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VIOLENCE ANO BLOODSHED
have become a vlftual way of ttfe to many m battered Northern lreland Left British troops wearing
protectwe riot gear move down a Belfas! street in an attempt lo que// tightmg between Catholics and Protestants Right A btoodied Brdtsh
soldter takes a rest break prioc to resuming hts patrol. Over 13,000 Bri!tsh troops are stationed m Northern lreland today.
of all of 1reland), the uprising was
quickly crushed by British troops and
its leadcrs cxecuted. But it was nev–
ertheless to be the catalyst leading
ultimately to independence for a
largc portion of the island.
A compromise was finally reached
in 1922 with the creation of the
Catholic " l rish Free State." Under
this arrangcment, 26 of Ireland's 32
counties- 80 percent of the island–
werc given dominion status within
the British Empire. Britain hoped it
would bring peace to Ireland. The six
Protestant-dominated northern coun–
ties in Ulster Province-the size of
the statc of Connecticut- voted by
refcrcndum to remain part of Brit-
January
1980
ain. T hey were granted their own
parliament in Stormont Castle out–
side Belfast. ( Britain dissolved Stor–
mont in March 1972, and now ad–
ministers the province directly from
Westminster.)
In 1949, the Free State broke com–
pletely with Britain, proclaiming itself
the sovereign "Republic of lreland," or
Eire. But Ulster remaincd firm as ever
within the Brit ish fold. A clear majority
of the people of Northern l reland
wished to rema in an integral part of the
United Kingdom.
Trouble in Ulster
Of Ulster's 1.5 million people, one
million are Protestan! and 500,000
are Roman Catholic. The two com–
munities in Ulster became increas–
ingly polarized following the creation
of the l rish Republic. Catholics
charged the Protestants with "gerry–
mandering tactics" to ensure that
Catholics were not represented in the
Stormont Parliament in proportion to
their numbers.
Undeniably, Protestan! cont rol of
political and economic power in Ul–
ster has become virtually absolute.
The Catholic minority today has lit–
t le political clout, little voice in gov–
ernment. Discrimination has ex–
tended into other facets of society as
well. Education is largely segregated
by religion. Protestants go to state-
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