These are troubled times for the UK. The Brexit seems to be increasingly fracturing the geopolitical face of the British territory… and this won’t be without consequences for Ireland as a whole.
As Scotland begins to dream of independence, Northern Ireland could soon follow in the footsteps of its Scottish counterpart.
But why is the Brexit provoking these independence aspirations? Why has it so revived tensions in Northern Ireland?
According to the experts, Northern Ireland is currently at an impasse. Its future seems to be on hold, pending an unwanted Brexit. The economic and geopolitical consequences could literally cut them off from the rest of Ireland and Europe, plunging the territory into a catastrophic economic situation.
Will there be a border? Will Northern Ireland have to resign itself to living in autarky despite its close proximity to the Republic of Ireland and the rest of Europe? Will the province be ready to renounce its past history, when it formed a single nation with the Republic of Ireland?
This situation has had the effect of awakening the ghosts of the past, reminding the population of the intense tensions between Republicans and Loyalists over the question of the territory of Northern Ireland. A delicate situation, which is posing real difficulties for Boris Johnson, Prime Minister of the British government.
No one has asked what the people of Northern Ireland want… Do we want a Brexit? The message is clearly no. This Brexit is nothing more and nothing less than a hostage situation. The consequences will be devastating, and that’s not what we want. We are a territory with our own identity… And we are moving further and further away from London’s aspirations… said a member of the party in favor of Northern Ireland’s union with the Republic of Ireland
But the situation seems to be changing. Northern Ireland has been totally paralyzed politically in recent months. London took over management of the province pending a new election.
But for the first time ever, the local political situation seems to be settling down. The Unionists (in favor of remaining in the United Kingdom) have just lost their parliamentary majority to the Nationalist Party (in favor of Irish unification). A first that sounds like a new era for the province.
Many Northern Irish people are already talking about the idea of a referendum on the unification of the two Irelands. A case to follow, which could well take a long time… and whose outcome remains uncertain for the time being.
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