George Mitchell’s role in the Belfast/Good Friday Peace Agreement

The Northern Ireland Troubles ended on Good Friday 25 years ago. How did the promise of peace get enemies to lay down weapons and move beyond a three-decade hate-filled war of mayhem, murder and retribution? How were centuries of enmity between the unionist and nationalist communities overcome? How did political leaders agree to set aside a history of communal resentment and distrust?

The answers to these questions lie in the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement’s carefully crafted provisions addressing peaceful and democratic change, human rights, policing matters, and Ireland’s relationship with the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. An additional, significant answer lies in George Mitchell’s brilliant leadership and guiding hand throughout the 18-month peace process.

Mitchell’s skillful mediation was integral to achieving peace. Key participants in the process, like Gerry Adams and David Trimble, gave Mitchell substantial credit for the agreement.

Adams, who headed the nationalist Sinn Fein Party, said — “Senator Mitchell’s role was indispensable to the success of the negotiation process and to securing the Good Friday Agreement. There can be no doubt that without his patience and stamina the outcome could have been very much different.” 

Trimble, who led the Ulster Unionist Party, said of Mitchell — “He was extremely capable and fair: a very genuine person who gave everything he had to making the process work. He acquitted himself very well and did the American people proud. I don’t think anybody else could have done what he did. It was a remarkable political balancing act.” 

While Adams and Trimble were on opposite sides of the table, they saw Mitchell’s consequential role the same way. As chair of the peace talks, Mitchell provided crucial assistance to the parties in finding solutions to resolve the conflict.

Mitchell convinced the British and Irish governments to give small political parties a seat at the peace table. Thus, parties representing paramilitary groups and the Women’s Coalition Party had a role in the process and a stake in its outcome.

Mitchell moved the parties beyond zero-sum positions. He got them to focus on shared interests and societal needs, such as giving the people of Northern Ireland hope for a peaceful and prosperous future.

Mitchell set up a morning time procedure where parties could complain about what the other side was doing or saying to the press. He listened and heard the parties out in full. The procedure allowed parties to let off steam, so they could rationally discuss important issues later in the day.

Mitchell worked hard to gain the parties’ trust, so they would value his judgment. Their trust in him made them more willing to accept his recommendations.

Mitchell applied pressure when necessary. He set a deadline for reaching a final agreement. He repeated the parties’ own words in warning them that the talks cannot fail because the prospect of failure was too awful to consider. He cautioned them that they should fear a return to violence more than any potential political damage caused by agreeing to a settlement.

When discussions went beyond the deadline, Mitchell permitted an extension but refused to allow a break. He told the parties we’re here until we finish. When they said they had reached an agreement, he told them that he wanted to vote right away. He had learned to do these things as U.S. Senate majority leader. In taking an immediate vote, he felt when you have the votes you vote, because something bad might happen if you delay.

Announcing the agreement, Mitchell extolled the work of others. He called Northern Ireland’s political leaders’ courageous heroes. He confronted the paramilitaries in stating — “The agreement proves democracy works, and in its wake we can say to the men of violence, to those who disdain democracy, whose tools are bombs and bullets: Your way is not the right way. You will never solve the problem of Northern Ireland by violence. You will only make it worse.” These words convey a message that should resonate throughout our nation today.

The peace agreement was not a perfect document. It failed to recommend a transitional justice mechanism for dealing with the legacy of the past. More than 3,700 people were killed and nearly 50,000 were injured during the Troubles. 

While the agreement remains a work in progress, 25 years of peace means it has withstood the test of time. John Hume, an architect of the peace process, and Trimble were awarded Nobel Peace Prizes for the historic agreement. Peace would not have been achieved, however, without Mitchell’s major contribution.

Edward M. Neafsey is a retired New Jersey Superior Court Judge. He teaches courses in Military Justice, Criminal Adjudication, and the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Movement at Rutgers Law School — Newark. He holds dual U.S. and Irish citizenships, and he was recognized for his human rights activism in the New Jersey Legislature’s bipartisan Resolution designating March as Irish American Heritage Month.