The need to secure some kind of “special status” for Northern Ireland in the Article 50 Brexit negotiations was an argument underscored by Maynooth University Professor John O’Brennan today. Professor O’Brennan was speaking at a special All-Island Civic Dialogue on Human Rights under the Good Friday Agreement, convened by Minister for Foreign Affairs Charles Flanagan TD and hosted by Maynooth University.
The protection for reciprocal rights for Irish and British citizens in both jurisdictions is critical to the functionality of the Good Friday Agreement, Professor O’Brennan said. The protection fostered by the Agreement impacts a large range of issues from pension provisions and child benefit rights to cross-border policing and security cooperation. He said a “Hard Brexit” scenario that does not take into account the unique status of Northern Ireland, particularly when it comes to human rights, would completely undermine the intent of the Agreement.
“One of the key questions pertaining to our discussions today is whether we can maintain the long standing reciprocal rights for Irish citizens in our respective jurisdictions. The Brexit negotiations need to protect the access to services for all citizens,” Professor O’Brennan said.
“It is also crucial that we maintain some role for the European Union in the peace process. It is undoubtedly the case that our common membership of the European Union over more than four decades allowed British and Irish officials to meet regularly on the margins of EU meetings, to develop both trust in and greater understanding of each other, and ultimately to cooperate more closely than ever before.”
The Maynooth University event included participation by approximately 100 representatives from civil society organisations and relevant stakeholders from across the island of Ireland.
Speaking ahead of the event, Minister Flanagan said, “As a co-guarantor of the Good Friday Agreement, the Government takes with the utmost seriousness our duty to ensure that all provisions of the Agreement are upheld and secured throughout the process of the UK’s exit from the European Union. This sectoral dialogue is an extremely valuable opportunity to hear directly from experts and practitioners on how Brexit might impact Human Rights under the Good Friday Agreement and how we might respond.”
“The Good Friday Agreement is a shared framework to uphold and to utilise as we work together to manage the implications of Brexit,” added Minister Flanagan.
In opening the conference, Professor Philip Nolan, President of Maynooth University, recognised the importance of an all-island conversation about these issues and said Maynooth University was a fitting location for such dialogue: “The University has long enjoyed a special relationship with the northern part of this island. Our distinguished alumni include John Hume, who played such an important role in the civil rights movement and the peace process. The University also is home to the Edward Kennedy Institute for Conflict Intervention, a leading resource for research and training in the areas of negotiation and peacebuilding. As a University with extensive interests in human rights and social justice, we welcome the opportunity to host such an important all-island dialogue in the hope it can provide meaningful impact on the Brexit negotiations.”
Maynooth University Centre for European and Eurasian Studies
TogglePost-Brexit “special status” for Northern Ireland key to preserving rights of Irish and British citizens
News
Dr. John Paul Newman's recent research fellowship in Sofia
From October 2019 until February 2020, Dr. Newman was an ‘Advanced Academic Fellow’ at the Centre for Advanced Studies in Sofia, Bulgaria working on two new research projects.
Date: Tuesday, 11 February 2020
IACES Biennial Conference 2019
Members of the Centre were active participants in the biannual conference of the Irish Association for Contemporary European Studies (IACES) at the Royal Irish Academy, Dublin, on Friday, 29 November 2019.
Date: Thursday, 19 December 2019
John O' Brennan lecture on the future of EU Enlargement policy at the IIEA, Dublin.
John O'Brennan recently delivered a lecture to the Irish Institute for International and European Affairs (IIEA) in Dublin, focusing on 'What next for EU Enlargement?
Date: Thursday, 19 December 2019
Professor John O' Brennan's recent lectures on EU politics in Central and Eastern Europe
Professor John O' Brennan has just completed a successful lecture tour in Slovenia (Ljubljana University) and Croatia (Rijeka University)
Date: Thursday, 19 December 2019
Fieldtrip to Brussels and the EU institutions
Students from Maynooth University recently participated in a one week fieldtrip to Brussels and the EU institutions. Partly sponsored by the Jean Monnet Chair in European Integration (Erasmus Plus), students of European Studies, Politics, History and Sociology participated. It was a particularly exciting week to be in Brussels as the trip coincided with a dramatic Brexit European Council summit meeting. The group was led by John O’ Brennan and Francis Jacobs, former head of the European Parliament office in Dublin. Arriving on St Patrick’s Day, students met with Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Simon Coveney TD in the Grand Place. The Tánaiste spoke to students about the Brexit talks and Ireland’s place in the European Union. (click on title for more details)
Date: Wednesday, 24 April 2019
Sven Milekic– Irish Research Council Scholar on Croatia and the Balkans
The Centre is home to Irish Research Council scholar Sven Milekic whose work focuses on Croatia and the Balkans
Date: Wednesday, 13 March 2019
The Maynooth Centre for European and Eurasian Studies updated schedule for the spring semester, 2019
Exciting programme of events ahead in the Spring 2019 Semester at the Maynooth Centre for European and Eurasian Studies
Date: Tuesday, 05 March 2019
PhD Research within the Maynooth Centre for European and Eurasian Studies
The Centre is home to a range of excellent scholars working on Eastern Europe and/or Eurasia. Their work is located within academic disciplines such as Anthropology, History, Political Science and Sociology and, in some cases, is interdisciplinary.
Date: Wednesday, 27 February 2019
Dilyana Kiryakova-Ryan successfully defends PhD thesis
Dilyana Kiryakova-Ryan, a doctoral student attached to the Centre, successfully defended her PhD thesis on civic initiatives in Bulgaria analysed through the lenses of Europeanisation theory. The thesis examines the landscape of civil society in post-Communist Eastern Europe and posits a ‘bottom-up’ perspective on contours of change within the Bulgarian social milieu.
Date: Thursday, 07 February 2019
Seminar on European geoeconomics and geopolitics in the era of Trump and Brexit
On Thursday 14th February 2019, the Maynooth Centre for European and Eurasian Studies, in conjunction with the Department of Sociology and Mussi will host a seminar by Dr. Patrick Holden (Plymouth University). The event will examine the recent turbulence in the international arena and how geoeconomics and geopolitics in Europe have been upended by both Brexit and the policies of the Trump administration. Where and when: John Hume Boardroom, Third floor, Hume Building, 14.00-15.30
Date: Thursday, 17 January 2019