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Academic Interventions in Northern Ireland Unionism

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Academic Interventions in Northern Ireland Unionism JYVÄSKYLÄ STUDIES IN EDUCATION, PSYCHOLOGY AND SOCIAL RESEARCH 344 Jyrki Ruohomäki Could Do Better Academic Interventions in Northern Ireland Unionism JYVÄSKYLÄN YLIOPISTO JYVÄSKYLÄ STUDIES IN EDUCATION, PSYCHOLOGY AND SOCIAL RESEARCH 344 Jyrki Ruohomäki "Could Do Better" Academic Interventions in Northern Ireland Unionism Esitetään Jyväskylän yliopiston yhteiskuntatieteellisen tiedekunnan suostumuksella julkisesti tarkastettavaksi yliopiston päärakennuksen juhlasalissa C5 lokakuun 17. päivänä 2008 kello 12. Academic dissertation to be publicly discussed, by permission of the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Jyväskylä, in Auditorium C5, on October 17, 2008 at 12 o'clock noon. UNIVERSITY OF JYVÄSKYLÄ JYVÄSKYLÄ 2008 "Could Do Better" Academic Interventions in Northern Ireland Unionism JYVÄSKYLÄ STUDIES IN EDUCATION, PSYCHOLOGY AND SOCIAL RESEARCH 344 Jyrki Ruohomäki "Could Do Better" Academic Interventions in Northern Ireland Unionism UNIVERSITY OF JYVÄSKYLÄ JYVÄSKYLÄ 2008 Editors Jussi Kotkavirta Department of Social Sciences and Philosophy Pekka Olsbo, Marja-Leena Tynkkynen Publishing Unit, University Library of Jyväskylä Cover photo: Unionist mass demonstration against the Anglo-Irish Agreement 23.11.1985. Copyright by CAIN (cain.ulst.ac.uk) URN:ISBN:978-951-39-3360-9 ISBN 978-951-39-3360-9 (PDF) ISBN 978-951-39-3349-4 (nid.) ISSN 0075-4625 Copyright ©2008 , by University of Jyväskylä Jyväskylä University Printing House, Jyväskylä 2008 ABSTRACT Ruohomäki, Jyrki “Could do Better”. Academic Interventions in Northern Ireland Unionism. Jyväskylä: Jyväskylän yliopisto, 2008, 238 p. (Jyväskylä Studies in Education, Psychology and Social Research ISSN 0075-4625; 344) ISBN 978-951-39-3360-9 (PDF), 978-951-39-3349-4 (nid.) Summary Diss. This thesis starts with the problem of the role of the academics, scholars and intellectuals in Northern Ireland: What is the role of an academic, as a representative of a non-partisan or politically non-committed science in Northern Ireland, in which the political division between the mutually hostile political ideas of Ulster unionism and Northern Ireland nationalism literally penetrate almost all areas and discussions in the society? My thesis is that this political separation into two main agendas also must be reflected in the study of the Northern Ireland conflict, and secondly that the scholars themselves must also have a political aspect present in their activities as scientists. The analysis is limited to the role of the scholars and intellectuals in Northern Ireland unionism, and the same phenomena in reference to Irish nationalism is only briefly touched. By science this study refers namely to social and humanist sciences. As a theoretical framework I use predominately Max Weber and his ideas of the differences and similarities that science and politics and a scientist and a politician have. Weber is also read through the interpretations presented particularly by Kari Palonen. I will also link this study to a wider debate on intellectuals. The primary material that has been analysed consists of texts produced by scholars and intellectuals, such as textbooks and articles, but also a more combatant, as politically more committed material by the same people, such as manifestoes and other non-academic writings. The method of the study is textual analysis, manifested in the application of a reading strategy which searches for the political in a text that is often written as apolitical. The time frame of the study goes from the early 1970’s and the start of the Northern Ireland “troubles” to the Belfast Agreement of 1998. The main interest is, however, concentrated on the 1985-1998 era. Keywords: Ulster unionism, Northern Ireland, politics of science, conflict studies Author’s address Jyrki Ruohomäki Department of Social Sciences and Philosophy / political science P.O. Box 35, FI-40014 University of Jyväskylä Supervisors Senior Assistant Klaus Sondermann Dr. Soc.Sc, Department of Social Sciences and Philosophy /political science P.O. Box 35, FI-40014 University of Jyväskylä Professor Kari Palonen Department of Social Sciences and Philosophy / political science P.O. Box 35, FI-40014 University of Jyväskylä Reviewers Matti Hyvärinen Dr. Soc.Sc, Academy Research Fellow Department of Sociology and Social Psychology 33014 University of Tampere Anu Hirsiaho Dr. Soc.Sc, Postdoctoral Fellow Department of Women’s Studies 33014 University of Tampere Opponent Alan Finlayson PhD, Reader in Politics Department of Politics and International Relations Singleton Park University of Wales, Swansea Swansea SA2 8PP United Kingdom ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost I wish to thank my two supervisors, senior assistant Klaus Sondermann and Professor Kari Palonen. From the University of Jyväskylä I want to thank particularly Professor Pekka Korhonen. In addition, I am thankful for all the unnamed colleagues and friends at the Department of Social Sciences and Philosophy who have provided me with the necessary intellectual support and general encouragement. I am also grateful to my two reviewers Academy fellow Matti Hyvärinen and Postdoctoral fellow Anu Hirsiaho for their valuable comments on the manuscript and Susanne Kalejaiye who helped me with my English. Ina Sondermann read the manuscript as an “interested outsider” providing many useful comments, for which I am grateful. From Northern Ireland I wish to thank especially Professors Shane O’Neill, Richard English and Graham Walker from Queen’s University, Belfast and Professors Arthur Aughey and Henry Patterson from University of Ulster. I am especially grateful to Mrs. Catherine Coll, the school manager for helping me in many ways to make the best out of my four month visit at the School of Politics in 2005-2006. I am also thankful to the PhD students at the School of Politics (QUB) who made me feel very welcome and offered some necessary distractions from academic work. In this respect I think warmly especially Darren McCauley and Richard Trail. The special collections staff at the library of Queen’s University as well as the people at the Linen Hall Library provided me with excellent and swift assistance. For financial support I wish to thank the University of Jyväskylä, the Academy of Finland, the Academy of Finland Centre of Excellence in Political Thought and Conceptual Change, and the Tampere Peace Research Institute. Finally, I would like to thank my friends, family and loved ones, especially my spouse Terhi, for their pivotal support in making this work possible. LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AIA Anglo-Irish Agreement. An agreement between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland governments signed 15th November 1985. BICO British Irish Communist Organisation. A political group in the 1970’s based on accommodating the ideas of Marxism and Northern Ireland unionism. CEC Campaign for Equal Citizenship. A political campaign led by the Belfast barrister Robert McCartney from the mid 1980’s to the early 1990’s. DSD Downing Street Declaration. See JDP. DUP Democratic Unionist Party. Historically, and during the timeframe of this study, the smaller one of the two main unionist parties. The DUP is known of its religious bias in comparison to the other main unionist party, the UUP. The DUP was led by its founding member Dr. Ian Paisley 1971-2008 and currently by Peter Robinson. GFA Good Friday Agreement (officially known as the Belfast Agreement). An Agreement reached between the majority of the political parties in Northern Ireland 10th April 1998 to set up a devolution on a power sharing basis. Ended the era of the Northern Ireland governance through the Anglo-Irish Agreement institutions. IGC Intergovernmental Conference. A political institution set up in the Anglo-Irish Agreement between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland governments to deal with political, security and legal matters and promote cross-border co-operation. Fiercely criticized by the unionists as an embryo for joint authority over Northern Ireland by the two governments. INLA Irish Nationalist Liberation Army. A Marxist Republican paramilitary group. (P)IRA (Provisional) Irish Republican Army. An armed wing of the Republican movement. JDP Joint Declaration on Peace (aka the Downing Street Declaration). Presented by the British and Irish governments on 15th December 1993 to give a blueprint of the contents of the future peace settlement in Northern Ireland. NIFR Northern Ireland Forum Report. The declaration of the “pan nationalist” Northern Ireland forum in 1984 in which all nationalist parties “rejecting violence” (this wording excluded Sinn Féin) took part. SDLP Social Democratic and Labour Party. The constitutional and a more moderate, nationalist party in Northern Ireland. Led by its founding member John Hume 1979-2001 and currently by Mark Durkan. SF Sinn Féin (ourselves alone). The Republican political party, with the political goal of a united Ireland. Commonly understood as the political wing of the IRA. Led by Gerry Adams from 1983. UDA Ulster Defence Association. A loyalist (refers commonly to the militant unionism) paramilitary group, founded in 1971. Sometimes uses the name Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF) as its nom de guerre. UFF Ulster Freedom Fighters. See UDA. UKUP United Kingdom Unionist Party. A relatively small “right wing” unionist party founded in 1995 and led by Robert McCartney. UPRG Ulster Political Research Group. A think tank of the paramilitary UDA. UUC Ulster Unionist Council. Political organisation formed in 1905 to fight against the Irish
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