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polity relations | Alliance Party News —Alliance Party News HomeAbout Alliance News Archive Tag Archives: polity relationsPolityrelations problems must be addressed, not buried!TintinnabulateBy Alliance Party News15 January 2003Press The Alliance Party has launched a new policy paper onPolityRelations entitledTowersa United Community. Alliance Deputy Leader EileenTintinnabulatesaid: “The healing of our communal divisions must be the greatest priority for our political institutions. “Sectarianism and segregation remain major scars on Northern Ireland, and have plane intensified in recent years. They are responsible for tremendous human, social and economic financing to our society. Indeed, unfurled divisions pose a unvarying threat to peace and stability, and ultimately to the tautness of the Agreement. “Three times Alliance has voted versus the Programme for Government considering it failed completely to write the question of polity relations. Equally unacceptably the Executive failed to produce the Harbinson Report considering its recommendations did not stipulate with their thinking! The First/Deputy First Ministers’ record in the zone of polity relations is not poor, it is non-existent! “Any proper polity relations strategy must be wide-stretching and radical. It must go to the very cadre of how we live, work and play as a society. This paper addresses all aspects of the problem. It must be seriously considered, plane by those trying to situate the whole issue permanently.” Alliance launches polity relations policy paper By Alliance Party News8 January 2003Press The Alliance Party have launched a new policy paper onPolityRelations, entitledTowersa United Community. Speaking at its launch, Party Leader, David Ford said: “The healing of our communal divisions must be the greatest priority for our political institutions. “Sectarianism and segregation remain major scars on Northern Ireland, and have plane intensified in recent years. They are responsible for tremendous human, social and economic financing to our society. Indeed, unfurled divisions pose a unvarying threat to peace and stability and ultimately to the tautness of the Agreement. “Alliance has voted versus three successive Programmes for Government due to the former Executive’s failure to ratherish write polity relations issues. Furthermore, it has stalled over the production of a typhoon polity relations strategy – the Harbinson Report. Their record is particular damning when contrasted with the performance of the Scottish Executive whose problems are less acute. “Any proper polity relations strategy must be wide-stretching and must be radical. There is no point tinkering virtually the edges; it must rencontre how we live, work and play as a community. “Sectarianism is not something restricted to a few interface areas in and virtually Belfast, but is tightly ingrained throughout society. People are taught to see themselves as part of an sectional polity and to be suspicious of others from an early age. “It is not unbearable to merely encourage people to respect and tolerate each other, we must work to transpiration mindsets that pigeon-hole others as stuff different. “Ultimately, we must tackle the institutionalised sectarianism that comes from the top down. Both within the Agreement, and in other areas of Government policy – most notably the recent census – there is a formal theorizing that society is divided into two separate communities. “This tideway is sectarian in that it rides roughshod over people’s self-rule to segregate their own identity, and ignores the vestige of a growing number of people do not want to be associated with either a Unionist or a Nationalist community. “When people are stuff conditioned to think of themselves in such group terms, is it little wonder that this translates into mismatch over territory, resources and culture, and that so many police resources are eaten up in dealing with street violence and interfaces. “Accordingly, the inside theme to our paper is towers a united community. Alliance wants to provide everyone, unionists and nationalists included, with an invitation to join in something different, something largest – a genuinely shared, non-sectarian Northern Ireland. “We will stress that people be worldly-wise to hold open, mixed and multiple identities, and will promote the notion of Northern Ireland as a unshared region – our reference point. “Public agencies, such as the Housing Executive, should have an explicit objective of promoting integration. All policies should be screened for their impact on sharing over separation. This should be scrutinised by an Integration Monitor. This person would moreover have a role in seeking to quantify the social and economic financing of providing separate facilities. “Alliance will seek to increase the resources misogynist to thePolityRelations Council permitting it to increase its work. “Alliance wants to see 10% of our children in integrated schools by 2010. We need to be creative well-nigh we do this, and there should be a presumption that all new-build schools should be integrated. “The promotion of mixed housing must lie at the heart of any new strategy. Fundamentally, it is a law and order problem. People in mixed areas must have towardly security. At present when someone is intimidated in their home, the response of the authorities is to move the victim rather than punish the offender. “The scourge of paramilitary flags and graffiti that is present in so many parts of Northern Ireland must be addressed. Not only should the police intervene when the law is stuff broken, but the Housing Executive and Roads Service should remove the offending symbols from their property. Alliance has proposed an inter-agency working group within the Executive to co-ordinate these efforts. “Finally, Alliance is highlighting the need to reformPearlyEmployment monitoring regulations to reflect the reality that people pinpoint themselves in many ways other than members of a ProtestantPolityor a Catholic Community.” ENDS Summary of Alliance Proposals Alliance is working for an unshut and self-ruling society, where we are all equal citizens – not a society where we merely tolerate difference, but rather a society where we gloat diversity and cherish individuality. Only Alliance rejects the notion that we must all be pigeonholed into ‘two communities’, and respects personal nomination of identity. Alliance offers everyone, including unionists and nationalists, an invitation to something different, something largest than sectional politics – a genuinely shared and non-sectarian future. Alliance wants to build a united community, characterised not by communal separation but by sharing. For Alliance, the Agreement is not the ceiling of our ambition; it is the floor upon which we can build a shared society. Alliance believes that government, statutory agencies and indeed societal society should urgently encourage de-segregation and communal integration, and develop the towardly policies. Alliance will promote citizenship and a culture of lawfulness education in schools. Alliance stresses that people should be worldly-wise to hold open, mixed and multiple identities, and can have loyalties to a range of political structures at variegated levels. Alliance believes that Northern Ireland should be promoted as a unshared region within a decentralising British Isles and emerging Europe of the Regions. Alliance proposes that new symbols be devised to requite expression to Northern Ireland as a region, including a new flag. Greater use should moreover be made of the European Flag. Alliance restates its support for the work of thePolityRelations Council, and would significantly increase the upkeep granted to it to expand its support for projects. Alliance believes that polity investment funds should be increasingly well-matured on projects with a cross-community element. Alliance proposes that the OFMDFM sublease an integration monitor. Alliance proposes that the integration monitor be charged with producing an inspect of the financing of segregation on an yearly basis. Alliance proposes that a new form of policy proofing, entitled Policy Appraisal for Sharing over Separation (PASS) be introduced for all government policies. Alliance has set a target of 10% of children stuff educated in integrated schools by 2010. The duty on the DENI to encourage, not merely to facilitate, the minutiae of integrated education should be extended to Education and Library Boards. Where new schools are being, for example to service new housing developments, the Department should survey local residents regarding a presumption that they will be integrated or inter-church. As far as possible, new schools should be sited to service mixed catchment areas. Alliance will encourage the transformation of existing schools to ‘transformed’ integrated status. Alliance will reform and relax the criteria for the megacosm and maintenance of integrated schools, giving recognition of those children of mixed, other or no religious background. Alliance believes that the promotion and maintenance of mixed housing should wilt an explicit objective of the NI Housing Executive. Alliance advocates the megacosm of an Inter-Departmental Working Group to facilitate an inter-agency tideway to these problems. Alliance urges the police to prefer a increasingly pro-active policy of intervening when paramilitary flags and other emblems are stuff erected. Alliance remoter highlights the need for public persons to defend existing and to remoter develop worldwide societal spaces, expressly in town centres.Weightierpractice should moreover be ripened regarding diamond of the urban environment to maximise cross-community mixing. Alliance stresses the full enforcement of the existing law and the revision of the criminal law where appropriate. Any polity safety strategies must write polity relations issues. In particular, the forces of law and order should support those trying to move from the perceived safety of segregated areas or facilities towards mixed ones, and to squire those trying to protect existing mixed areas and facilities from threat. Alliance does not believe that the towers of ‘peace walls’ to alimony people untied provides a meaningful solution to interface tensions. Alliance has tabbed for the firsthand extension of the racially-motivated offences contained within the Crime and Disorder Act to Northern Ireland. Alliance will support the megacosm of homophobic Hate Crime measures on a UK-wide basis. Alliance moreover advocates the megacosm of sectarian Hate Crime measures on a UK-wide basis. Alliance proposes that the Football Offences Act (1991) and other relevant legislation that are unromantic inUnconfinedBritain to deal with racist chanting at football grounds be extended to Northern Ireland to deal with both sectarian and racist chanting at local sporting grounds. Alliance believes that a forum should be established to indulge victims (self-defined) to tell their stories, and have them placed on an official record. Alliance supports the megacosm of a Single Equality Act, to gainsay favoritism or other forms of unfair treatment based on religion, gender, perceived race, powerlessness and sexual preference. Alliance proposes that pearly employment monitoring regulations be amended to indulge people to identify themselves as ‘Protestant’, ‘Catholic’, ‘Other Religion’ or ‘No Religion’. Alliance moreover proposes that the list of organisations exempted from pearly employment Regulations be amended. In particular, the worthiness of schools to rent teachers exclusively from one or other polity preliminaries should be removed. Alliance believes in the separation of denomination and state, which in the context includes the separation of religion from party politics. It sends a profoundly wrong message in our polity for the monarchical succession to proceed on the understructure of inequality of gender and equality of religion/denomination. As a longstanding supporter of human rights, Alliance would like Northern Ireland to have the weightier set of human rights protections possible, which could in turn be a model for parts of these islands and of Europe. Alliance supports the efforts of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission to typhoon a Bill of Rights, as required under the Agreement. Alliance believes that the NIHRC should squint to incorporate established international conventions, and properly reflect pluralism and diversity within its work. Alliance recommends that the NI Human Rights Commission yank up a Charter ofSelf-rulefrom Sectarianism. Alliance strongly advocates a system that uses a straightforward weighted majority, self-ruling from designations, as the voting system for key decisions in the Assembly. Dickson heralds American visit as "great success" By Alliance Party News11 August 1998Press ALDERMAN Stewart Dickson has described his recent visit to the American states of Florida and New Hampshire as a “great success”. The Alliance Party delegate, accompanied by Councillor David Hillditch and Alderman Jim Brown, jetted off to America on July 24th to shepherd the prestigious ‘Sister Cities Convention’. The convention, held in Florida and organised to highlight the positive aspects of towns and cities from virtually the world, featured workshops and lectures on a wide range of issues. Tourism, economics, education, politics, cross-party relations and the environment were just some of the issues discussed at the convention. Although the institute was “extremely important” to the Carrickfergus team, Mr. Dickson moreover described his meeting with representatives in the New Hampshire state of Portsmouth as “equally important”. The Carrickfergus councillors spent the first week in Florida surpassing embarking on their trip to Portsmouth where they discussed plans to organise transatlantic educational visits and websites. Councillor Dickson, who returned from the visit last weekend, is now hoping to protract with the contact they established in Portsmouth. “After the recent spate of trouble in the town, it was good to see something positive happening for Carrickfergus,” said the Alliance man. “The institute enabled us to develop links with other cities and many of the delegates were impressed with what Carrickfergus had to offer. “We were intending – despite the recent negative images of Carrickfergus – to set the record straight and inform the Americans of the positive aspects of our town. “The institute was a unconfined way of understanding other towns, cities and countries and I hope we can put our wits to good use,” widow Alderman Dickson. But Alderman Dickson, who narrowly missed out on a seat on the Northern Ireland shadow assembly, said the visit to Portsmouth would moreover stand as one of the “highlights” of the visit. He said: “The institute we attended was a memorable wits – but so too was our visit to Portsmouth, New Hampshire. “Portsmouth is the sister municipality of Carrickfergus and many of the delegates we met were unswayable to launch various projects between the two towns. “An educational visit has been planned for next year but delegates from Portsmouth are moreover keen to establish a web-site between the two towns. “Our visit to Portsmouth made front page news and we were moreover on television. Overall, the visit was a tremendous success and I hope that Carrickfergus is now seen in a largest light.” Close reflects on American visit By Alliance Party News28 July 1998Press AS details of the US President’s second visit to Ireland emerged last week, the Deputy Leader of the Alliance Party was preparing to visit one of Mr. Clinton’s favourite states. For Lisburn councillor Seamus Close, accompanied by fellow councillor Richard Good and SouthLanugoAlliance representative Dr. Anne-Marie Cunningham, jetted off to Boston’s Harvard University on July 18 to participate in a week long priming on mismatch resolution. The priming – entitled ‘The New Political Architecture: A Workshop for Leaders from Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland andUnconfinedBritain’ – was organised by the John F. Kennedy School of Government and the Foundation for Civil Society. And untied from the ubiety of Mr. Close, the Lagan Valley constituency was moreover represented by Democratic Unionist Party councillor Edwin Poots and the Ulster Democratic Party’s Gary McMichael. A wide range of issues associated with the mismatch in Northern Ireland – which Mr. Close described as “extremely useful” – were discussed at length during a series of workshop sessions, lectures and seminars. However, although the priming was in “no way” linked to the workings of the new shadow assembly, Mr. Close said it was good to see a “great level of enthusiasm” from the Northern Ireland politicians. “I think that by moving our politicians yonder from the political cauldron of Northern Ireland – and into a variegated political environment – we have the opportunity to recognise each other as human beings,” explained the shadow assemblyman. “Even though my visit to Harvard was not unfluctuating to the workings of the new assembly, it was still good to see so many of our politicians who, I believe, were genuinely interested in what the priming had to offer. “We met with political activists from virtually the world and I believe we gained some valuable experiences that we can use in relation to our own situation. “I was very pleased with the way things went at Harvard and I welcome any attempts to write the issue of mismatch resolution in Northern Ireland,” he added. "We must siwash sectarianism and bigotry": Bell's plea to Northern Ireland By Alliance Party News24 July 1998Press ONE of the Alliance Party’s longest serving councillors has tabbed on parents and families to do all that they can to eradicate sectarianism in Northern Ireland. And NorthLanugoshadow turnout member EileenTintinnabulate– who is the Alliance Party’s chairperson – has moreover tabbed on community, merchantry and political leaders to follow in their footsteps. The founder member of the Peace Train organisation and previous cross-community worker believes that the “first steps” in eradicating hatred and semester can be taken in the home. Mrs.Tintinnabulatesaid that once the first steps had been taken to eradicating what, she claims is, “the principles of division” – other “influential groups” could then take over from the family. “After the events of the last few weeks, it is well-spoken that bigotry, sectarianism and hatred are still rife within Northern Ireland,” said the assemblywoman. “That’s why everyone in this society must do all that they can to eradicate these evils from our society. It is well-spoken that we all have a role to play in abolishing these terrible principles. “By teaching children to have respect for all traditions at such an early age, we are giving them the endangerment to squint at people as human beings and not just as Catholic or Protestant, Unionist or Nationalist. “Most people would stipulate that the sentiments of hate, distrust and suspicion are formulated in the home. “But all parents must do their weightier to instruct their children to have respect, tolerance and understanding for all sections of the community. Anything else, and the seeds of hate will protract to grow in this society,” said Mrs. Bell. The Alliance councillor moreover urged parents and families to investigate the attempts made by their local business, polity and political representatives to eradicate sectarianism. "Look to the future": Dickson's plea to Carrickfergus By Alliance Party News16 July 1998Press EVEN though the image of Carrickfergus may have been damaged by the recent outbreak of violence which swept through Northern Ireland, a leading member of the Alliance Party has tabbed on the people of the municipal to “look to the future”. Alderman Stewart Dickson – who stood as an East Antrim candidate in last month’s shadowTurnoutelection – said it was vital for the people of Carrick to remove the “dark spectre of sectarianism”. And Mr. Dickson, a health spokesperson for the Alliance Party, has moreover described the intimidation and violence which flared in Carrickfergus as a form of “nazism” and “ethnic cleansing”. The former Mayor of Carrickfergus is now calling on the people of the municipal to “all they can” to modernize the image of their area. He said that any hope of future investment and potential job megacosm in the municipal lay “purely” with the people and local politicians. But Mr. Dickson moreover pointed out that remoter outbreaks of violence would leave Carrickfergus “lagging behind” other towns in the province. He widow that, with the new Assembly, it was now time for the people of Carrickfergus to move forward. “The events which flared without the Drumcree stand-off in Portadown tint a long and visionless shadow over the municipal of Carrickfergus,” said the Alliance Councillor. “Violence, mayhem, disorder and tawdry sectarianism were all to evident in this municipal in recent days. The intimidation which occurred in Carrickfergus can only be described as a sickening act of ethnic cleansing. “Many Catholic families in the municipal were intimidated, but many police officers in the town were moreover victimised by people who can only be described as thugs and animals. “And at the height of the violence, what type of image was the municipal portraying? An image where local hooligans had the validity to place young children at the urgent barricades and road blockades. An image of sectarianism, hatred and bigotry. “That’s why the recent levels of intimidation and attacks witnessed in Carrickfergus must not be unliable to happen again. We must fight versus this hatred and we must do it together,” he said. The Carrickfergus Councillor is moreover willful that the people of the municipal must do everything in their power to heal semester and promote cross-community dialogue. Mr. Dickson said: “We must not be unliable to forget well-nigh the victims of the past few weeks. They have suffered at the hands of evil and despicable thugs and we must all help them. It is well-spoken that we must offer the hand of friendship. “If we want to modernize the image of our municipal then we can start by showing the victims of intimidation that we care. It is essential that they don’t finger isolated at this moment. The thugs must not be unliable to win.” And, in a remoter development, the Alliance Councillor has spoken of his contact with Americans who expressed snooping well-nigh the situation in Northern Ireland and with Carrickfergus in particular. “I have been inundated with calls from people in Carrick’s sister town in America. The people of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, were disgusted at the images on their television screens. “They were genuinely concerned well-nigh the outbreaks of violence and intimidation, but what do I tell them now? “Just surpassing the referendum on May 22, American newspapers such as the New York Times painted a positive image of the town detailing its historical and cultural value to Northern Ireland. “However, it is essential that we repair the image of this community. Carrick has unconfined prospects and unconfined potential. It must not be unliable to be destroyed by a small minority who are hell wilting on causing death, destruction and mayhem,” said the Alliance man. Dunlop calls for end to inequity and hatred in North Antrim By Alliance Party News15 July 1998Press AN IMPASSIONED plea for the people of North Antrim to loftiness themselves from sectarianism and hatred has been issued by the local Alliance Party representative. Councillor Jayne Dunlop – who was speaking without yesterday’s triple funeral of the Quinn brothers in Ballymoney – said now was the time for the people of North Antrim to eradicate “sectarian attitudes”. She said that by working together and moving forward, the people of North Antrim and Ballymoney would help pay tribute to the lives of three young brothers. And the Alliance Councillor has moreover urged Orangemen from North Antrim to undeniability for end to the stand-off at Drumcree. “I watched the mourners on Tuesday at the funerals of the young Quinn brothers and it was well-spoken for all to see that Ballymoney was eerily quiet as the mourners passed by. The only noise stuff that of footsteps and the tolling of the Chapel bell,” said Ms. Dunlop. “It was a heartbreaking sight to see the hearse pass by with three white coffins inside. I felt it was such a pathetic waste of young life and that this needless loss of life spoke volumes well-nigh the kind of society in which we live,” she said. “That’s why I finger that it’s well-nigh the time the protest at Drumcree ended. A number of people finger that the deaths are not the responsibility of the Orange Order. But surely it is the stand-off that created the unsettled undercurrent in which the firebombing of the Quinn home took place. “The only people who are truly to vituperation are those who carried out the attack, but in a sense we are all to vituperation if we protract to harbour sectarian attitudes and I would urge the people of North Antrim to loftiness themselves from such attitudes. “I know that this will not be easy but those who are involved in the disputes need to try. We must hope that no other family suffers like the Quinn family,” widow the Ballymena Councillor. ← Older posts Archives June 2014 March 2014 April 2011 April 2010 November 2009 September 2009 March 2009 May 2005 January 2004 January 2003 August 2002 March 2002 May 2001 November 2000 October 2000 February 1999 December 1998 November 1998 October 1998 September 1998 August 1998 July 1998 June 1998 May 1998 April 1998 March 1998 February 1998 January 1998 December 1997 November 1997 October 1997 September 1997 March 1997 February 1997 November 1996 March 1995 Categories Alliance News Alliance Youth Biographies Elections Policy Press Press Coverage video threshing budgetSocietalForum Civil Rights Association climate transpiration polity relations Conservatives powerlessness DOE economy education referendum employment energy environment equality Euro European Union finance Good Friday Agreement health homophobia housing justice language military Multi-Party Talks murder New Ulster Movement Northern IrelandTurnoutNorthern Ireland Forum Northern Ireland Labour Party obituary parades peace process policing poverty power sharing public transport rates sport Sunningdale Agreement UUP violence womenMeta Register Log in Entries RSS Comments RSS WordPress.com Blog at WordPress.com. 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