Sir, – John A Murphy (September 5th), in his comments on Rónán O'Brien's opinion piece "Why Redmond and Adams have much in common"(August 30th), says that nationalists should "accept that there are two nations on the island of Ireland".
This was made in defence of the unionist position, but he does not say which “nation” the unionists are supposed to belong to. Unionists, of course, identify as “British”. However, Britain is not a nation, but a combination of nations.
It is true that the English, Scottish and Welsh readily owe allegiance to the British state (as do the Northern Irish unionists). But they do not deny their individual nationalities as the Ulster unionists do, the latter who use “Britishness” in an artificial way to pretend that they are ethnically different from the mere Irish.
Not only that, the British people in Great Britain itself have no sense of commonality with the “British” in Ulster, and indeed are mystified by their traditions. The religious sectarianism associated with unionism is alien to them. If unionism is an expression of a national culture, it is a strange one indeed. For it is an exclusive one for Protestants only. National cultures cannot be like this.
John A Murphy also says that Gerry Adams’s suggestions of “interim and transitional” arrangements (towards a united Ireland) are “old de Valera hat” which will not impress unionists. He says unionists simply want a “guaranteed Britishness” outside a united Ireland framework.
This is itself “old hat” – of the unionist variety. There is no such guarantee in existence any more. The Belfast Agreement allows for a united Ireland if a majority of citizens in Northern Ireland desire it.
The days when unionism had a special place in dictating the future of the Irish nation are gone. – Yours, etc,
OWEN BENNETT,
Dublin 2.
A chara, – John A Murphy states, “More fundamentally, nationalists should belatedly accept that there are two nations on the island of Ireland.”
More precisely, the two nations are in the Northern Ireland part of the island. However, instead of equal status for the two nations, Northern Ireland “in its entirety” is painted as British. There is also an ongoing attempt to lump the two nations together as “the people of Northern Ireland”, with the unionist British as “the majority of the people” to make it look democratic.
Fundamentally we are two equally legitimate nations in terms of national identity and allegiance. The logic of that is equal self-determination and equal sovereignty as of right. – Is mise,
MALACHY SCOTT,
Belfast 15.