It’s easy to forget the mistakes of the past. It’s even easier if you are too young to remember them. And that’s part of the problem with the British government and Northern Ireland. There is collective amnesia in much of the current British political generation about a century mostly of neglect for Northern Ireland since it was created in the 1920s – neglect, until the bombs and shootings started.
That neglect from Westminster allowed representatives of the Protestant majority in the Stormont parliament near Belfast to discriminate against the Roman Catholic minority for generations. It blew up – literally – in the violence of the Troubles from 1968 until the Good Friday Agreement of April 10, 1998.
During the Troubles about 3,000 people were killed, around 300 of them police officers. British government indifference towards Northern Ireland was disastrous then and it could be repeating the same mistake now. The shadow of a gunman - as the Irish playwright Sean O’Casey once called it – remains.
Treating Northern Ireland differently from England, Scotland and Wales is a red line for unionists
I lived and worked in Northern Ireland during the Troubles and knew people who were murdered, brutalised, kneecapped, jailed for crimes they did not commit and traumatised.
Kneecapping, by the way, was a punishment for supposed offences used by illegal paramilitary organisations to terrorise the public. The knees of those considered to be offenders were shot off with a variety of weapons. Some never walked again. I am mentioning these horrors because after a generation of (mostly) peace, Northern Ireland’s cities and towns are thriving and unrecognisable from the places where bombs were going off almost daily, destroying shops, offices and lives. But that peace looks increasingly fragile.
The roots of the current problem lie in Brexit. Northern Ireland voted to remain in the EU but former UK prime minister Boris Johnson’s government made unionists – those who want to remain part of the UK – feel badly treated. That’s because he agreed – in effect – to move the Irish border in trade and customs terms into the Irish Sea.
Treating Northern Ireland differently from England, Scotland and Wales is a red line for unionists. It led to the collapse of the power-sharing government at Stormont, with the biggest unionist group refusing to work with the Irish republican party, Sinn Fein.
Beyond this political vacuum and a lack of energy at Westminster there is now an urgent problem. The massive data breach of information revealing the identities and personal details of 10,000 officers and civilian support staff in the Police Service of Northern Ireland puts lives and therefore peace at risk.
Dissident republican terrorists – those who believe they can somehow "unite" Ireland by killing people – now have information which can enable them to strike terror into the forces tasked with keeping law and order. Despite the ceasefire from the Provisional IRA, those dissident republicans have continued a sporadic campaign of terror in which police officers have been attacked and shot.
Politicians from both Protestant and Catholic communities are trying hard to prevent further violence and to find those responsible for the data breach but that is not enough. The British government needs to get a grip. Yet many politicians in England think there are few votes for them spending energy on Northern Ireland.
The British government needs to get a grip
Mr Johnson as prime minister was particularly cavalier. Unionist politicians who passionately want to be part of the UK spoke of Mr Johnson as an “English nationalist”, who only thought about England (where most of his voters live) and had little interest in Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales.
In the autumn, I’m heading to Belfast, a city I love. Friends there often reflect on how British government carelessness is an unwelcome tradition. Nature proverbially abhors a vacuum and the political vacuum at Stormont is loved only by those disruptive dissident terrorists.
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak doesn’t even seem to have Northern Ireland on his political "to do" list. Yet this is a moment which demands leadership, and Mr Sunak should lean hard on unionist politicians to push them to return to some kind of Northern Ireland government. He also must provide whatever resources are necessary to ensure that police officers and their families can feel safe in their homes at night and even be moved elsewhere if necessary.
But Mr Sunak’s Conservative Party is beset by other problems and internal divisions. For months it has trailed way behind the opposition Labour Party in popularity with a general election thought likely in autumn 2024.
Mr Sunak is confronted with economic difficulties, failing infrastructure, migrant boats, the Brexit mess, industrial disputes, profound dissatisfaction with the National Health Service and a long list of other gripes and grievances.
But instead of the Sunak legacy being that of a caretaker prime minister achieving very little and perhaps losing badly – as the polls seem to predict – in 2024, he could use his energy and influence towards ensuring peace and tranquility for British citizens in Northern Ireland who, (rightly), often feel they are ignored. The alternative – endless political stalemate coupled with a return to violence and instability – is too grim to contemplate.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ziina users can donate to relief efforts in Beirut
Ziina users will be able to use the app to help relief efforts in Beirut, which has been left reeling after an August blast caused an estimated $15 billion in damage and left thousands homeless. Ziina has partnered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to raise money for the Lebanese capital, co-founder Faisal Toukan says. “As of October 1, the UNHCR has the first certified badge on Ziina and is automatically part of user's top friends' list during this campaign. Users can now donate any amount to the Beirut relief with two clicks. The money raised will go towards rebuilding houses for the families that were impacted by the explosion.”
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
The schedule
December 5 - 23: Shooting competition, Al Dhafra Shooting Club
December 9 - 24: Handicrafts competition, from 4pm until 10pm, Heritage Souq
December 11 - 20: Dates competition, from 4pm
December 12 - 20: Sour milk competition
December 13: Falcon beauty competition
December 14 and 20: Saluki races
December 15: Arabian horse races, from 4pm
December 16 - 19: Falconry competition
December 18: Camel milk competition, from 7.30 - 9.30 am
December 20 and 21: Sheep beauty competition, from 10am
December 22: The best herd of 30 camels
DMZ facts
- The DMZ was created as a buffer after the 1950-53 Korean War.
- It runs 248 kilometers across the Korean Peninsula and is 4km wide.
- The zone is jointly overseen by the US-led United Nations Command and North Korea.
- It is littered with an estimated 2 million mines, tank traps, razor wire fences and guard posts.
- Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un met at a building in Panmunjom, where an armistice was signed to stop the Korean War.
- Panmunjom is 52km north of the Korean capital Seoul and 147km south of Pyongyang, North Korea’s capital.
- Former US president Bill Clinton visited Panmunjom in 1993, while Ronald Reagan visited the DMZ in 1983, George W. Bush in 2002 and Barack Obama visited a nearby military camp in 2012.
- Mr Trump planned to visit in November 2017, but heavy fog that prevented his helicopter from landing.
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
BULKWHIZ PROFILE
Date started: February 2017
Founders: Amira Rashad (CEO), Yusuf Saber (CTO), Mahmoud Sayedahmed (adviser), Reda Bouraoui (adviser)
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce
Size: 50 employees
Funding: approximately $6m
Investors: Beco Capital, Enabling Future and Wain in the UAE; China's MSA Capital; 500 Startups; Faith Capital and Savour Ventures in Kuwait
It’ll be summer in the city as car show tries to move with the times
If 2008 was the year that rocked Detroit, 2019 will be when Motor City gives its annual car extravaganza a revamp that aims to move with the times.
A major change is that this week's North American International Auto Show will be the last to be held in January, after which the event will switch to June.
The new date, organisers said, will allow exhibitors to move vehicles and activities outside the Cobo Center's halls and into other city venues, unencumbered by cold January weather, exemplified this week by snow and ice.
In a market in which trends can easily be outpaced beyond one event, the need to do so was probably exacerbated by the decision of Germany's big three carmakers – BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi – to skip the auto show this year.
The show has long allowed car enthusiasts to sit behind the wheel of the latest models at the start of the calendar year but a more fluid car market in an online world has made sales less seasonal.
Similarly, everyday technology seems to be catching up on those whose job it is to get behind microphones and try and tempt the visiting public into making a purchase.
Although sparkly announcers clasp iPads and outline the technical gadgetry hidden beneath bonnets, people's obsession with their own smartphones often appeared to offer a more tempting distraction.
“It's maddening,” said one such worker at Nissan's stand.
The absence of some pizzazz, as well as top marques, was also noted by patrons.
“It looks like there are a few less cars this year,” one annual attendee said of this year's exhibitors.
“I can't help but think it's easier to stay at home than to brave the snow and come here.”
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
The bio
Favourite food: Japanese
Favourite car: Lamborghini
Favourite hobby: Football
Favourite quote: If your dreams don’t scare you, they are not big enough
Favourite country: UAE
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THE BIO
Bio Box
Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul
Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader
Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet
Favorite food: seafood
Favorite place to travel: Lebanon
Favorite movie: Braveheart
DUBAI CARNIVAL RESULTS
6.30pm Handicap US$135,000 (Turf) 2,410m
Winner Dubai Future, Harry Bentley (jockey), Saeed bin Suroor (trainer).
7.05pm UAE 1000 Guineas Listed $250,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
Winner Dubai Love, Patrick Cosgrave, Saeed bin Suroor.
7.40pm Dubai Dash Listed $175,000 (T) 1,000m
Winner: Equilateral, James Doyle, Charles Hills.
8.15pm Al Bastakiya Trial Conditions $100,000 (D) 1.900m
Winner Laser Show, Kevin Stott, Saeed bin Suroor.
8.50pm Al Fahidi Fort Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner Glorious Journey, James Doyle, Charlie Appleby.
9.25pm Handicap $135,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner George Villiers, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
The specs
Engine 60kwh FWD
Battery Rimac 120kwh Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide (LiNiMnCoO2) chemistry
Power 204hp Torque 360Nm
Price, base / as tested Dh174,500
Padmaavat
Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Starring: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor, Jim Sarbh
3.5/5
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Tottenham 0-1 Ajax, Tuesday
Second leg
Ajax v Tottenham, Wednesday, May 8, 11pm
Game is on BeIN Sports
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Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
