Northern Ireland: GUBU

Robin Sheeran Politics Show, Northern Ireland

Mr McCartney's sisters called on all those involved to come forward

Can ordinary citizens influence political events? The McCartney family's campaign to see their brother's killers brought to trial is a telling example of 'People Power'.

GUBU, they called it: "Grotesque, unbelievable, bizarre, unprecedented".

Charles Haughey's words describing the scandals surrounding his government in the early '80s could equally be applied to events on the Northern Ireland political scene in recent months.

The IRA's offer to shoot those involved in the murder of Robert McCartney is just the latest in a line of astonishing events.

People Power

This week, Politics Show across the UK is looking at people power, where ordinary citizens campaign on a single issue to bring about real change.

The campaign by the McCartney family to bring their brother's killers to justice is a prominent example of people power.

Northern Ireland has a long history of ordinary people taking to the streets for political reasons.

Some of them have been remarkably successful, at least from the point-of-view of the participants.

The Ulster Workers' Council Strike of 1974, which brought down the power-sharing Assembly, is the most obvious example.

Peace People

Politics Show's Jim Fitzpatrick speaks to the veteran journalist, James Kelly whose career stretches back to the 1930s, when the Protestant and Catholic unemployed of Belfast joined in protest in the Outdoor Relief Strike.

In 1976, thousands of ordinary citizens rallied behind the banner of the Peace People, a non-sectarian movement that aimed at halting the spiralling violence in Northern Ireland.

Their initial head of steam faded away as the killings continued.

One man who knows a lot about people power is Eamonn McCann. The Derry activist cut his political teeth in the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.

As a journalist and member of the Socialist Workers Party, he has campaigned on numerous non-sectarian issues over the years.

In recent weeks Eamonn McCann spoke at a demonstration in support of the McCartney family's campaign to see their brother's killers brought to trial.

He sees the strength of the campaign in its directness and simplicity.

"They have not allowed themselves to be tugged off into other areas of politics," Mr McCann observes.

Politics Show

Jim Fitzpatrick presents Politics Show from Northern Ireland

Join Jim Fitzpatrick as he examines the history of citizens' politics in Northern Ireland.

Politics Show from Northern Ireland on BBC One on Sunday, 13 March, 2005 at 12.00.

You get a second chance to see the programme again that night, at 23.15 on BBC One.

Let us know what you think.

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