NICRA’s Tactics and
O’Neill’s Response
Marching for Houses
• NICRA followed the in the
footsteps of their American
counterparts and decided to
use peaceful marches. It was
first used on 24 August 1968.
The occasion was a march
between the County Tyrone
towns of Coalisland and
Dungannon. This
demonstration took place
because of the Dungannon
rural district council to give a
council house to a 19-year old
single Protestant woman. In
response to this decision
Austin Currie, Nationalist Mp
for East Tyrone, squatted in
the house.
Click on the hyperlink below for more information on Austin Currie’s protest.
Currie's Protest RTE
Currie was eventually evicted
• After this he suggested a protest march to highlight the
situation. Although the demonstration was prevented
by the police from reaching its intended destination of
Dungannon town square, an alternative rally was
organised at the town police barricade and the event
passed off without incident. These were important
steps- Direct action in politics had begun. Since there
was no impartial administrative mechanism by which
house allocation could be made, and since there was no
method of appeal against administrative malpractice,
the only course open to those wishing to object to a
Government policy was direct action.
Violence in Derry
• House allocation was also the issue
that led to NICRA’s second march.
In order to highlight the
inequalities in Londonderry’s
Corporation’s housing policy, a
march was organised for 5 October
1968. The march was due to travel
from the Waterside to the city
centre via the Craigavon Bridge. In
response the Apprentice Boys
threatened to hold a rival march.
The Stormont Government
responded by banning the holding
of any march east of the River
Foyle or within the City’s walls. The
NICRA march’s organisers rejected
the ban.
Five MPs Involved
• Although the crowd that turned up on the 5
October was relatively small, they were
accompanied by four powerful MPs, and even
more importantly an RTE camera crew. That
night television pictures beamed across the
world showed more clearly than any words the
heavy-handed tactics used by the police to break
up the rally. It became clear to many on that
night Northern Ireland was on the verge of a
crisis that would prove difficult to resolve.
The First Bloodshed
•
•
October 5 in Derry witnessed the first
bloodshed in the present violence in Northern
Ireland. The blood was that of many of the
2,000 marchers who defied Craig's ban. It was
spilled by RUC batons and among those
injured was Gerry Fitt. Three other
Westminster MPs, Russel Kerr, Ann Kerr and
John Ryan witnessed the events. They saw the
police baton the leading marchers in Duke
Street and they saw that as the marchers
turned to go back down the street they were
ambushed by another company of police.
Although only 2,000 people were present, the
film of the brutality taken by an RTE
cameraman flashed around the living rooms
of Northern Ireland and the political upheaval
feared by Unionists for fifty years had begun.
Protests in Derry BBC
‘These were
stormtrooper
tactics at their
worst.’
Gerry Fitt
The Five Point Programme
• The situation got worse with the
further NICRA marches and
loyalist counter demonstrations. As
a result O’Neill, Faulkner and Craig
were summoned to Westminster on
4 November to meet the British
Labour Prime Minister, Harold
Wilson. The outcome of this
meeting was the announcement, on
22 November, of a reform
programme. The programme
included five main proposals, all of
which were to be in place by the
end of 1971. The proposals were
1. The allocation of housing on a
points system
2. The replacement of Londonderry
corporation by a Development
Commission.
3. The removal of certain parts of
the Special Powers Act.
4. Reforms within local government,
including the ending of extra votes
for business owners
5. The appointment of an
ombudsman to investigate
complaints.
Were the protesters happy with the
five point programme?
• Wilson had said in the Commons that he thought that political reform in
Northern Ireland had been "a bit too moderate so far", but in a five point
plan of reform sent to O'Neill on November 21. Wilson proved that he too
was moderate on the issue. It did point the way towards a brighter future,
even if it did fail to deliver all of the demands of NICRA.
• The "reforms" included the abolition of the company vote in local
government elections, the appointment of an Ombudsman at some future
date, re-organisation of local government by 1971, a recommendation nothing stronger - to local authorities to reform their housing allocation
procedures and the establishment of a commission to run Derry in place of
the Corporation. It was an empty gesture by Wilson. Derry had gone from
"One Man, One Vote" to "One Man, No Vote" with the abolition of the
Corporation, the Ombudsman might never come and although the company
vote had been abolished, the property qualification had not. One man could
still have more than one vote. Wilson's concern for Civil rights proved as
strong as that of O'Neill.
Calm Before the Storm?
• Protests and counter
protests continued
and so, 9 December,
O’Neill appeared on
television to hammer
home the starkness of
the position of
Northern Ireland. In
particular he appealed
to NICRA’s leaders to
restore calm.
• "Ulster at the
Crossroads"
Ulster stands at the crossroads.
I believe you know me well
enough by now to appreciate
that I am not a man given to
extravagant language. But I
must say to you this evening
that our conduct over the
coming days and weeks will
decide our future
Hope at First
• His message seemed to have the desired effect and all further
street protests were called off. However, the breathing space
O’Neill had won would prove to very short-lived. While he
might have managed to calm the civil rights movement, the
reforms had caused dismay among the unionist community, who
now felt that their position was under threat. Moreover O’Neill
faced further opposition from within his own party with Home
Affairs Minister William Craig condemning O’Neill’s television
speech arguing that the Prime Minister was acting under pressure
from the British. Craig was sacked, but even more opposition
was appearing on the horizon.
Complete the Following:
Community Relations
Political and Economic
Aims
Unionist Response
Nationalist
Response
Terrence O’Neill
1963-69
Five Point Plan
Position Under threat
Add detail on to each heading and how it had an effect on O’Neill’s
leadership
Tasks
• Complete questions 1-4 on page 115 of your
text book.
• Class discussion- Take on the role of the
following:
• A Catholic Supporter of NICRA
• Do you think NICRA’s aims are
realistic?
• Are you worried about the tension
the organisation is causing?
• Why do you think NICRA’s
demands are justifiable?
– Paisley Supporter
– Do you agree with NICRA’s aims?
– What do you think NICRA is a cover
for?
– Do you think NICRA’s demands are
justifiable?
• A moderate Unionist
• Do you agree with all of NICRA’s demands?
• Are you worried with the popularity of the civil
rights campaign?
• Do you think NICRA’s demands are justifiable?
• A student from Queen’s University
• You are from an educated background.
• Are you worried with the tension the
demand for civil rights is causing?
• Do you believe NICRA’s demands are
justifiable?
Now stay in role
• How would your group react to the following
question:
• O’Neill dismissed his Five Point Reform
Package as too timid. Do you agree?