For decades, peace in Northern Ireland appeared unattainable to some and unimaginable to others. That changed 25 years ago, when, after years of negotiations, a landmark peace agreement brought the 30-year conflict to an end.
Today, the North has plenty to celebrate, but has the Good Friday Agreement truly been the resounding success its architects portray it as? Or has Northern Ireland’s peace process faltered on delivery?
There can be no question as to whether or not the Good Friday Agreement – signed on 10 April 1998 and then ratified by referendums a month later in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland – saved lives; there are many who are here today as a direct result of it.
