Record of a strand 2 meeting on 20 October 1997 at 11.30

The meeting began with the UUP objecting to the length of the Strand 2 minutes. The parties went on to present their papers on constitutional issues. The British Government stressed that new institutional arrangements needed to be built that all parties could sign up to, and recognised in return the Irish Government proposals for constitutional change to reflect the principle of consent. The Irish Government set this in the context of the Framework Documents. Alliance saw the principle of consent as the most important issue. The PUP agreed that only a change in the Irish constitution could indicate their acceptance of the principle of consent. Sinn Féin said only the self-determination of the people of Ireland could solve the consitutional issues. It stressed that devolution in Northern Ireland was not the same as in Scotland or in Wales. The SDLP wanted to reframe the principle of consent by drawing attention to the past injustices perpetrated from Stormont and highlighted that new institutions would need to be built which commanded nationalist consent. The NIWC laid out a plan for an all Ireland economy and emphasized the need for people in Northern Ireland to be able to exercise active citizenship in the nation of their choosing whilst also equally availing themselves of the rights which should be guaranteed to British citizens. The conversation lingered for a while on differing understandings of historical events. The UUP considered that cross-border cooperation did not require institutions with executive powers. Their was extensive debate on whether the removal of articles 2 and 3 should happen before or after agreement on other aspects of strand 2. The UUP walked out of the meeting over this. This action was criticized by various parties and the position of the UDP and PUP praised in contrast.

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Writing Peace: George J. Mitchell Collection

Record of a strand 2 meeting on 20 October 1997 at 11.30

Thursday, 23 October 1997

Writing Peace: George J. Mitchell Collection