The Sunningdale executive and the Ulster Workers' Council strike: 50 years on.

political analyst

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-67927963

Leslie Morrell believes that the Sunningdale executive, which was set up 50 years ago this month but lasted only 5 months, might have survived if the British government had handled security differently.

The Ulster Workers' Council (UWC) strike led to the collapse of that executive. Why was the British government unwilling to tell the British Army to take action against the strikers?

maccored

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058330728/the-sunningdale-executive-and-the-ulster-workers-council-strike-50-years-on

The brits didnt want to be fighting their loyal supporters, thats why they took no action

theres a study at https://storage.googleapis.com/jnl-lse-j-tpsjpp-files/journals/1/articles/5/submission/proof/5-1-9-1-10-20190812.pdf called SUNNINGDALE FOR SLOW LEARNERS’? NEGOTIATING A CREDIBLE COMMITMENT TO PEACE IN NORTHERN IRELAND

It concludes that:

"In contrast, the peace process of the 1990s addressed the most salient political issues affecting Northern Ireland and adopted a range of strategic moves that credibly committed both Catholics and Protestants to upholding the mutually beneficial Belfast Agreement."

So when Blanch152 and the gang start talking about the two agreements being the same, the reality is they were similar in the fact they were both about powersharing, but that the GFA 'addressed the most salient political issues affecting Northern Ireland and adopted a range of strategic moves' which "credibly committed both Catholics and Protestants to upholding" peace - ingredients missing from Sunningdale.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058330728/the-sunningdale-executive-and-the-ulster-workers-council-strike-50-years-on

Why did the IRA border campaign fizzle out in the early 1960s but the next troubles by the IRA , from 1969 onwards, continue for decades?

The border campaign (12 December 1956 – 26 February 1962) was a guerrilla warfare campaign (codenamed Operation Harvest) carried out by the IRA against targets in Northern Ireland, with the aim of overthrowing British rule there and creating a united Ireland. By1961, the campaign was over. It had cost the lives of eight IRA men, four republican supporters and six RUC members. In addition, 32 RUC members were wounded. A total of 256 Republicans were interned in Northern Ireland in this period and another 150 or so in the Republic.

I often wonder if there had been the same clampdown against the IRA during the troubles, on both sides of the border, instead of Haughey, Blaney etc attempting to help, safe houses here to operate from etc - as there was during the border campaign of 1956-62, would the troubles have lasted as long? Peace could have happened by the time of the Sunningdale executive.

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058330728/the-sunningdale-executive-and-the-ulster-workers-council-strike-50-years-on

If the British had behaved like the democratic government they claimed to be then no-one needed to die at any point.

From partition-under threat of immediate and terrible war-the British caused the problem here. They allowed society to degenerate to the point it went the only way it could - up in flames.

There was nothing in Sunningdale or the GFA that could not have been there in 1938, '48 '58 or '68.

By Sunningdale they still hadn't learned the lesson and still believed that Unionism was right, just as they did when their entire establishment from the Army High Command to the Judiciary conspired to whitewash Bloody Sunday in the Widgery Report, just as they did when they turned a blind eye to the excesses of their various security forces - B-Specials - UDR - RUC - troops on the ground etc etc

Sam Russell

The Civil Rights movement in NI in 1968 began by demanding equal rights for all citizens and an end to the bias against Nationalists throughout NI society.

The NI institutions sent in the RUC and 'B' Specials to break up those demonstrations by using extreme force, despite the demonstrations being peaceful. Sections of Belfast were burnt out street by street by Protestant/Unionist mobs helped by the RUC and 'B' Specials.

The difference with 1956 was the TV cameras that told the world all about it.

The British Gov did what they always did - sent in the army to teach the Nationalists a few hard lessons by shooting a few and interning a lot more.

Sunningdale would have worked in Wilson and his Gov took a hard line supporting it, but they did not. Wilson did not even know the NI did not operate 'one man - one vote'.

Ignorance won the day.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121787715#Comment_121787715

Poor protestants ( and there were plenty) had the same rights as poor catholics. And while far from perfect, the way to change things was by peaceful means. And by the mid 1970's there was anti-discrimination legislation and no need for the pira armed campaign, which ultimately did not achieve its objective anyway of "Brits Out".

There were cameras and journalists in the late 1950s and early 1960s too, but one of the reasons the IRA border campaign of '56 to '62 failed was because a total of 256 Republicans were interned in Northern Ireland in this period and another 150 or so in the Republic.

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121787840#Comment_121787840

And what did internment achieve? A temporary solution which only entrenched and enflamed the inevitable conflict that broke out while governments sat back and did nothing.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121787906#Comment_121787906

Internment and application of law and order ensured the border campaign was over by 1962.

There was nothing inevitable about the failed armed struggle and murder of thousands of people, it should never have happened and there was no need for "the armed struggle". Most nationalists during the troubles did not vote for SF, the pIRA did not have a mandate.

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121787974#Comment_121787974

Most nationalists didn't have to support what happened, it still happened. Most nationalists didn't vote for Bloody Sunday, Ballymurphy, internment or serial abuses of human and civil rights but they still happened.

Even though the campaign was ended, it was clearly and demonstratively was not 'over' as conflict broke out again. Why did it break out again because nothing substantial was done to bring in equality and parity of esteem.

That was all possible as we eventually seen. The fact is the British and Unionists were not ready to concede that,

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121788017#Comment_121788017

You are quite correct. Most nationalists did not vote for the failed IRA border campaign 1956-'62 or the failed pIRA campaign of the troubles "the armed struggle", but they still happened.

Most nationalists did not vote for the Bloody Friday, Le Mons, Enniskillen, Kingsmill etc etc but they still happened.

Sam Russell

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121787840#Comment_121787840

Poor protestants were just as deprived as poor Catholics, except that they could get work at the shipyard, or in the RUC, or part time in the 'B' Specials. They could also get housing denied to Catholics, particularly if those Catholics would disturb the gerrymandering.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121788125#Comment_121788125

Even in the UDR there were 18% Catholics at the start of the troubles, despite intimidation from some people in their home areas not to join. Not surprising the minority in N. Ireland grew in the 1950's, 1960s, 1970s. Here south of the border the minority shrank, there were virtually no minorities in government jobs here in the fifties and sixties etc.

FrancieBrady

The number of catholics in the UDR has nothing to do with why Sunningdale collapsed.

Sunningdale collapsed because of Unionist/Loyalist aversion to anything approaching proper power sharing.

That Unionist/Loyalist action was supported by the British Army and the perfidious actions or lack of them from Britain.

Hume's initiative failed and actually made things worse in the north because the nexus of Unionism/Loyalism/and the British were simply not ready.

All sides became entrenched and the rest is tragic history.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121788647#Comment_121788647

In N.I. Sinn Fein did not even have any MPs until Adams was elected in 1983. In that era, SF did not have any TDs here either, south of the border, its support was that small.

Because of para-militaries, and those who did not obey the rule of law, many thousands were killed and injured. Hard line Republicans did not want to take part in democracy, as seen by the results of the 1973 referendum. Yes, there was a referendum, and everyone was entitled to vote.

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121788704#Comment_121788704

The discussion is about the collapse of Sunningdale and the question in the OP - Why was the British government unwilling to tell the British Army to take action against the strikers?

The reason why was because of the perfidious actions of the British government in relation to Ireland as outlined above.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121788734#Comment_121788734

A lot more complicated than that.  A large percentage of the population were outraged that the Republic was to have a say in Northern Ireland and demanded that the agreement be scrapped, and very little was open in the whole of the 6 counties. Had there not been a ira campaign in the previous few years, things would have been different and calmer.

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121788843#Comment_121788843

The was a conflict/war raging at the time involving republicans/loyalists and the British.

The question again: Why was the British government unwilling to tell the British Army to take action against the strikers?

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121788856#Comment_121788856

What action do you think the British government could have taken against the strikers?

Do not forget the Executive ordered the army to commandeer the petrol stations and all the oil facilities in N Ireland. The UWC response was to close every business, that had remained open, in N. Ireland. The 6 counties came to a complete standstill. No petrol / oil / even food was getting scarce. When Faulkner appealed in failure to the Secretary of State to negotiate with the strikers, and faced with economic ruin, the Unionist Executive members resigned. What happened was the Executive collapsed and N. Ireland was ruled again directly from London

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121788893#Comment_121788893

I know why the British government were unwilling and have laid out my opinion above.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121788910#Comment_121788910

How would you have kept oil, power / food flowing, if you were the British government? It had a hard enough job as it was trying to keep the peace, and was being attacked by both sides. With fatalities.

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121788962#Comment_121788962

There were none of those things flowing during the strike. Effectively, strikers were allowed do what they liked.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121789059#Comment_121789059

You did not answer the question.

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121789225#Comment_121789225

The British didn't have any intention of taking action against strikers. Look at the action they took against strikers in Britain and compare.

We can easily deduce that no action was tacit support for the striker here.

They were allowed cripple the statelet in yet another belligerent Unionist/Loyalist show of force.

maccored

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121788704#Comment_121788704

they didnt decide until 1986 to attend the Dial if elected. SF was just beginning on its political journey then so its really hardly surprising. How you think people who had been invaded, beaten and abused could suddenly evolve into a political party is frankly hilarious. The referendum was completely boycotted by nationalists throughout the north btw - not just 'hard line republicans'.