Author Archives: Henry McDonald

US president, on his way to G8 summit, says end to ‘intractable conflict’ gave others hope and calls on young people to tear down sectarian divisions

Barack Obama has made an impassioned plea for the walls dividing Belfast to come down, and described the Northern Ireland peace process as a blueprint for ending other conflicts around the world.

In a speech at Belfast’s Waterfront Hall prior to the G8 summit, the US president urged politicians and the public to deepen the peace.

“We need you to get this right,” he said. “You set an example for those who seek a peace of their own, people gripped in conflict. They know something better is out there. To put aside the violence.

“They are studying what you are doing and wondering perhaps that if Northern Ireland can achieve peace then we can too. You are their blueprint to follow.”

Obama pledged continued US support for the power-sharing executive and opposition to dissident republican terrorism.

He said: “It has been 15 years since the Good Friday agreement; since clenched fists gave way to outstretched hands; since the people of this island voted in overwhelming numbers to see past the scars of violence and mistrust, and choose to wage peace. And, over the years, other breakthroughs and agreements have followed.

“Understand how extraordinary that is. For years, few conflicts in the world seemed more intractable. And the world rejoiced in your achievement. Especially in America. Pubs from Chicago to Boston were scenes of revelry, folks celebrating the hard work of Hume, Trimble, Adams, Paisley, and so many others.

“In fact, in America, you transcend our differences. If there’s one thing on which Democrats and Republicans in America wholeheartedly agree, it’s that we strongly support a peaceful and prosperous Northern Ireland.”

Two-thirds of the 1,000-strong audience were schoolchildren, one of whom, Hannah Nelson from Methody College Belfast, introduced the Obamas on to the stage.

The president said the young people gathered in the hall gave him hope. “Here in Northern Ireland you have known even more rapid change. And while you have unique challenges of your own, you also have unique reasons to be hopeful. For you are the first generation in this land to inherit more than just hardened attitudes, but a just and hard-earned peace.

“You now live in a thoroughly modern Northern Ireland. The recessions that spread through nearly every country in recent years have inflicted hardship here, too, and there are communities enduring real pain. Still, day by day, life is changing throughout the North. There was a time people couldn’t have imagined Northern Ireland hosting a gathering of world leaders, as you are this week.”

Among those he singled out for praise was a community project in north Belfast that has helped create a breach in one of the 30-plus “peace walls” dividing Catholic and Protestant areas in the city. Obama appealed to the teenagers in the hall to help end sectarian division in their society

“Whether you are a good neighbour to someone from the other side of past battles – that’s up to you. Whether you let your kids play with kids who attend a different church – that’s your decision. Whether you take a stand against violence and hatred, and tell extremists on both sides that no matter how many times they attack the peace, they will not succeed – that’s in your hands. And whether you reach your own outstretched hand across dividing lines, across peace walls, to build trust in a spirit of respect – that’s up to you.”

The president said America would always stand by Northern Ireland. “We will keep working closely with leaders in Stormont and Dublin and Westminster to support your political progress. To those who choose the path of peace, I promise you, the United States of America will support you every step of the way.

“We will always be a wind at your back. And like I said when I visited two years ago, I am convinced that this little island, that inspires the biggest things, its best days are yet ahead.”

Obama’s wife, Michelle, said in her speech that at summits and international meetings, “wherever we go, no matter what’s on our plate, we do our best to meet young people like you … You are the most important people we talk to on our visits because in just a couple of decades you will be the ones in charge.”

She added: “When I look around this room I just don’t see a bunch of teenagers but future world leaders.”

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