was achieved and paved the way toward the momentous Good Friday Agreement, or Belfast Agreement, which many claims to have ended The Troubles.
I am undoubted of the belief that Hume was a key figure in Northern Irish politics, and without him, I would dare to say that N.I. would have continued to be a place of civil unrest and conflict. In the globally-impactful Northern Irish Peace Process, Hume was integral. Thus, he has been a global influencer in politics.
Hume’s ability to face criticism and stand up for what he believes in is one of the most outstanding of his traits. For his exemplary leadership and significant contribution toward development, he was awarded the Martin Luther King Award in 1999, the International Gandhi Peace Prize in 2001, and the title of Ireland’s Greatest in 2010, in a poll by RTE.
Despite his diagnosis of Dementia in the late 1990s, he has continued to champion the causes of the Credit Union Movement, European integration and action against global poverty. Whilst his achievements may not be remembered by him, Derry and the wider world will remember what he has contributed toward the world of politics and peacebuilding, leaving a lasting legacy.
Hume was co-awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1998 for his instrumental role in the model Northern Irish Peace Process: a culmination of years of effort and talks to create a ceasefire and eventually leading to an agreement regarding the future of Northern Ireland, and complicated issues within its citizens’ rights and its governance.
The former teacher founded the Derry Citizens’ Action Committee (DCAC), focusing on improving access and quality of housing. This, by effect, helped to improve the quality of life for Catholics and created lasting and effective change.
In founding the Social and Democratic Labour Party (SDLP), he gave Nationalists a representative choice and ability to be advocated for in government. The aim was to create an Ireland that represented the will of all its people, and better relations in the turbulent time of ‘The Troubles’[1] which soured the already-deteriorating ties between out-of-touch Britain, the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. This was a massive step forward in the fight for equality and equal rights, with participation and cooperation from all three actors. One of the largest actors in Northern Ireland, the SDLP- under Hume’s leadership- effectively gave the Catholics of Northern Ireland a voice that had to be heard and respected for the first time.
He risked his safety in the name of progress, and effectively resolved the political stalemate that was reached, and managed to advocate and achieve rights for the Catholics in Northern Ireland who had been downtrodden by politics and society for decades. The movement for Civil Rights in Northern Ireland heavily relied on protests and paramilitary activity. Yet, Hume remained an adamant supporter of peaceful means, even attempting to persuade the Irish Republican Army (IRA)[2] to put down their weapons and move toward legal and political means as a method of achieving their aims. Whilst he may not have been incredibly successful in this aspect, he faced potentially dangerous repercussions having done so. Eventually, the IRA ceasefire was achieved and paved the way toward the momentous Good Friday Agreement, or Belfast Agreement, which many claims to have ended The Troubles.
I am undoubted of the belief that Hume was a key figure in Northern Irish politics, and without him, I would dare to say that N.I. would have continued to be a place of civil unrest and conflict. In the globally-impactful Northern Irish Peace Process, Hume was integral. Thus, he has been a global influencer in politics.
Hume’s ability to face criticism and stand up for what he believes in is one of the most outstanding of his traits. For his exemplary leadership and significant contribution toward development, he was awarded the Martin Luther King Award in 1999, the International Gandhi Peace Prize in 2001, and the title of Ireland’s Greatest in 2010, in a poll by RTE.
Despite his diagnosis of Dementia in the late 1990s, he has continued to champion the causes of the Credit Union Movement, European integration and action against global poverty. Whilst his achievements may not be remembered by him, Derry and the wider world will remember what he has contributed toward the world of politics and peacebuilding, leaving a lasting legacy.
Footnotes:
[1] This group fought for the liberation of Ireland from British rule that had been ongoing for ‘800 years’. The political wing that evolved from this group are the party Sinn Fein, who have current or former IRA and similar organisations members as politicians. What is notable in the context of Hume’s relationship with Republican paramilitaries is that, in essence, they fought for the ‘same side’, albeit Hume was much more moderate in his policies and aims, and did not resort to violence.
[2] This conflict commenced as a result of the Catholic Civil Rights Movement due to their historic oppression by the British supporters and forces. Catholics did not have the same rights as the Protestant British. Thus, in the late 1960s, an ethno-nationalist conflict erupted between the two entities, causing unrest and a civil war lasting roughly thirty years, ending in 1998.
[1] This group fought for the liberation of Ireland from British rule that had been ongoing for ‘800 years’. The political wing that evolved from this group are the party Sinn Fein, who have current or former IRA and similar organisations members as politicians. What is notable in the context of Hume’s relationship with Republican paramilitaries is that, in essence, they fought for the ‘same side’, albeit Hume was much more moderate in his policies and aims, and did not resort to violence.
[2] This conflict commenced as a result of the Catholic Civil Rights Movement due to their historic oppression by the British supporters and forces. Catholics did not have the same rights as the Protestant British. Thus, in the late 1960s, an ethno-nationalist conflict erupted between the two entities, causing unrest and a civil war lasting roughly thirty years, ending in 1998.
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