Redefining republicanism : a political perspective ; an academic perspective

A POLITICAL PERSPECTIVE: The core principles on which Irish republicanism is based include commitments to popular sovereignty and to unity between the people of the island of Ireland. The struggle of republican leaders in the past resulted ultimately in the Good Friday agreement, which presents republicans and others with a challenge for the new century. The republican vision of the future is one in which the goals of equality, democracy and the maximum welfare of the maximum number will be achieved, with due attention to the needs of the international community. It also implies rejection of British government interference; but it is inclusive in its defintion of the new multicultural Ireland, which extends a position of great influence to the unionist community and a welcome to immigrants.

AN ACADEMIC PERSPECTIVE: The concept of “republicanism” has been a strongly contested one in contemporary Ireland. Some have argued that the Republic of Ireland, notwithstanding its name, fell short of the reality of republican status. Especially within Northern Ireland, “re-publicanism” acquired a meaning that was very different from the similarly named ideologies to be found in France and the United States. The theoretical development of Irish republicanism was strikingly limited, with advances in this area largely confined to recent decades. In particular, from the mid-1980s onwards, republicanism began to experience a fundamental redefinition, as the primacy of politics over violence began to be established. This culminated in a new relationship with consti-tutional nationalism and ultimately in the signing of the 1998 agreement, implying a new and more inclusive vision of the future.