Senator George Mitchell in Liverpool 
By David Alton
Two
weeks ago, on behalf of Liverpool John Moore's University, I chaired
a public lecture given by Senator George Mitchell, one of the
principal architects of Northern Ireland's Good Friday Agreement.
I had asked him to reflect on the principal challenges facing
western democracies. He spoke clearly and effectively being warmly
received by more than a thousand Liverpool people who gathered at
the Philharmonic Hall.
Mitchell argued that the United States has to "regain our moral
stature in the world. Our power is the greatest it has ever been,
but our standing is the lowest it has ever been. We need power to
protect us but principles to guide us"
He insisted that "military force by itself is insufficient as a
response to counter terrorism" and he drew parallels with Northern
Ireland as he warned of the dangers of alienation.
However, he also refused to rule out the use of force in situations
like Darfur where he said the international community had utterly
failed to prevent the atrocities of the Sudanese.
He also argued that the US needed to do more to counter climate
change and he combined this with an acceptance that the ordinary
citizen cannot simply pass the buck to Governments: "Modest personal
changes in personal behaviour can make a huge impact. There are
limits to what Governments can achieve and we must be realistic."
Mitchell is one of America's leading Catholic politicians. He has a
quiet, modest, genuine integrity which marks him out.
Unsurprisingly, his work in Northern Ireland and the Middle East
and his passion for conflict resolution is what will always make
his voice one worth listening to. We in these islands will always
owe him a huge debt for what he achieved in Northern Ireland.
The scene was set for his lecture with the presentation of good
citizenship awards to two young people Gemma Benns and Lee Beswick
who have given huge amounts of time to voluntary work with the
Warrington Peace Centre. I asked Colin Parry, the Centre's founder
-and who turned his own loss and suffering after the tragic killing
of his son 12-year-old son, Tim, into a source of hope and
reconciliation to read their citations.
Colin's presence was a vivid reminder of the long years of terror
and violence that destroyed countless lives and so disfigured
British-Irish relations.
Just after the Irish famine of the 1840s that claimed one million
lives and led to the emigration of 3 million others many leaving
via the Port of Liverpool "the Gateway to America" - William
Gladstone, born in the city's Rodney Street, wrote to his wife
"Ireland, Ireland that cloud in the west, that coming storm," and he
named "cruel and inveterate and but half-atoned injustice" as the
source of Ireland's pain and suffering. Gladstone dedicated his
political life to the Irish Question, famously stating that "it is
my mission to pacify Ireland"
But in the century that followed, far from seeing the storm abate,
Northern Ireland came to be dominated by narrow sectarian
bitterness; the bomb and the gun taking the place of rational
argument.
Like most people with British and Irish antecedents my greatest
desire has always been to seek a peaceful way forward; but never
ending retaliatory acts of violence often seemed to make that a
remote possibility.
The day after I was first elected to Parliament, in 1979, the
Conservative Northern Ireland Spokesman, Airey Neave MP was blown up
in the precincts of the House. Both my maiden speeches in the
Commons and the Lords reflected on the continuing tragedy of Ulster
and some of the lessons that could be learnt from Liverpool's
experiences in overcoming sectarianism.
For many years I held front bench responsibilities for Irish Affairs
and have been a frequent visitor to the North. I applauded John
Major and then Tony Blair as they sought to resurrect talks on power
sharing. They both saw the importance of involving a credible third
party to act in a mediating role.
In 1995, in what was a courageous attempt to break the cycle of
violence, President Clinton appointed Senator George Mitchell as his
Special Envoy to Northern Ireland.
Mitchell told me that when he first arrived it was far from plain
sailing. Ian Paisley told him he suspected that Mitchell would show
bias because of his Catholic faith. Mitchell refuted this but in an
amusing counter-point Ian Paisley pointed out that he was hardly
reassured on discovering that the Senator's chief of staff was a
lady whose name was Pope! Happily, it emerged on inquiry that she
was a Methodist!
Mitchells' natural personal courtesy, patience, and stamina were all
needed in the arduous period which lay ahead. The Mitchell report on
decommissioning was the first fruit and throughout 1996-1998 he
chaired the Northern Ireland Multi-Party talks. Exactly ten years
ago many of us held our breath as the Good Friday Agreement was
signed by the warring parties. That Agreement opened the way to
devolved government and power sharing, the fruits of which are now
clear for all to see.
Senator Mitchell is himself of Irish and Lebanese descent. A
one-time army intelligence officer, he became involved in Democrat
politics and was appointed to the US Senate in 1980 as Senator for
Maine. He served for 14 years, and between 1989 and 1995 he also
served as Senate Majority Leader.
Associated with a number of universities including Queens Belfast,
where he is Chancellor he has served in senior roles in firms
connected with commerce and law. He was Chairman of the
International Crisis Group a not-for-profit organisation and has
also been involved in searching for solutions to the Middle East
conflict. Recently, he has been examining issues of sustainability,
the dangers of climate changes, and the instability which can stem
from global inequalities.
In recognition of his crucial role in bringing political progress to
Northern Ireland, on July 4th 1998 Senator Mitchell was awarded the
Liberty Medal America's highest award.
In his acceptance speech he said: "I believe there's no such thing
as a conflict that can't be endedŠNo matter how ancient the
conflict, no matter how hateful, no matter how hurtful, peace can
prevail."
That belief, and Senator Mitchells' spirit and commitment, are
needed in so many conflict ridden parts of the world today.
To listen to Senator Mitchell's Lecture go to: <http://www.ljmu.ac.uk/citizen/>http://www.ljmu.ac.uk/citizen/
and click on Roscoe Lectures.
David Alton
(Professor Lord Alton of Liverpool)
House of Lords,
London SW1A OPW
Foundation for Citizenship, Liverpool John Moores University, 0151
231 3852 (fax: 0151 231 3853).
0207 219 3551 - House of Lords.
altond@parliament.uk
www.davidalton.com
