Belfast, U.K.
Northern Ireland’s bitterest enemies took office together this week to govern the province jointly. Ian Paisley, head of the hard-line unionist Democratic Union Party, and Martin McGuinness, of the hard-line republican party Sinn Fein, were sworn in as first and deputy first ministers—posts with equal powers—to end five years of direct rule by London. An earlier power-sharing government collapsed in 2002, because extremists had failed to disarm. Now, though, Paisley, who long refused to negotiate with Catholics, has pledged to cooperate with the Irish government, while McGuinness, a former militant, promised to support the police and British courts. “From the depths of my heart,” said Paisley, “I believe Northern Ireland has come to a time of peace, a time when hate will no longer rule.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
The biggest climate records in the last yearIn Depth The number of records set in the past year is a stark reminder of the destructiveness of climate change
-
'The future of abortion access in many states may come down to who has the final say'Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Supreme Court rejects challenge to CFPBSpeed Read The court rejected a conservative-backed challenge to the way the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is funded
