Belfast Peace Walls Coming Down Within a Decade
Belfast's peace walls, dividing flashpoint Protestant and Catholic neighborhoods, are to come down within 10 years, ministers pledged Thursday, in a major step for cross-community relations.
The peace lines were intended to be temporary and protect people from violence during the 30 years of sectarian bloodshed which largely ended with the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.
However, the mixture of traditional walls, fences and gates that close at night remain criss-crossing the city in areas of sectarian tension.
Some of the 60-odd barriers tower up to 18 feet (5.5 meters) high and run for several miles (kilometers) through areas of dense housing.
The peace lines in Londonderry and Portadown will also come down by 2023, ministers announced.
"What we are attempting to do is tackle the blight of sectarianism and racism and other forms of intolerance that we believe is essential in shaping a shared and coherent society that can move forward and collectively face the challenges of a changing world," said First Minister Peter Robinson.
Deputy FM Martin McGuinness added: "This is a decisive step-change where we can move forward with a comprehensive program bringing communities together in an inclusive and integrated way.
"We are not prepared to sit back and be paralyzed, we are prepared to continue to move forward.
"The nettle has to be grasped, it is ridiculous that we have become a successful peace process yet those issues have not yet been resolved."
The move is part of efforts to ease sectarian tensions following the flag protests and related serious violence witnessed in Belfast and elsewhere in Northern Ireland in recent months.
The decision by Belfast City Council to restrict the flying of the British flag over City Hall served to unleash the deep unease within working-class Protestant communities about their stake in the peace process.
Other plans agreed include 100 cross-community summer schools or camps by 2015, and a program for 10,000 paid work placements for the under-24s.
Source: Agence France Presse
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