Evening star., 1942-09-04
Irish Dilemma

lie ulSOrderS IN and around Bel
fast, metropolis and capital of North
ern Ireland, vividly emphasize the
thorny and perennial Irish problem.
They took place after the hanging of
young man named Williams, one
OF group of six youths involved in
the shooting of a policeman last
Easter, a day when trouble USUALLY
occurs, since 1t is the anniversary of
the 1916 Irish rebellion against Brit
ish rule.
Since that melancholy time, sweep
Ing changes have occurred in the
Emerald Isle. Some five-sixths of
the island, with a population of ap-
proximately 100000, constitutes the
sovereign, independent state of
Fire" under a government headed
by the celebrated leader, Eamon de
valera. The northern part of the
Island, however, virtually the his
torlc province of Ulster, has a popu-
lation of about 100000, a majority
OF Whom are strongly attached to the
British connection. Refusing to form
part Of Fire, Northern Ireland. as it
is officially styled, has a parliament
tary government and executive of it's
own, though it is likewise represented
in the British parliament. The gov
eminent and people of Fire are
strenuously opposed to this division.
claiming that Ireland should be a
political unity, but the De Valera
administration tacitly accepts, under
protest, the existing arrangement.
A militant minority, however. In
both Fire and Northern Ireland con-
tlnually agitates for union by all
methods, including organized terror
ism. It's fighting section, a secret
society, calls itself the Irish Republi-
can Army. Waging what amounts to
continuous civil war, it is outlawed
not merely in Northern Ireland but
IN Ere as well. Only two years ago,
the De Valera government executed
member Of the IRA for a political
murder. The recent execution of
Williams was for the same sort of
crime.
Unfortunately, the fact that the
hanging was done by the Belfast
government made political issue of
the case. And, still more unfortu-
nately, the agitation involved the
presence of American troops on Irish
soil, against which Fire protests as
an infringement of its rights" over
Northern Ireland and an impairment
OF Its neutrality. 1t should be re-
membered that, in this war, Fire
stands rigidly aloof. Diplomatic re-
lations with Germany are main
tanned, and Germans together with
other Axis nationals have freedom of
movement over the soil of Fire. There
can be scant doubt that the IRA is
in close touch with German agents.
Only last January, Premier De Valera
stated that the IRA were prepared to
help Germany win the war against
Britain and denounced their ma
neuvers as reasonable.
Nevertheless, the Belfast execution
OF an avowed IRA terrorist aroused a
widespread wave of protest and SYM
pathy throughout Fire. Williams
was hailed as a martyr and flags
were flown at half mast on public
buildings, shops were closed, and
traffic was suspended to accentuate
the public mourning. Minority DEM
onstrations in Northern Ireland were
quelled by police, Ulster Special Con-
stables" and tanks were driven
through the Nationalist quarters.
One armed clash took place on the
Ulster-Eire border between Ulster
constables and terrorists who had
slipped across the frontier.
This regrettable affair tends to
sharpen antagonisms between the
two parts OF Ireland, already in
famed by the contrasting attitudes
OF Fire and Ulster toward the war.
BY just so much is adjourned that
mutual understanding which logic
ally should be the prerequisite of
Irish political unity in anything but
an imposed sense.