By Ambassador Daniel Mulhall
29 March 2019
“The European Union is the best example in the history of the world of conflict resolution” – John Hume in the European Parliament, 4th of May 2004
Throughout last year, I was involved in a number of events marking the 20th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement of 1998. That anniversary represented an important opportunity to remind people of what was achieved in 1998 and of its legacy in the form of two decades of peace in Northern Ireland as well as greatly improved relations on the island of Ireland, and between Ireland and Britain.
One political leader from that time who, I believe, deserves special credit is John Hume, who was a deserved recipient, alongside David Trimble, of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize. I have been involved in a number of discussions following the screening of Maurice Fitzpatrick’s documentary film, John Hume in America, most recently in Hartford, Connecticut, at the invitation of Congressman John Larson and last year in Springfield with Congressman Richie Neal, who chairs the Congressional Friends of Ireland. I have also reviewed the book that accompanied the film for the Irish Times.
