Northern Ireland and Kosovo in Comparative Perspective

2019 ◽  
pp. 15-46
Author(s):  
Michael Potter
Keyword(s):  
Northern Ireland ◽  
Comparative Perspective

Northern Ireland and the Divided World: The Northern Ireland Conflict and the Good Friday Agreement in Comparative Perspective. Edited by John McGarry. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001. 374p. $65.00 cloth, $24.95 paper.

2002 ◽  
Vol 96 (4) ◽  
pp. 857-858
Author(s):  
David E. Schmitt
Keyword(s):  
Northern Ireland ◽  
Power Sharing ◽  
Comparative Perspective ◽  
Good Friday ◽  
Oxford University ◽  
Good Friday Agreement ◽  
Northern Ireland Conflict ◽  
Internal Coherence ◽  
Distinguished Group ◽  
Considerable Pressure

John McGarry and a distinguished group of comparativists have produced a volume important not only for scholars interested in the study of Northern Ireland but also for those concerned with ethnic conflict and nationalism generally. Although its success is certainly not assured, the Good Friday Agreement of 1998, a consociational (power-sharing) settlement of the Northern Ireland conflict with international confederal dimensions, has sparked much interest by scholars and practitioners concerned with other ethnonational conflicts. The agreement was achieved with considerable pressure and support from international actors. The international community has played an increasingly important part in the resolution, management, and containment of ethnonational conflict, and the success or failure of the Good Friday Agreement may hold important lessons for international efforts elsewhere. From both a theoretical and practical perspective, this is a fine edited volume with internal coherence and useful contributions.

scholarly journals The Use and Abuse of Veto Rights in Power-Sharing Systems: Northern Ireland’s Petition of Concern in Comparative Perspective

2017 ◽  
Vol 53 (4) ◽  
pp. 735-756 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allison McCulloch
Keyword(s):  
Northern Ireland ◽  
Power Sharing ◽  
Comparative Perspective ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Divided Societies ◽  
Political Incentives ◽  
Institutional Instability ◽  
Primary Means

This article assesses the articulation of vital ethno-national interests and the use and abuse of veto rights in deeply divided societies. In consociational theory, veto rights represent the primary means by which ethnic groups defend their ‘vital interests’, though they are often criticized for rewarding extremism and producing institutional instability. Situating a case study of Northern Ireland in a comparative perspective, I consider two lines of veto practice: liberal vs corporate (i.e. who has veto rights?) and permissive vs restrictive (i.e. to what issue areas do vetoes apply?), to assess what political incentives, if any, they offer for moderation and stability. Drawing from a review of the legislative debates when a veto was enacted and on semi-structured interviews with members of the Northern Ireland Assembly, I argue that a permissive approach, in which groups can determine their own vital interests, can contribute to moderation, peace and stability in divided societies.

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