Respecting Respecting & Connecting Communities & Connecting Communities Building Positive Relations between the Traveller and Settled Communities An Integrated Approach to Relationship Building An Integrated Approach to Relationship Building DAn éagsúlacú ht a ch n u im s iú l a g u s a n c a h e i l i ú r a d g a y h t i s r e v i d Donegal County Development Board e g n i t n a r b e l n e c d G n a Bord Forbartha Chontae Dhún na nGall g n o i c a a r b m e l D l Comhairle Chontae Dhún na nGall Donegal County Council Project supported by PEACE III Programme managed for the Special EU Programmes Body by Donegal County Council First published 2012 By Respecting & Connecting Communities, Social Inclusion Unit, Donegal County Council, Community, Culture and Planning, Station Island, Lifford, County Donegal. © 2012 Social Inclusion Unit, Donegal County Council. Contact: Social Inclusion Unit, Donegal County Council. Tel: 074 917 2531 Fax: 074 914 2130 Website: www.donegalcoco.ie Design: Carton LeVert. Resource Guide Compiled By: Catherine Anne Kelly, Social Inclusion Unit, Donegal County Council. Contributors: Julie Costello. The view and opinions expressed in this document do not necessarily reflect those of the European Commission or the Special EU Programmes Body. Respecting & Connecting Communities A publication based on the experiences of the Respecting & Connecting Communities Project 2 / RESPECTING & CONNECTING COMMUNITIES Table of Contents Foreword 4 Acknowledgements 5 Chapter 1 Introduction 6 1.1 Project Aims and Objectives 8 Chapter 2 Responding Collaboratively to Conflict 12 2.1 Introduction 13 2.2 Development of Integrated Framework 14 2.3 Key Stakeholders 17 2.4 Operating Structure 18 2.5 Operating Procedures 18 Chapter 3 Piloting the Integrated Framework 22 3.1 Introduction 23 3.2 Pilot Areas 23 3.3 Project Structure Overview 25 3.4 Community Stakeholder Groups 26 3.5 Key Conflict Factors 27 3.6 Analysis of Parties Involved 30 3.7 Parties Prospects of Resolving Conflict 30 3.8 Detail Current Responses 31 3.9 Deliver Actions 31 3.10 Review and Evaluate 34 3.11 Key Lessons and Recommendations 36 3 Chapter 4 Traveller Culture and Social Interaction between Communities 38 4.1 Introduction 39 4.2 Programme of Events and Activities 40 4.3 Key Lessons and Recommendations 44 Chapter 5 Traveller Culture and the Media’s Role in Racism and Sectarianism 46 5.1 Introduction 47 5.2 Media Strategy and Development 48 5.3 Process/Methodology Followed 49 5.4 Basis for Article Selection 50 5.5 Record of Article Submission and Publication 52 5.6 Article Submission: Successes/Challenges 53 5.7 Internet Site: Successes/Challenges 54 5.8 Radio Interviews: Successes/Challenges 55 5.9 Media Event and Focus Groups: Successes/Challenges 56 5.10 Key Lessons Learned 58 5.11 Evaluation/Impact 59 Chapter 6 Conclusion and Recommendations 60 Appendices 66 Appendix 1 Group Membership 67 Appendix 2 Glossary of Terms 69 Appendix 3 Bibliography 69 Appendix 4 Pilot Areas: Action Plans 70 4 / RESPECTING & CONNECTING COMMUNITIES Foreword The idea of community may simply come down to supporting and interacting positively with other individuals who share a common interest, whether your interest is in the well-being of your family or extends to the well-being of your community. Strong communities benefit the individual, as well as greater society. The Respecting & Connecting Communities Project is a PEACE III funded project, which aims to build positive relations between the Traveller and settled communities in Donegal. This project was set up under the Donegal Peace III Action Plans 2008-2010 and 2011–2013 and based within the Social Inclusion Unit of Donegal County Council. The Respecting & Connecting Communities Steering Committee consists of representatives from local government, state agencies and the community and voluntary sectors and represents a commitment to prioritise the building of relationships between the Traveller and settled communities. The report that follows is a culmination of the learning gained from the range of initiatives delivered by the project over its lifetime. We hope that this report will serve to act as a resource to others from the community, voluntary & statutory sectors who are working towards similar aims and objectives. Ireland is referred to as now being a culturally diverse country; the fact is that Ireland’s Traveller community has represented a source of cultural diversity in Ireland for hundreds of years. Cultural differences can hold the potential for celebration, respect and positive interaction. It is important that we use this potential as an opportunity to build and develop relationships for our welfare and that of our communities. “The good we secure for ourselves is precarious and uncertain until it is secured for all of us and incorporated into our common life”— JANE ADDAMS Mícheál Ó hÉanaígh Director of Community, Culture & Planning Donegal County Council 5 Acknowledgements A large number of people have been involved in the delivery of this project and the Respecting & Connecting Communities Steering Committee would like to thank all who have contributed their time, information and expertise in order to extend our collective understanding of the issues facing the building of more positive relations between the Traveller and settled communities in Donegal at this time. We would like to specifically acknowledge the following groups and organisations for their contribution and support during the delivery of the project: • Donegal County Development Board; • Donegal CDB Peace and Reconciliation Partnership; • Donegal CDB Interagency Group on Traveller Issues. We would also like to thank the members of the local Community Stakeholder Group, who not only guided but also delivered and participated in the dedicated activities in their area. Thanks to the funders of the project – PEACE III Programme managed for the Special EU Programmes Body by Donegal County Council. We would like to give a special thanks to the members of the Integrated Framework Working Group, including Siobhán McLaughlin, Hugh Friel, Ita Ward, Fergus McAteer, Maire O’Leary, Cróna Gallagher, Anne Marie Conlon, Mary Surpless, Vivienne Doherty, Sgt. Sarah Hargadon and Sgt. Michael Galvin, as it is due to their dedication and commitment that the development of the integrated framework was made possible. Steering Committee Respecting & Connecting Communities – 2012 Chapter 1 Introduction Partnership involves collaboration, mutual trust and respect, a common analysis of what the problem is, a commitment to solidarity, equality in the relationship, an explicit focus on process, and the importance of language9. 7 / INTRODUCTION The findings in this publication are the result of an examination of the experiences of the Respecting & Connecting Communities Project set up to build better relations between the Traveller and settled communities in County Donegal over the last two and a half years. This publication aims to encapsulate the learning from the project and, in the course of doing so, seeks to provide a resource to others from the community, voluntary and statutory sector who are engaged in relationship building work between the Traveller and settled communities. The Respecting & Connecting Communities Project is a PEACE III funded project set up under the Donegal Peace III Action Plans 2008-2010 and 2011–2013 and based within the Social Inclusion Unit of Donegal County Council. The project is being delivered within the context of the Donegal CDB Interagency Group on Traveller issues. The project will have ceased as of the end of July, 2012. Partnership involves collaboration, mutual trust and respect, a common The rationale for the Respecting & Connecting Communities Project and analysis of what the problem is, a commitment to solidarity, equality in the indeed projects with similar aims and objectives was clearly set in a 2007 9 report commissioned by the CDB Interagency Group on Traveller issues, relationship, an explicit focus on process, and the importance of language . which referred to the Building Ethnic Peace Project, carried out by Donegal Travellers Project, and described the following as the current situation in Donegal: “Where there is a lack of any real interaction between the settled and Traveller community and where communal tensions exist resulting in individuals from both communities feeling anxious, worried and frustrated and often leading to demonstrations of aggressive behaviour”. “ The main battlefield for good is not the open ground of the public area, but the small clearing in each heart.” YANN MARTEL, LIFE OF PI This report will document the steps taken by the project in order to meet the project objectives together with documenting the learning gained from their delivery. Through this approach this report seeks to provide a clear picture of what the project has achieved during its lifetime whilst also providing a resource to other projects. The appendices include those documents as outlined in the table of contents. 8 / RESPECTING & CONNECTING COMMUNITIES 1.1 Project Aims and Objectives The Respecting & Connecting Communities Steering Committee1 was established to guide and steer the project towards meeting its aims and objectives. The Steering Committee is comprised of key stakeholders in the County. Members of the Steering Group are listed in Appendix 1.1. The following three aims were identified by the Steering Committee as key to building better relations between the Traveller and settled communities: 1. To develop clarity as to how to respond collaboratively to conflict situations between the Traveller and the wider settled communities. 2. To enhance recognition and awareness of Traveller culture and provide opportunities for greater interaction between both communities. 3. To maximise the potential of the media in enhancing recognition of Traveller culture and wider cultural diversity and to explore its role in dealing with attitudes towards sectarianism and racism. To achieve the project aims the following objectives were agreed to build better relations between the Traveller and settled communities: 1.