• Brexit: Divorce with Europe triggers independence

Sinn Fein has approved the conditions set by London and Dublin for the formation of a coalition Government with the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) in Northern Ireland, after three years of political paralysis . The Stormont Assembly, empty since 2017, could be constituted today.

The agreement has been made possible by the proposal, supported by the British and Irish Governments, of equating Gaelic with English as the official language of Northern Ireland. This was until now the main barrier that prevented the agreement between Republicans and unionists, forced to form governments of shared power under the Good Friday Peace Agreements.

"We finally have the basis for an agreement to share the Government again," said Mary Lou McDonald , president of Sinn Fein. "There is no doubt that there are great challenges ahead, such as the impact of Brexit, austerity and other issues. But the important thing is to be able to form a Government based on equality, respect and integrity."

McDonald took the opportunity to emphasize that Sinn Fein has as its goal "the reunification of Ireland and the guarantee that all people, in the north and in the south, can enjoy the same rights."

Sources close to the leadership of the DUP had confirmed before The Guardian that the executive committee of the unionist party, which met urgently on Friday afternoon, also planned to give its agreement to the "plan for political progress" to Northern Ireland prepared by London and Dublin, which gave an ultimatum to the two parties to form a government or call elections.

In the 2017 local elections, Sinn Fein stayed at a single point of the DUP (27% to 28%), although in the global calculation the Republican parties won for the first time the unionists in Northern Ireland. The corruption scandal that dotted the leader of the DUP, Arlene Foster , and the initial refusal of the unionists to equate the Gaelic with English as the official language prevented the formation of a coalition government.

The agreement reached shortly afterwards by the DUP with the then 'premier' Theresa May , to achieve a parliamentary majority during the Brexit process, placed the unionists in a position of strength that hindered the possibility of an agreement. The recent elections, with the absolute majority in the hands of the Conservative Party of Boris Johnson, have returned the DUP to the background of national politics.

The unionists are now, curiously, who most strongly oppose the agreement of the Brexit sealed by Johnson with Brussels, considering that it opens the doors to the creation of an internal customs office in the Irish Sea . Republicans have warned on their part that Brexit justifies by itself the holding of a referendum on unification, provided for in the Good Friday Peace Agreements, before five years.

The three years of political paralysis had created an unsustainable situation in Northern Ireland, given the repeated threats of London to suppress the transfer of powers and apply "Direct Government" (British version of Article 155). Dozens of schools ran out of budget and public health went through serious problems, following recent nurses' strikes due to lack of staff and freezing of wages. The lack of government also led to a rebound in terrorism at the hands of Republican groups that culminated in April 2019 with the murder of Derry by journalist Lyra McKee.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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