Johnny Andrews: Reconciliation should be at heart of overdue review of Stormont

He told the Irish Seanad that it was “mystifying” and “dispiriting”that “neither the government here in Dublin, nor in London or Belfast or Washington, has a clear policy setting out what reconciliation is, or the steps needed to make it happen”.

We are almost 25 years on from Belfast/Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland.

That deal included the commitment by all parties and the two governments, the UK and Ireland, as guarantors to implementing a process of reconciliation as part of the continuing peace process and confidence building following 35 years of violence.

Furthermore the devolved government in Northern Ireland pledged to work for a ‘shared and better future for all’ in its Programme for Government 2008.

A committee on cohesion, sharing and integration was set up, reports were written and presented to the first ministers and deputy first ministers for executive consideration.

These reports failed to see the light of day let alone reach public domain.

The Ulster Unionist Party and Alliance Party withdrew from the committee on the grounds it was not operating effectively, it was wound up. The then Alliance leader said it was clear that other parties were not prepared to commit to targets on integrated education, segregated housing or the removal of illegal flags and emblems.

"We have now lost our faith in the integrity and value of this process," David Ford MLA said.

"From now on, we believe that the debate about how we achieve a genuinely shared future should take place in public, not behind closed doors."

The deputy leader of the Ulster Unionist Party at the time John McCallister said: “The timing and manner of the announcement by the first and deputy first minister demonstrates clearly the contempt they hold for the political process.

"They are not interested in inclusive politics, they have forgotten the hard lessons of the peace process and they have demonstrated that their approach to a shared future is disingenuous.”

Mr McCallister continued: “There is no point in carrying on discussions in such an environment. Only if all parties are actively engaged can genuine agreement be reached.”

All parties had a duty to take this commitment forward under leadership of first minister and deputy first minister with the two governments as guarantors ensuring all aspects of the Belfast Agreement/Good Friday Agreement were followed up.

The Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust released a damning response to the eventual Stormont executive’s Cohesion, Sharing and Integration (CSI) document. The process of reconciliation was abandoned in favour of ‘mutual accommodation’.

Without signalling out any one party, and Alliance to their credit are often the lone voice pushing for such polices, they did have the opportunity to make progress on this committee conditional on continued devolution through their acceptance of the policing and justice ministry.

We are still suffering from this fudge as there has been no real progress on CSI since 1998, with all parties including Alliance paying lip service to such aspirations.

Alliance continues to have it in their gift to ensure delivery.

The two governments of different parties, as guarantors back to 2010, have been negligent in not ensuring CSI was followed through the result being more peace walls, continued segregation and division and more inappropriate and controversial flag flying.

A failed report on flags identity and culture took almost six years before it was even published.

Northern Ireland deserves better and mixed messages lack of engagement and follow through by the guarantor ie the two governments has exacerbated the lack of reconciliation that was core to the 1998 agreement.

This should be on the agenda in the inevitable and long overdue review of the agreement and its institutions.

• Johnny Andrews is deputy chair of the Northern Ireland Conservative and Unionist Party Multi Constituency Association