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Farset Enterprise Park,

638 Springfield Road,

Belfast, BT12 7DY.

T: 028 9023 6839

F: 028 9033 3864

E: info@peacewall.org

W: www.peacewall.org

we werewe wereThe The way way

e are inclined to be nostalgic when we think of the past. Ironically, it is the W

fondest memories that more often make us feel melancholic and tearful. Outside of the family and personal situations, however, there is little of the past 30 years that would make those of us, who lived through them, feel any regret in their passing.

Things may not be completely rosy in the garden just yet but we have all come a long way from those bad old times.

The good relationships and mutual respect built up over the years amongst committed activists and a wide range of volunteers along the interface has ensured that productive interaction will continue despite any amount of the huffing and puffing, blockages or c r i ses tha t we have become accustomed to in the marbled halls of Politics.

Springfield Inter-Community Forum have been transforming relationships on the Springfield / Falls /

Shankill interfaces for five years. This has resulted in co-operation and joint working on many issues that

have contributed to improvements in the quality of life for residents in these areas. In August we will be

launching a publication that explains and celebrates this work and gives a view from another place on

interface work.

During last year we conducted research on the role and work of ex-combatants / prisoners in peace

building in interfaces in West Belfast. Initially this research was conducted in direct response to the failure

of the IMC to acknowledge this work but soon developed into a thought provoking piece of work outlining

the key contribution of the ex-combatant / ex-prisoner constituency. We will be launching this report in

late September.

We are currently conducting research into the massive amount of work that has been carried out by

community activists on the "Parades and Protests" issue. The research will provide an overview of the

Whiterock parades from 2002 by interviewing a range of key stakeholders and by analysing relevant

documentation. This work is ongoing and we are hopeful that it will be completed by January 2006.

Up-coming publications:

The Board of Directors

Loraine ButlerHighField C.C.

Harry MaguireCRJ Ireland

Tommy HollandFrank Cahill Resource Centre

William SmithE.P.I.C.

Sean MurrayClonard Residents

Cilla FlemingMeadow Residents

William McQuistonHighfield Advice Unit

Mary McKennaClonard Women's Group

Seamus O'PreyOrtus

The accounts

9. INCOME 2003

Restricted

Core CRC Cross

Inter-Action/ P & R Border Total

Rowntree

£ £ £ £ £

Community Relations Council 64,415 80,653 - 145,068 236,283

Donation - - - 3,015

Interest Received - - - - 3

2.11A Work 11,071 - - 11,071 6,000

PSNI Grant - - - - 240

CRC Mural Grant 4,386 - - 4,386 -

Irish Foreign Affairs 10,496 - - 10,496 6,800

In house income - - - - 10,565

Joseph Rowntree Trust 38,000 - - 38,000 -

CFNI - - 112,462 112,462 -

NI Community Relations 6,535 - - 6,535 24,170

CRC MPN 14,485 - - 14,485 2,000

149,388 80,653 112,462 342,503 289,076

10. GOVERNANCE COSTS 2003

Restricted

Core Core Cross

Inter-Action/ P & R Border Total

Rowntree

£ £ £ £

Accountancy 1,388 344 755 2,487 1,620Advertising & Publication 570 - 3,962 4,532 606

Bank Fees & Charges 451 - 10 461 386

Child Care - - 960 960 130

Cleaning 706 1,044 440 2,190 3,195

Community Work Services 1,838 6,392 8,153 16,383 8,318

Program Costs 15,470 6,780 2,859 25,109 23,075

Computer expenses - - - - 450

Depreciation 1,615 - - 1,615 1,151

Donation - - - - 168

Electricity 1,172 813 813 2,798 3,973

Equipment - - - - 12,431

Hospitality & Conference 6,432 7,148 - 13,580 11,261

Insurance 300 201 201 702 638

Misc. Expenses 894 260 - 1,154 1,881

Printing 7,119 3,216 - 10,335 -

Postage, Stationery & Computer 2,560 1,085 2,141 5,786 3,564

Rent 3,797 2,578 2,649 9,024 16,241

Repairs & Maintenance 2,109 407 278 2,794 191

Salaries, Wages & NIC 49,462 38,056 48,581 136,099 124,328

Salaries, Wages & NIC Rowntree 22,383 - - 22,383 3,730

Telephone & Mobile 11,518 2,562 2,294 16,374 14,342

Conference/Training Costs 13,849 1,200 35,491 50,540 5,088

Travelling Expenses 3,130 1,363 2,875 7,368 4,873

Recruitment - 1,231 - 1,231 1,270

Subscriptions - - - - 41

Loan 1,500 - - 1,500 500

148,263 74,680 112,462 335,405 243,451

Restricted

Inter-Action Belfast

2004

Notes to the Financial Statements

for the year ended 31 August 2004

Restricted

2004

? Editorial (A word or two from Roisin)

? Speaking From the Chair

? The Engine Room,(An admin team at work)

? Interface works, The Development Team

? Crossing the Line,

South of the Border

? Research & Development The Springfield Model's parting shots

? Brian Currin From the Veldts and Laagers

? Picture Gallery

? Cottonmill Dam

? Our Partners,Statutory, Voluntary and Community

Contents

Interaction

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"The more things change the more they

stay the same " or so we are told. On the

Springfield/ Falls /Shankill Interface it may

appear, on the surface at least, that

nothing has changed but, on closer

examination it becomes evident many

things have transformed. Relationships

have been transformed throughout these

interfaces. People, who in the recent past,

had never met and were considered

enemies now work selflessly and tirelessly

in cooperation to improve the quality of life

for all residents in the area.

We often say that our organisation

facilitates difficult conversations. That, as

a concept, sounds so simple and yet in

practice it is difficult and complex to

achieve. Those conversations happen

between individuals, groups and

organisations. The very concept of having

conversations can be difficult in

environments where stakeholders will not

engage. Yet more and more we are

witness to those conversations

happening. Great leadership has been

shown in the area in which we work. I feel

privileged to have witnessed this

leadership on a practical level and can

confirm the benefits it has achieved at a

grassroots community

level.

If it is a fact that conflict can only occur

through language and our interpretation of

the actions of others then it follows that

problem solving of conflict can only

happen through language and

conversations. They are at the heart of

civilisation; through the family the

community and society conflict is initiated

and eventually resolved through

conversation.

These conversations cannot happen in

that place where WE are always "right"

and to hell with the costs of that being "

right", a predisposition we all appear to

have. Here in Inter-Action we are often

wrong and are growing in the confidence

and courage to admit that. There are

powerful lessons we learn as we go

through this journey and the satisfaction of

doing the right thing as opposed to being

right is sweet. It is my belief that given the

space and time all of our inter- personal

and inter-community problems can be

resolved through meaningful and thought

provoking conversations. People can at

last feel and believe that together they can

make a difference, that instead of being

mere observers, even victims, of policies,

attitudes and strategies imposed upon

them from without, they become agents in

the development and delivery of all

policies that impact their communities.

So here's to another year gone in our

organisation's history and to another one

to come of trials tribulations and most

importantly of possibilities

"There is so much goodin the worst of us, and so much bad

in the best of us. That it hardly becomes any of us to talk

about the rest of us"

Interaction

Chairpersons Report December 2004Harry MaguireLorraine butler

As with any situation we also had some difficult times, not least of all the summer season, but as ever we remain firm on our commitment to building relationships built on solid foundations. We also note the first IMC report as being one of our downsides this year. The involvement of ex-prisoners in this project i s a r e f l e c t i v e o f communities we come f r o m , We v a l u e e x -prisoners as stakeholders in this project and indeed this society

We would like to welcome Brian Garvey who was employed as Nationalist Development Worker in November 2003 for the Nationalist community. We were also successful in getting funding for a Cross Community, Community Safety pilot project This enabled the project to e m p l o y a p a r t - t i m e Administrator, Caoimhe Scullion joined the team in July 2004. We see this project as supporting all our people on the interface. Equally our project is about Community Development and we are involved in ongoing placements in a d m i n i s t r a t i o n a n d community development, we have over the past year h a d f i v e p e o p l e o n placements in this capacity,

Louise Allwell, Nicola Cowan, Orlaith Mc kenna, Jennifer Fusco, and at present Sam Taggart who will remain with the organization for a further 6 months to complete additional qualifications. We see this as capacity building for members of our communities who can employ these skills with the Voluntary, Public and Private sector.We wish to thank the following funders: Community Relations Council (Core & P&R) Community Foundation for Northern Ireland, Joseph Rowntree, Belfast City Council and The Community Safety Unit. However we feel the need to flag up that in our view Government Agencies and funders need to recognise the

work that projects such as ours have done and are committed to doing and to be mindful that this work needs to be adequately resourced. For too long this has been the case. We as co chairs are saying that this trend needs to be reversed.

We wish to thank the members of our community who selfishly give up their time to ensure the safety and well being of our community is enhanced and that the re la t i onsh ips be tween interface communities are strengthened. It must be said that these people are the core of this project and it is with this in mind that we also thank our staff who continually support this work in many different forms.

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003 /2004 has seen the organisation take a new name Inter-Action Belfast. A lot of 2

work went on in the background to ensure the launch of the new name, the strategic plan and research report State of Play went according to plan. We also had to get a new letter head, organisation banner, business cards the works, a sigh of relief was breathed when the event finally passed.

As office managers we continue to support the work of our colleagues assisting when needed as well as supporting the local community in what ever capacity we can, through funding applications to CRC and other funders, organising conferences, producing information packs; dealing with invoices, contracting in services, funding returns, monthly salaries, Inland Revenue payments and any other administration task needed done.

We provide assistance to the Cross Border Project, we support them with any events organised, payment of bills, information packs, venue hire, catering, residentials and other issues that might arise.

We also give our full support to our CEO with costings for funding applications and collating accounts. We ensure that our systems are up to date and all records of expenditure are streamlined. On a yearly basis all accounts are audited and reviewed to support funding requests.

We work alongside our stakeholders assisting them with the many issues they encounter, we can help by liasing with funders to speak to groups, send out dates of arranged meetings, attend information sessions to find out funding information, support other staff to access information, help collate it and pass it on to local communities in our remit. A recent project to come on board was the Community Safety Initiative. We were as administrators very involved in the recruitment of personal for this post. We liaise with the community safety partnership team in Belfast City Council. We assisted getting a worker in post and the project up and running on a pro-active basis.

We work along side the development team assisting them with organising SIF residential, attend meetings if requested, and help with cultural diversity programmes and training. We also help with drawing up questionnaires and to collate evaluations from all S.I.F members who take place in the programme.

We provide support with writing reports, PR events, media etc. We arrange and support on- site visits from Government agencies, Politicians, community groups and visitors from all over the globe. Inter-Action staff works as a team in compiling and collating information for presentations and information packs to help other groups with the same or similar issues.

Although there are only two part time administrators within Inter-Action Belfast we are supposed to work solely on the Core and P&R projects, our job description and workload is much more than that. We have and still do work with all the projects within Inter-Action, we also work with many of the groups along the Springfield Road interface by supporting them in any way we can, be it administration, financial help or to just give advice on a funding issue or organisational issue. We are committed to our jobs (and if you seen us you would say we need committed) and feel privileged to work with such dedicated and strong people.

Michelle StewartAlice Mc Larnon

Michelle Stewart Alice Mc Larnon

The Development TeamThe cross-cultural exchange programmes have continued with visits to Fernhill House and The Ulster Museum. The training and visits have extended beyond Protestant/Catholic identities with an ongoing programme to address racism and prejudice in our communities.

We have also been facilitating ground-breaking discussions across the interface between the Residents Associations of Springfield Park and Springmartin.

Young people from Woodvale were assisted in addressing racism and sectarianism through an historic mural with the Bytes project.

We supported volunteers Paul Reid and Martine O'Halloran engage over 30 young people in what has since become the newly constituted Moyard Youth Project. The group has been involved in, among many other things, a major environmental clean up, the painting of a mural in their park with Upper Springfield Development Trust, T-shirt making and DJ'ing. Outdoor activities and team building exercises with a diverse youth group from Sheffield and a youth group from the unionist Skegoniel helped challenge

prejudice. They are currently completing a film documentary of their area along with Wheelworks. Clonard Youth and Women

We facilitated discussions with young people from Clonard and helped them create the Clonard Youth Collective, which set out activities for the area. InterAction along with Clonard Residents Association and with the generous support of Community Drugs Project from Falls Community Council made a successful bid to Community Fund for £35,200.00 to provide training activities to women and young people in the area. Over 200 people were involved in 14 courses that ranged from personal development to driving theory, basketball coaching to DJ'ing, anti-racism training to mural painting.

Springfield Intercommunity Forum (SIF)

SIF has continued its ground breaking work across the interface, consistently tackling sectarian violence and maintaining some form of normality during the 'marching season', despite all the odds.

Relationships between members were deepened when the group was invited to be the only intercommunity group to be involved in the pilot of the Gas Light Productions 'Epilogues' programme for conflict transformation and reconciliation.

SIF established a youth subgroup across the interface in response to the tragic deaths of two young people on the Springfield Road. The result was young people from Clonard and mid-Shankill completing the ground breaking mural at Lanark Way gates, a traditional flashpoint area. 20 young people involved went to Canada with the Belfast Unemployed Project to celebrate their successes.

We have had visits from Gerry Anderson, Isle of Dogs school group Community Training Services, Sheffield, Youth group

Noel made a presentation at Bradford University Peace Studies Conference and has played a role in a Post Conflict Transformation Process for Combatants and Ex-Combatants with EPIC.

Border project

Things have progressed apace during the past 12 months. Our client base has grown to the point where we are almost overrun. The women section of the project is often facilitating training and residentials for over 90 individuals when we were expecting 40 at most. The popularity is due firstly to the excellent work that Rita Geraghty has been doing. Word of the various sessions that she organises has got around and, with a growing hunger amongst many women to equip themselves to meet the changing needs within their own households and the wider community, more and more are turning up at our door to avail of the opportunity and enjoy the craic. This coming together of women from communities in Drogheda, Donegal and from the respective communities on the interface is key to all of our efforts to consolidate the relative peace we now enjoy.

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Tom Kitt TD Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs Dublinmeets with activists in Dail Eireann.

"Sisters are doing it for themselves"

The men and women behind the wire.

Community safety focus groups Inter-Action was successful in a bid for a Community Safety pilot that is running in three areas, Clonard, Highfield and Upper Springfield. In order to track the development of the community safety pilot project and record impact locally we decided to run focus groups in three phases, beginning, middle and end. The focus groups provided a means to access a range of age groups in the areas and informed the pilot as to the needs and concerns of local residents and were fed back to the development team and the Steering Group. We found that across the three areas community safety issues largely fell into two keys areas: improved physical environment and safety in the community and home. There was also stress on the need to develop mechanisms to encourage inter-generational dialogue, provide alternatives for young people and addressing anti-social behaviour of both young people and adults.

Ex-combatants reportThroughout our work we have found that community activists, who are either ex-combatants or ex-prisoners, are often at the forefront of interface work. In the past year we have spoken to a range of ex-prisoners from different communities within our remit in order to look at their role and contribution to interface work and conflict transformation within and between communities. We set about examining the roles played by ex-prisoners and ex-combatants in conflict transformation and to highlight s some of the challenges they face.

Evaluation of the MPNThe Springfield mobile phone network (MPN) is a function of the Springfield Intercommunity Forum (SIF) and has operated in the Springfield Road area since 1998. The network has grown dramatically in both its ability to address interface violence as well as fostered cooperation and accountability between activists working in the neighbouring communities. However, the success of the MPN is not about advances in technology but it is about dialogue and relationship building between key stakeholders. As with much of interface work, it is difficult to find the time to reflect and consider our practices. At times the work can be relentless and there is not a natural end of the cycle since the MPN operates year round. In order to examine our practices we decided to embark on an evaluation of the MPN and draw a line under the MPN year. The evaluation will look at the role of the phone holders, their experiences, as well as limitations and challenges faced by the network.

State of PlayWe have found that there is very little information relating to the Springfield Road interfaces and in April this year published The State of Play, which is a beginner's guide to the Springfield interface area. The report was launched in conjunction with the strategic plan 2004-2007 and our name change. The report is meant to be a resource for community organisations as well as researchers and local residents interested in interfaces. Central issues and

complexities faced by interface communities were highlighted and include: a long history of multiple deprivation and social exclusion. The impact of community division takes many forms, from residential segregation to debate surrounding parades. Sectarianism, which is embedded in the social structures in Northern Ireland impacts on interface communities and exacerbates existing problems such as violence, tension and uncertainty.

WebsiteAs part of our PR strategy we revamped the Inter-Action website, which is now up and running and can be found at: www.peacewall.org. During this process we worked with Paul McCullough, who was engaged in a training programme in IXTP. Paul worked tirelessly with us, accommodating our many requests. We also had the help of Michael Currin, who was on placement with us at the time and provided advice and practical support. The new website reflects our name change and provides background information to the various projects as well as a brief history of our work. We were the first group profiled on the revamped CRC website starting in March 2004. Background information and details of projects of Inter-Action can still be found under 'Group Profiles' at www.community-relations.org.uk.

Research &Documentation

Callie Persic

ConferenceLast year a relationship developed between Inter-Action Belfast and New Tactics for Human Rights. As a result, a brief about the Springfield mobile phone network was written and added to their website in a section that looked at human rights tactics and approaches. Eventually this information was published in a workbook, New Tactics in Human Rights: A Resource for Practitioners.

In mid- 2004 New Tactics invited us to present material on the mobile phone network at an international conference in Ankara, Turkey. In September last year Callie attended the event that was attended by over 550 delegates, representing 80 different counties. Although it was a very intensive conference, filled with workshops and speakers, it was a brilliant opportunity for us to get our message across to an international audience about the mobile phone network and the work of Inter-Action. The preparation and PowerPoint presentation developed for the conference proved useful as it gave us a chance to reflect on the practices of the MPN and helped inform the MPN evaluation.

Oversight GroupIt is a sad reality that there is still ongoing intimidation and displacement in Northern Ireland. In a recent report the Northern Ireland Housing Executive reported that in 2003/2004 1245 households were homeless as a result of intimidation (www.nihe.gov.uk). As a result of our recommendations in the report on the Shankill feud, the Feud and the Fury, the large Inter-Agency Working Group for Displaced Families was replaced by a smaller and more strategic Oversight Group to oversee and evaluate the operations of statutory bodies in regard to displacement and intimidation. We have continued to participate in the Group and offered input into the ways statutory agencies could be better prepared to address intimidation and displacement. Update: as most of you should know, Callie has moved on but thankfully not that far. She now works for the West Belfast Partnership on their Urban Renewal Programme. We have been very fortunate to obtain the services of three incredibly talented people to help put together three key pieces of work.

Annie Campbell has agreed to edit The Ex-combatants and Peace-Building report. We hope to have this published in September.

Stephen Bloomer is with us part-time and is collating the experiences and perceptions of key stakeholders on the parades issue over the past 3 years and to record our experiences of the marching season on the Springfield

Road during 2005. Watch this space around Autumn!

Nicole Latulippe is currently writing up a report on the work of S.I.F. using some material from the Mobile Phone Network Evaluation, with a view to publishing it in early June. Onward, ever onward.

Nicole Latulippe: Community safety Administrator

Initially my stay at Inter-action was to last a total of two weeks, part of an internship requirement for a Queen's University course titled, "Introduction to Northern Ireland". This volunteer work translated into a part-time position as the Community Safety Administrator, which began on February 1, 2005. As a foreign student from Canada studying "Regional Planning and International Development" at the undergraduate level, working with Inter-action has been priceless, both on an academic and personal level.

At the beginning of my experience here at Inter-action I worked on the Community Safety Week project. This experience helped me meet various people as I helped to co-ordinate the day's events. Contacting venues, statutory bodies, essential services, local community organisations, local schools, and the media, I quickly became familiar with the area.

During the Safety Week I also helped to co-ordinate the Clonard Clean up event on Saturday the 19th. On the

day of the Clean-up I was out with the volunteers and we had a ball! With video camera on hand I was able to capture the young ones as they cleaned up their area, had a bit of fun with each other, and interviewed residents on how terrific of a job they were doing.

I have since been participating in the Community Safety Inter-agency meetings along with the development workers, working with the admin workers on financial matters for the project, and working on a piece of research focusing on the role of SIF on the interface.

I enjoy the contact I have with various people due to the nature of my work here. The environment at Inter-action allows me to ask questions and challenge my perceptions. Going on the SIF residential in Cookstown and attending the Clonard Celebration Night were excellent; the commitment people have to their communities was inspiring.

Thanks to everyone for helping make this experience rewarding on so many levels.

Interaction

Community Safety Daysn June 2004, Inter-Action was awarded funding from Belfast City ICouncil…EVENTUALLY, after a

long struggle, to develop a one-year Community Safety Initiative in three pilot areas along the interface; Clonard, Highfield and Upper Springfield. This application was submitted by Inter-Action on behalf of Clonard Resident's Association, Highfield Advice Unit and Upper Springfield Resource Centre. The applicants are community based organisations and have worked with Inter-Action for the past five years. This application was a natural progression from the work of S.I.F.

Provision of improved home security, greater information on crime prevention and making available services and training for residents, will reduce crime, such as car crime and domestic burglary. Schemes that tackle vandalism, graffiti, litter and environmental hazards such as joy-riding, that impact negatively on

residents, will be mirrored by greater training, services and recreation provision for young people, measures which will improve the local physical and social environment. Improved awareness of drug, alcohol and substance abuse, and mentoring for those at risk of offending, will go further to reducing criminality. This is an important step in reducing anti-social behaviour and low-level disorder, and helping to reduce the fear of crime, particularly among vulnerable and elderly residents.

A Community Safety steering group has been established made up of community activists from the three areas. They work alongside community groups and statutory organisations to carry out the project objectives. Community development is about contributing towards the improvement of the quality of life of

residents within the community and empowering the community to become involved in decision-making that affects every aspect of their lives. Therefore the community's sustainability will be enhanced by the increased capacity of local areas through training of volunteers and the identification of local needs. It is of paramount importance that community organisations work in partnership with statutory agencies on the key issues of Community Safety. This is a chance to break new ground and lead the way in community safety partnerships.

Building on previous good practice by the groups involved, future work will improve intergenerational relations and develop services, highlighting to young people their own responsibilities and the issues facing them. As this proposal is for a one-year pilot project, we will be monitoring it very closely in order to formulate a longer-term Community Safety Programme… WATCH THIS SPACE!!!

Update; Caoimhe Scullion who was working on the Community Safety Pilot Project has, unfortunately for us, moved on to a

full time post. She was a terrific worker and will be sorely missed. But we are pleased to inform you all that the Pilot Project

proved such a success the 'powers that be' have extended it to December 2005. There is so much more work to be done.

hen the euphoria of possible victory against fascist Wdictatorship threatened to

make the Republic of South Africa ungovernable and overwhelm the political negotiation, leaders representing South Africa's major players (not just political leaders) came together and signed a pact called the National Peace Accord (NPA), in terms of which an extensive network of peace committees was established across the country. There were twenty six signatories to the NPA representing government, the security forces, all the major political parties, the independent and self-governing states (Bantustans), civic, community and traditional leaders and leaders from the universities, business, trade unions and churches. All made a pact to abide by the mechanisms laid out in the accord, which provided forumsfor resolving community and political conflicts at every level of society where violence threatened to destroy the groundswell commitment to political transformation.

This broad based peoples' bottom-up mechanism for peace was an essential element of South Africa's peace process. It mandated a countrywide structure with peace committees operating at national, regional, and local levels. Members of the apartheid police, soldiers, political activists, human rights lawyers, business people, academics and priests - many of them adversaries - worked together on peace committees. Meeting at any time of day and night they creatively adopted, adapted and constructed conflict resolution tools to meet the challenges that came their way. A plethora of previously unknown peacemakers emerged from all communities and from the ranks of stakeholders including government, security forces and political activists.

Many lessons were learnt. An important one worth mentioning is that when people who had been archenemies worked together and discovered humanity in one another, they found it difficult to remain enemies. Adversaries on peace committees across the country began to learn about the power of forgiveness. Forgiveness, which does not mean condoning or forgetting, was a significant enabler of conflict resolution on peace committees because participants were able to let go the onus of anger and resentment. They also understood for the first time

that truth is informed by one's own perspective and that there can, therefore, be more than one truth. In terms of peace processes, the NPA was a unique mechanism and contributed greatly in enabling national negotiations to progress and eventually succeed. A factor which often hugely undermines political conflict resolution processes is the ever growing gap between leadership "in negotiations" and their constituents who do not have the benefit of engaging constructively with their adversaries.

Thus as national negotiators begin to understand one another's needs and, as a result, their respective perceptions change, they leave their constituents behind in a real world that is very different from their own. This has disastrous consequences for any peace process. Success depends on the ability to carry your most concerned constituency with you when you compromise.

Effective communication is, therefore, a key factor. The NPA, because it operated at different levels and throughout the country, facilitated both horizontal and vertical communication within the various political organisations. It thus enabled broad-based political education for South Africa's transformation so that the vast majority of South Africans from all communities supported their leaders.

Why have I chosen today to share this story about community participation in the SA peace process with friends and colleagues from Northern Ireland in the heart of West Belfast, and in particular at the AGM of Inter Action Belfast? There are two reasons. First to commend the board and staff of this unique organisation for having the vision to conceptualise and implement a cross community broad-based bottom-up mechanism for peace here in West Belfast. Secondly to inspire you by drawing your attention to the Big Picture. How often do we toil away, focussing on detail, committed to getting the job done, working long hours and not having the time or space to reflect on what we are dong, why we are doing it and where it fits?I hope that this short input I have given you today about the duel processes that were implemented during my country's peace process and the symbiotic nature of their relationship will illustrate to you how important your bottom-up contribution is for peace, not only here in West Belfast but for the whole of Northern Ireland.Well done and keep up the good work.

Conflict Resolutionat Community Level Within a Peace Process

Brian CurrinBrian Currin March 2005

InterAction Belfast is very grateful to

Brian Currin for giving of his time and

expertise in working with our staff and

volunteers as we attempt to negotiate

our way out of conflict. In the past he

has facilitated vital meetings, both here

and in his native South Africa with many

of the main players in our own situation.

We feel that the following piece, which

Brian delivered at our recent A.G.M., is

an important statement from someone

who was involved in the development of

the peace strategy in South Africa and

may give some of our politicians and

community activists pause for thought.

Cottonmill Fisheries

fter much research attempting

to establish whether or not Asome person or body held the

fishing rights to the Springfield Dam

we have established that the dam is

designated as 'derelict waters' in that

ownership of the rights cannot be

determined. Having reached that

stage we submitted our funding

application to B.R.O. on the

understanding that the Dept of

Culture, Arts and Leisure (DECAL)

would, in the months after the

application was submitted, set about

putting ads in various newspapers

seeking information on the fishing

rights and failing that we would be

given permission and funding to begin

developing the fisheries.

The take and put back fishing facility

will only be the beginning. Once we

are assured of the go ahead we shall

seek the resources to construct an

interpretative centre to cater for

schools visiting this precious

environmental oasis in west Belfast.

We plan to make the building eco

friendly with as many energy saving

and environmentally friendly aspects

to it, wind power, solar panels etc.

On 19th December 2003 two young

children lost their lives in a tragic

accident on the Springfield Road. The

deaths were all the more tragic coming

as they did close to Christmas. The

fact that the children came from the

Springfield was the reason that

Clonard Residents Association,

Ashmore Youth Club and Springfield

Intercommunity Forum (S.I.F.) felt that

something should be done in their

memory. A group of young people from

the Springfield, Clonard, Mid -Shankill

and Woodvale got together to discuss

what would be fitting. Together we

decided to work in the design and

painting of a mural on Lanark Way

'security' gates, a place that has seen

much inter-community trouble in the

past. We arranged some meetings

with mural artists Blaze FX to discuss

our ideas for the mural. In the end we

decided to do murals that would reflect

the respective cultures at the interface

as well as images that would depict

our common interests. We started the

mural over the Easter holidays and

were delighted with the finished work.

It must have struck a chord with

everyone else because it is still there

untouched by anyone. Following on

from our cooperating in the mural

project a group of young people

representing both communities

got the opportunity to go to Canada. It

was for us the holiday and adventure

of a lifetime. We all got on great

together and have kept in contact

since we came home.

Orlaith McKenna

Clonard Youth

uring the past twelve months we have experienced blips and Dblockages, which, because of

the calibre of our many partner groups and individuals, we managed to negotiate with little trouble. The most bizarre was probably the announcement by the I.M.C. (the International/Independent Monitoring Committee, but choose your own terminology) that railed against some groups for the presence of ex-prisoners within their ranks. Those political ex-prisoners were doing their bit in improving the quality of life for people living in the respective working class communities.

Right: we respectfully offer our humble suggestions as to how we can circumvent the Pythonesque objections.

And now for something

differentEach party member must engage in constituency work, including meeting local residents.

Loyalists: must sell "I support the St. Patrick's Day Parade" OR "I love Bertie" badges to help fundraise for event.

Loyalists: Must grow out hair and lose the gold earrings

Loyalists: must wear Aran sweater when attending any function (public or private), no scratching allowed.

Republicans: Must sell "I love the 12th of July" badges to fund bonfires.

Republicans: ban on woolly jumpers for 6 months.

Republicans: must self-fund St. Patrick's Day parade

Republicans: I.R.A. Army Council to write 50 times, "I am a bold boy"

P. O'Neill to don sack cloth and ashes at Belfast's City Hall for 24 hours on 12th of July each year

Republicans and Loyalists: since funds will be withdrawn, will have to find another way to financially support their political party. Suggestions: dodgy diesel, cheap fags, and dirty vodka.

Republicans and Loyalists: cannot sit as Ministers in a non-existent government

Republicans and Loyalists: no more invitations to parties or celebrations such as St. Patrick's' Day in the White House. Instead "time outs" will be arranged to help them reflect on their Bad Behaviour.

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Sitting down on the Job

e offer our earnest appreciation to all those, without whose Wcontribution in terms of hands

on cooperation, advice, support and encouragement, little of what has been achieved to date, would have happened. All was of equal importance to our work. So, in no particular order we thank the activists and volunteers from the respective communities from the interface and beyond.

Inter-Action also gratefully acknowledges the vital support of our funders

• Belfast City Council Good Relations

• Community Relations Council Core Funding

• Community Relations Council Intercommunity Grants

• EU Programme for Peace and Reconciliation Measure 2.1 administered by Community Relations Council

• EU Programme for Peace and Reconciliation, Measure 5.3 administered by Community Foundation for Northern Ireland

• Ireland Fund for Canada

• Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust

• Summer Crisis Fund administered by CFNI

As is the case each year the offices of InterAction Belfast seems to be the first port of call for visitors to these shores seeking some understanding of our situation and the means being employed to address the many issues we face. Amongst those who graced us with their presence were;

Lord Mayor of Belfast Tom Ekin.Tom Kitt T.D

International Fund for Ireland.North South Forum.Dept of Foreign Affairs Dail Eireann.European Commission.

As well as those above during the year we played host to groupings of many sorts fromUlster People's CollegeSheffieldIsle of Dogs LondonGermany, Holland & United States.

Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs Dublin.

THANK YOU!

AND LAST BUT NEVER LEAST

VISITORS

Women's Education Assoc. Clonard Youth Collective

High Field Community Centre DAWN Drogheda

Prisoners in Partnership D.Y.D Drogheda

Voices Women's Group Turf Lodge DYSCS Drogheda

Upper Springfield/Frank Cahill Resource Centre Drogheda Forum

Upper Springfield Development Trust E.P.I.C.

B.A.S.E. Young Peoples Project CRJ Ireland

Community Council Drogheda Forthspring Youth

Greater Shankill Alternatives Ashmore Youth Club

S.W. Donegal Community P'ship Ltd. Frank Gillen Centre

Forthspring Women' Group Peel St. Centre

Farset Community Think-tanks Project Meadow Concerned Residents

Falls Community Council Open College Network

Feile an Phobail West Belfast Glencree

Centre for Peace Building Donegal Farset Hostel

Clonard Women's Group Conway Mill

Interface Women's Project Hawthorn Boys

Shankill Women's Group AirHedz

Farset Development Board Blaze FX

Cottonmill Fisheries The Now Project

Xplosiv DC Springvale Learning

Clonard Boxing Club Newstart

Clonard Youth Club St. James' Forum

Interface Residents Group Moyard Youth Project

We offer our sincere thanks also to those other

organisations that throughout the years have given

us much needed, advise support and cooperation.

Community Foundation for N.I. Belfast City Council

Community Relations Council D.O.E. Road Services

Probation Board of N.I. Women's Aid

Police Service for N.I. B.E.L.B.

N. Ireland Housing Executive B.R.O.

Health Action Zone Groundwork N.I.

Creating Common Ground Springvale Training

Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust NI Fire & Rescue Service

Belfast C.C. Cleansing Services W. Belfast Taxis

Belfast/Lisburn Women's Aid