Conflict in Multi-Ethnic Societies Reasons for Conflict in Northern Ireland Reasons for Conflict Divided Loyalties Allocation of Housing Voting Rights Employment Opportunities Social Interaction Divided Loyalties The difference in political beliefs between the Protestants and Catholics has contributed to the conflict in Northern Ireland. Most Protestants see themselves as British and wish to see the country remain as part of the United Kingdom. Pg 115 Divided Loyalties Many of them did not want a union with the republic of Ireland, a Catholic country. They feared that a Catholic government may not be tolerant of their Protestant beliefs. Pg 115 Divided Loyalties On the other hand, Catholics see themselves as Irish and want to be reunited with the Republic of Ireland. The Catholics are offended by the history of English victory, where Catholics were either killed or treated harshly. Pg 115 Divided Loyalties The loyalty to different countries made the Protestants and Catholics intolerant of each other. Moreover, the two groups did not see themselves as one country and therefore had very clear different identities. Pg 115 Divided Loyalties I am Catholic and I am Irish! I am Protestant and I am British! Recap Who conquered who? Which King defeated King James II? What is the battle called? What did the Protestants do after gaining back their power? Is Northern Ireland fully independent? What does Divided Loyalties mean? Sinn Fein What does Sinn Fein mean? How to pronounce Sinn Fein? What was the aims of the Sinn Fein? Pg 115 Group Work Get into groups of 4. Each person takes 1 factor ( A-V-E-S ) and read up on that factor. You have 10 mins to do so. Discuss in your group which of the 5 factors is the most important factor. Allocation of Housing The Catholics in Northern Ireland find the allocation of public housing by the government to be unfair. Large Catholic families in need of housing had to wait a long time to get a house. Most of the houses were allocated to the Protestants. Pg 116 Allocation of Housing For example, 71% of the housing was allocated to the Protestants even though 53% of the people were Catholics. PROTESTANTS CATHOLICS Pg 116 Allocation of Housing This made the Catholics furious as the shortage of house meant that they had to wait longer for their own houses. This also meant that the Protestants were getting newer houses while the Catholics remained in the older houses. Pg 116 Voting Rights Before 1969, voting rights was an issue between the Protestants and the Catholics. At that time, only those who owned houses and business were entitled to vote in the local government elections. Each household was given 2 votes while companies had more votes, depending on their size. Since many companies were owned by rich Protestants, they had more votes. Pg 119 Voting Rights The voting system was unfair to the poorer Catholic population. Not being able to vote meant they did not have much say in the governance of Northern Ireland. This made the Catholics very unhappy. Pg 119 Voting Rights Since 1969, everyone is entitled to vote as long as he is a British citizen above the age of 18. He has to be born in Northern Ireland or has lived in the UK for 7 years. While this may help to reduce tension, the conflict between the Catholics and the Protestants still persisted Pg 119 Employment Opportunities The competition for jobs has also contributed to the conflict between the Protestants and Catholics. It is generally more difficult for Catholics to find jobs, especially government jobs. The Catholics feel that although they may be as academically qualified as the Protestants, they do not have the same opportunities in getting the jobs they want. Pg 118 Employment Opportunities This clearly denied the Catholics of equal opportunities and thus limiting them the opportunity to earn money. This has also caused a distinct unemployment problem for the Catholics. Pg 118 Social Interaction The structure of schools in Northern Ireland disallows students from the different groups to interact. In Northern Ireland, there are fully- funded public schools that cater to the Protestants only. Pg 119 Social Interaction In the public schools, Protestants children are taught British history and play British sports such as rugby, hockey and cricket. They are very loyal to the British. For example, they would sing the British national anthem. Social Interaction On the other hand, there are private schools that cater to the Catholics only. These private schools are partly funded by the government. Catholic children learn Irish history, take up Irish sports such as hurling, and are taught Irish language and culture. They tend to regard Britain as a foreign country. Social Interaction Not interacting with one another, deepened differences between Protestants and Catholics and made it difficult to reconcile the difference since children are taught at a young age to discriminate against each other. This is an important reason for the conflict as the lack of opportunity for social interaction does not allow the children to learn about each other. Hurling What is Hurling? Conclusion What do you think is the most important factor that has caused the conflict in Ireland? Why? Source Base