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Pro-agreement unionists and republicans still out number anti-agreement paisleyites
 antrim |
politics / elections |
opinion/analysis
 Monday December 01, 2003 00:19 by skatitude
Despite Papa-doc paisley's DUP election sucess against the UUP, the fact remains that the numbers of Pro-agreement unionists, republicans and other parties still outnumber the anti-agreement unionists by over 3 to 1. 75% of MLA's elected are Pro-agreement, with only 25% of anti-agreement MLA's elected. The anti-agreement DUP and 3 (UUP) MLA's still amount to only 25% of an assembly whilst Pro agreement political representatives number 75% of those elected. The Pro-agreement parties consist of the UUP, SF, SDLP, PUP, Alliance Party and Independant MLA's.
The Pro agreement parties have a mandate of 75%, whilst the Anti-Good Friday agreement DUP and 3 UUP members have only a mandate of 25%.
It follows that 75% of the population of ulster catholics and protestants to date, still have good faith and belief in the principles of the Good Friday Agreement and the peace process. The election results are an endorsement of the sucess of Good Friday agreement and peace process.
The british government must take responsibility for contributing to the sucess of the 25% Anti agreement DUP back lash vote, by denying democrasy in the first place, and giving the DUP the excuse and ammunition to cry foul against the UUP/brit government initially. Nobody likes a cheater or to feel that they are being manipulated/railroaded by the brit government into voting for David Trimble. The 25% vote for the Anti-agreement unionists is clearly a paranoid backlash vote, against brit government interference and attempts to stack the election cards in David Trimble's favour. The DUP merely played on increasing protestant paranoia, using ithe initial election cancellation as evidence of brit government underhand unfair favour for David Trimble, and whipping up protestant fears that they were being sold down the swannie by David Trimble and the brit government. None of which is true, but the dirty dealings of the initial brit government election denial, served to instill seeds of dissent in the ordinary prod voter against David Trimble's UUP.
Quite a few protestants voted for Sinn fein, how else could Sinn Fein have been so sucessful in the elections.
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Comments (7 of 7)
Jump To Comment: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7yeah a mandate of 75% of the population?! not that many voted only 60%of electorate, which means only a minority actually support agreement, 45%of electorate voted for pro-agreement candidates. 55% didnt vote or voted against agreement, sorry to bring you back to reality!
im sure a few protestants voted for sf and sdlp, real significance is sf are the biggest constitutional nationalist party now. internally i think the sdlp may have collapsed, they couldnt get canvassers out across the north.
The main reason for the low turnout was the fact that a large chunk of the population are completely turned off by the sectarian politics in the North. All 4 main parties have very similar policies on the real issues, they all support a neo liberal programme for government.
Taking your figures 60% of the population voted, giving a 40% mandate to Pro-Good Friday agreement political parties, which means that whatever way you look at it, the Anti-Good Friday agreement unionist parties only got 20%, of the mandate.
This still puts Anti-agreement unionists in the minority compared with the greater majority of Pro agreement Unionists and republicans combined.
The DUP anti agreement unionists are the majority within the unionist block, but the minority within the combined Pro agreement unionist and republican block. If you wish to ignore half the northern Ireland catholic population which is pro agreement, then like the Brit government has done, you could choose to pretend that anti agreement dissent is on the rise, as an excuse to renegoiate and get out of fulfilling the Good Friday agreement.
Direct rule is here for a long time. This is not a problem for Imperialism. That the local politicians are "unable" or unwilling to administer British rule in the North is not a problem. The British ministers do not want to go back to the back benchs of Westminister.
Sinn Fein loste a seat due to one of it's ministers being caught closing a hospital because she was administerinig within the constraints of British rule. She had no choice as a "minister" and rather than the real rulers getting the blame, Sinn Fein did.
Sinn Fein gave away a seat in Belfast because it targeted the SDLP and the DUP caught them out.
Let us hope that the claptrap about saving "David" Trimble is at an end.I suppose it will be replaced by nonsense about the nice Peter Robinson, Nigel Dodds and Little Ian.
I think the DUP are sincere bigots who belive in keeping the "Taigs" especially Sinn Fein in their place. They are not socalled pragmatists. Politicians down here who would and have sold their Mothers for a Ministerial Merc tend to think the same holds up there. The DUP are unadulterated bigots and to pretend otherwise is foolish.Chasing afer the DUP is useless. Standing up to them is the only way. Garvaghy showed that this is the only way. Compromise with the bigots is only about where you will be kicked by the jackboot.This is a sad reality and no amount of wishful thinking will change it.3 arms decomms and the end of Articles 2 and 3 got sweet damn all.In case anyone thinks it I beleive that the ceasefire was a necessity and the socalled dissidents offer nothing.
Interesing that McCanns SEA alliance is basically a Republican thing in the broad sense. The transfers went Sinn Fein. The audience for Socialism is mainly amongst the oppressed Nationalists. A Socialist based Republicanism would offer a way out of the morass. The IRSP, alas, combines the worst of Republicanism with the rhetoric of Socialism as a veneer. Sinn Fein has replaced Militarism with the same pro coalition approach of the Labour Party. Coalitions with bourgeois parties are not about real change but about getting a Ministerial merc.Perhaps the Left of Sinn Fein can persuade the majority to move to the Left, giving up the cosiness that has developed between tham and American, British and Irish rightwing forces.
Anon. wrote, "yeah a mandate of 75% of the population?! not that many voted only 60%of electorate, which means only a minority actually support agreement, 45%of electorate voted for pro-agreement candidates. 55% didnt vote or voted against agreement, sorry to bring you back to reality!"
What is it they say about lies, damned lies and statistics? If we turn it around but follow your logic, this is what we get:
"yeah a mandate of 25% of the population?! not that many voted only 60% of electorate, which means only a minority actually oppose agreement, 15% of electorate voted for anti-agreement candidates. 85% didn't vote or voted against agreement, sorry to bring you back to reality!"
So according to your logic, support for the agreement is even stronger!
But really, we don't know why some people didn't vote. They may support or oppose the agreement, but we just don't know.
(No wonder you're anonymous. I wouldn't put my name to such a ridiculous comment, either.)
Yes the DUP are plain, unadulterated sectarian bigots, with no social policies whatsoever, whose main motivation in the political arena, is greed, for social status/power/ranches in the USA and murderous petty tribal sectarian jealousies.
The DUP hate catholics, socialists and the protestant/catholic poor/working class. Which is why it is a shame that Diane Dodds is now supposed to be representing the working class protestant people of the shankill.
When we look at the mainstream media smear campaign against the PUP and Billy hutchinson, we find that the cards were indeed stacked electorally against the PUP.
Raymond McCord's senior's slanderous personal vendetta against the PUP and the UVF on behalf of his british army informant FRU son.
The loyalist murder of a Lisburn catholic man, the loyalist paramilitaries behind the murder, were LVF bigots closely associated with the DUP/anti-agreement unionist climate in Lisburn. Not forgetting the DUP's Reverend William McCrea sharing an LVF platform with sectarian murderer king rat Billy Wright.
The stage managed DUP supporters heckling and hijacking of David Trimble on the Shankill road. The old women/orange lil bigot battleaxe who accosted Mr Trimble was bused in from Portadown, to pretend to airing the views of the people of the Shankill road. As if the people of the shankill were that backward, ill mannered, unchristian and bigoted. Unfortunately with the nature of things here, people can get swept up in a tidal wave of bigotry, it just takes one big mouth to start sectarian slobbering.
The disastrous punishment beating of notorious bully thug John Allen. All contributed to a negative public perception of UVF paramilitaries and their political wing allowing Diane Dodds to slither her way into the electoral hearts of the shankill.
I think you should take a close look at Mr Hutchinson before you commit to his fan club. The UVF were not that much better than their Loyalist rivals. Ervine is just a thin veneer over what is a sectarian organisation. The voters preferred the much better at covering it up DUP to the PUP.Paisley was always out of town when the pogroms he inspired happened. Gusty Spence was right about him. But being right about Paisley is is a long way from becoming non sectarian. The bigots up at Holy Cross decide on the PUP tune.