Foreign diplomats briefed on voluntary and community sector

Seamus McAleavey, NICVA's chief executive, has participated in a briefing of young and junior diplomats, outlining the role of the voluntary and community sector in Northern Ireland.

Outlining the function of NICVA, Mr. McAleavey commented that the ground on which NICVA is built is itself an interesting place in terms of the Northern Ireland conflict.

Duncairn Gardens

He said Duncairn Gardens was a space disregarded by developers, but attractive to a community organisation with an embedded neutrality on the national question. He said that NICVA headquarters offered a space for open discussion and the flow of free ideas.

Public services and Freedom of Association

Mr. McAleavey said that the vast majority of work undertaken by the sector in Northern Ireland is essentially the fulfillment of public services, and that the sector had actually grown during the conflict in Northern Ireland. He attributed this to the principle in British and Irish law of freedom of association, and that whatever is not proscribed by law is permitted under it.

Advocacy

Non Governmental Organisations play a major role in advocacy in Northern Ireland; Mr. McAleavey gave the example of the work undertaken by the sector to transform the 'Targeting Social Need' into an Anti-poverty Strategy. Despite the disparate nature of the sector, he said that the sector had been effective in having its voice heard when it united behind an issue.

In favour of devolution

Mr. McAleavey informed the delegates that most groups in the sector favoured devolution, as the most accountable form of government, and the most open to lobbying. Detailing some of the historical reasons for the conflict in Northern Ireland, Mr. McAleavey stressed that NICVA's role in Northern ireland was a challenging one, but that it placed a premium on neutrality on the constitutional position.

Questions from the diplomats

Mr. McAleavey was asked a number of questions; he gave a detailed response to a question from a Thai delegate on the funding of organisations and NICVA. When asked how membership of NICVA was determined by an Eastern European delegate, he outlined the requirements for admission, and gave an overview of NICVA's values.

A delegate from Kosovo asked whether the Northern Ireland peace process was a sham, insofar as it had failed to build trust between communities. Mr. McAleavey wondered aloud whether this might be the case for all peace processes, and drew on examples from the Middle East and others. He went on to say that, whilst NICVA is neutral on the constitutional situation for Northern Ireland, it is certainly not neutral on peace, or socioeconomic issues.

When asked if there was an emergent racism in Northern Ireland, Mr. McAleavey said there was, and that this is an important focus of NGO's in Northern Ireland at the moment. He said that forms of bigotry tend to exist together, and that if someone was sectarian, experience suggests that little would stop that person from being a racist as well.