Billy Hutchinson has an article out on loyalist blogger Jamie Bryson’s site. In it, Hutchinson explores the clumsy Bryson soundbites that have become ubiquitous of late: the NI Protocol was a result of “threats of violence” from republicans. It is worth reproducing some of Hutchinson’s words in full:
And so it was with the Protocol; inflammatory comments made by the Pan Nationalist Front erroneously warning of the threat of a return to IRA bombs alongside staged stunts by Sinn Fein at the border, this formed the context for the imposition of the Protocol, which according to the most senior judges in this jurisdiction “subjugates” the Union.
Leaving aside the hyperbolic conflation of bombs and ‘staged stunts’ (assumedly meaning the peaceful border demonstrations), Hutchinson’s use of the term “Pan Nationalist Front” (PNF) seems deliberately chosen.
This term became popular in the early 1990s, and was used by unionists and loyalists to describe basically any groups or organisations that had as an aim the reunification of Ireland. So whilst Gerry Adams, Sinn Fein & the IRA were seen as the head of the PNF, John Hume and the SDLP were just as culpable. The PNF encompassed the government of both the Republic of Ireland and the USA (especially the Irish-American lobby) as well as the GAA, musicians playing traditional Irish music and Irish language proponents. Hell, if your chippy offered a cut price fish supper on a Friday, it was in the PNF.
Of late the Bryson, Hoey & Allister triumvirate have issued warnings that former bastions of unionism, such as the judiciary, vast swathes of the civil services, huge amounts of lawyers, the police, Queen’s University and the media, have succumbed to nationalism. The pan nationalist front is ever widening and will surely soon include those Lundies who haven’t bought into the protocol panic and ‘shouldn’t even call themselves unionist’.
These days (as in times past when the ‘Ulster will fight & Ulster will be right’ siren has sounded) you’re either with the hardcore or you’re a traitorous Irish rebel wanting to bring down the precious union by whatever nefarious means necessary.
Hutchinson using the term PNF can be seen in the same spectrum as loyalists claiming that the Good Friday Agreement is null and void at the one end, and unionist politicians refusing to confirm they would accept a deputy First Minister post alongside Sinn Fein First Minister at the other. It’s part of an increasing and accepted failure to recognise an aspiration to Irish Unity as legitimate.
Hutchinson lays the blame for the protocol at the door of basically organised Irishness whilst he ignores the fact it was his own elected representatives and his mother parliament at Westminster who engineered this situation. The attempt to frame this as being a breach of the GFA is cynical in the extreme. If there has been a breach of the consent principle, it has not been at the hands of nationalists living in NI. However, that is who the threat is aimed at when Hutchinson states that the GFA peace treaty, to which loyalist paramilitaries signed up, no longer exists.
It’s a threat. It isn’t subtle. But it is to an extent menacing. It is meant to be menacing. It is meant to be menacing the same way it was menacing during the GFA negotiations when paramilitaries were taking cards off tables and not going away you know. It is meant to make civic society collectively shudder and desperately hope that death and destruction might not be visited upon them because of a failure of politics.
Hutchinson reveals a wanton desperation in his article. The “warning of the threat of a return to IRA bombs” was erroneous – that is, it wasn’t real. Hutchinson doesn’t think that the IRA would have bombed installations at the border, and we think that he’s correct in that assessment. It’s therefore hard to know what Hutchinson is saying here. Is he saying that the British were forced by the mere threat of republican violence into ‘subjugating’ the Union? Doesn’t sound very taking back freedom, Dunkirk spirit of them. Would it not be more likely that M15 & the rest of the lads had a fairly good handle on the threat assessment given they seem to have been at every Real IRA tea party for the last however many years?
Would it maybe follow that they actually subjugated the Union because they (a) don’t give a shit about Northern Ireland and (b) are more interested in all the disaster capitalism that they can profit from now that Brexit is kicking off?
It must be soul destroying to be a loyalist. Who isn’t in the PNF at this stage? The EU? The Tory party? The DUP? They’ve all got to be in it. Bloody hell, at this stage we would not be surprised if Bryson turns out to be a card carrying member. His recent tweet comparing NI to Ukraine certainly seemed the work of a sleeper agent.
Billy doesn’t explicitly say who a threat is aimed at (got to love that plausible deniability) But what he does say is this:
So, when a young loyalist generation comes to me and says ‘the threat of violence was good enough to prevent a land border, why shouldn’t the same not apply to a Sea Border?’, what am I to tell them?
Well, one might imagine that your first step, as you said you would, would be to outline the horrors of the past and explain no one would ever want to live through such times again. Maybe try to explain how brutal and depressing that time was. How pointless it was. How nothing was won and much was lost. How countless mothers lost children. How people still wake up screaming. Tell him how hate-traumatised generations here and you were one of the shining lights that said no more and led people out of that horrible mess. Tell your loyalist friend that everyone should be invested in fairness and equality and peace and violence can never be tolerated. Tell him to become involved in civic politics and discussions.
You could further say that you believed the threat of republican violence wasn’t real? That it was “erroneous”? Maybe tell them that once violence is introduced into a society like Northern Ireland, it can spiral into dystopia? That if one armed group (be it republican, loyalist or state) attacks a community, then it is highly likely that that community will fight back? Maybe, and we're being deliberately controversial, tell him that despite the “loyalist backlash” cliché, the republican backlash was significantly more violent, wide-ranging, and destructive?
Maybe tell them that it’s highly likely that he’ll spend decades in prison, and that, contrary to some myths, loyalists were captured and convicted far more frequently than republicans. Tell him that a fifth of all victims of the last loyalist campaign were politically uninvolved Protestants murdered in mistake for politically uninvolved Catholics, and that even if he kills the “correct” politically uninvolved person, and not spend decades of his teens, 20s, and 30s in jail, he might end up in a feud and die at the hands of fellow loyalists, his name conflated with criminality, and ignored by the British press.
You might also wish to point out that it was not so much the threat from M15 infiltrated dissident republican groups - who have very little support amongst the pan nationalist front - that prevented the imposition of a land border it was statecraft. It was nationalist politicians and groups (the PNF if you will) lobbying the EU & America & reminding them of their responsibilities under the GFA and having them remind the British of their responsibilities.
You could have a chat with your young loyalist about the failure of unionist politicians to represent the views of their constituents who are so dismayed by the protocol. What were they doing when they made Brexit their hill to die on? Why did they throw their lot in with the hard right of the Tory Party instead of with the people of NI? Why did they not agree arrangements that would have avoided a protocol?
You could reassure the young loyalist that the failure of unionist political class has led to this juncture, not his nationalist neighbours who pose no threat and that working people, no matter what class or nationality have much more in common with each other than they ever will with ruling class. Remind that young Loyalist of genuine working class progressive views, Billy.
However, Hutchinson deserves genuine credit for this:
The truth is, beyond the obvious point that we will always - in all circumstances - discourage all young (and not so young) loyalists from engaging in any form of violence.
But then, as so many politicians before him, he gives himself a bit of plausible deniability before getting out the dog whistle, and saying:
we have no real answer to the proposition that the threat of republican violence has led to seismic constitutional change being imposed without the consent of the people of Northern Ireland.
Despite the fact that this statement is simply factually incorrect, it does raise an interesting point – Hutchinson charges that the protocol was “imposed without the consent of the people of Northern Ireland.”
Why not call for a referendum, then? What is wrong with political means? Why not test if it carries the consent of the people of Northern Ireland?
Instead, Hutchinson says this:
It is obvious therefore that for the maintenance of peace and stability it is vital for the Protocol to be removed, in order to demonstrate that the threat of violence should never have been rewarded. That is a wrong which must be righted.
What is also left unsaid is what would happen if the protocol is removed. What Billy is saying is ‘put a hard border up between NI and the South’, get rid of the GFA. Let’s get back to the days when unionists dominated civic society. The realisation that this is seriously unlikely to ever transpire makes those of us - and it’s a hell of a lot - in the pan nationalist front nervous because of the questions that it leads to:
Who will loyalists attack? What will they do? Who is their enemy? The Pan Nationalist Front is all encompassing. You might not even not you were a member until after you gave been targeted.
How many “young loyalists” will risk decades in Maghaberry, with no prospect of early release under an amnesty, for killing people who had nothing to do with enormous own-goal scored by the halfwits in the DUP cozying up to a nest of vipers in Westminster?
And for what? Loyalists will lose their fight against the protocol, as they have lost every fight they started since Drumcree. It’s just such a shame that it all has to be framed and a fight & one side having to win lest there be disastrous consequences for them.
It’s worth reciting the fights that loyalists have lost: Drumcree; Harryville; Holy Cross; the 2005 riots (what were they about?); the Flag protests; and now the protocol. Each of these tactical catastrophes alienated the only people who can maintain the union: voting nationalists.
Unfortunately it seems it’s the only way to attract support for the union is to declare - once again - its under the worst threat ever, ever, promise this time the pan nationalist front are really coming for us.
Maybe Hutchinson should drop the “Progressive” part from the PUP and accept they’re as lacking in vision as the rest of the tragic has-beens that constitute contemporary political unionism.
How many “young loyalists” will risk decades in Maghaberry, with no prospect of early release under an amnesty, for killing people who had nothing to do with enormous own-goal scored by the halfwits in the DUP cozying up to a nest of vipers in Westminster?
And for what? Loyalists will lose their fight against the protocol, as they have lost every fight they started since Drumcree. It’s just such a shame that it all has to be framed and a fight & one side having to win lest there be disastrous consequences for them.
It’s worth reciting the fights that loyalists have lost: Drumcree; Harryville; Holy Cross; the 2005 riots (what were they about?); the Flag protests; and now the protocol. Each of these tactical catastrophes alienated the only people who can maintain the union: voting nationalists.
Unfortunately it seems it’s the only way to attract support for the union is to declare - once again - its under the worst threat ever, ever, promise this time the pan nationalist front are really coming for us.
Maybe Hutchinson should drop the “Progressive” part from the PUP and accept they’re as lacking in vision as the rest of the tragic has-beens that constitute contemporary political unionism.
⏩ Brandon Sullivan is a middle aged, middle management, centre-left Belfast man. Would prefer people focused on the actual bad guys.
⏩ Winnie Woods is a recently retired housewife with an interest in human rights & politics.
It is unfortunate that Billy Hutchinson allows himself to be pulled in this direction. As the authors make clear it is the idiocy of the DUP not nationalism that has brought unionism to this position. It was clear when they elected Poots they were intent on going nowhere and put in place a leader who would take them there. Donaldson has added nothing to the charade.
ReplyDeleteBilly would serve the community he is passionate about much better were he to stand against the war mongers and make it clear that society is not better off because of the war inflicted deaths. There was nothing achieved that could not have been achieved sans the political violence.
@ AM
ReplyDeleteHutchinson is a frustrating character. There is a scenario where him and Doug Beattie put forth a positive manifesto for the union, which reassures nationalists of their stake and opportunities in that society, and where Hutchinson in particular loudly states that the targeting of the nationalist community by loyalists must be over.
I think many in the CNR community could be swayed to remain with the status quo (the union) if there was a realistic promise that things would get better for them. I am one of those members of the CNR community - I have no ideological attachment to a United Ireland. My opposition to the union is a direct result of loyalist bullying tactics and unionist political mismanagement. I am not alone.
Unionism is racing to the extremes, and it is depressing to watch. One only has to think of the shock endured by the man forced to drive his van to Holy Cross, thinking it contained a bomb, to understand that those with the least in loyalist communities will be primary victims in any renewed conflicted.
"There was nothing achieved that could not have been achieved sans the political violence."
One thing achieved, perhaps I'm being overly optimistic, is making a return to large-scale violent conflict less likely. People want to go into the city centre and not risk losing life nor limb. People don't want to worry about falling prey to sectarian murderers, of either ilk. Now, more than ever, the everyday man and woman on the street is very far removed from the stated causes of political strife.
Surely loyalist paramilitaries can see that?
If that was the one achievement, it was a big price to pay for it. Had it not have been paid to begin with, there would be no large scale violent conflict to consider returning to.
DeleteBilly Hutchinson should grasp the nettle and acknowledge that, like the rest of us, he had no right to be killing anybody. If he wants to offer mitigation, fine, but not justification. The best mitigation he can offer is a determination that his past footsteps will not be followed in the future.
Once again Loyalism looks at it's feet instead of playing the ball. This is a good article and one fellow PUL members would do well to let sink in.
ReplyDeleteAnd it's 2022, why the fuck are the duppers still getting votes after leading everyone into this fiasco?
Steve - just the nature of the game. SF have achieved very little and rely on the stench of the DUP to cover their own odour. The two of them have been in on the act together to create a culture of limited accountability opaque government. When the tide went out SF were cute enough to go out with it and point back at how naked the DUP were.
DeleteThis is what politics is: no place for the purist or perfectionist, each of whom in their own way are obstacles to improvement.
I've always had a modicum of respect for Doug Beattie, and I find his recent statements arounds the anti-protocol rallies encouraging.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, there was the incident at Holy Cross, directed against the Irish foreign minister.
Recently, Stephen Nolan, rightly, was challenged by a listener about why Jamie Bryson appeared on his show so frequently. Nolan responded by saying that Bryson was in constant contact with the DUP leadership. Nolan also said that the DUP are in a huff about the story revealed on his show about Jeffrey Donaldson meeting with the UUP, and refuse to appear on the show.
I don't want to overstate the importance of the Nolan show, but this state of affairs perhaps explains the noisiness of the protocol opposition - moderates are silent; the public square is easily filled with extremes.
It's worth also noting that whilst the current situation is worrying, the trouble we have seen is not as bad as various other occasions over the past 20 years.
This quote from Chris McGimpsey from 2005 is insightful:
"Chris McGimpsey, a local businessman and Ulster Unionist representative, admits that the Shankill’s grievances are hard to pin down. “If Peter Hain said to me ‘What six things do you want?’, I don’t know if I could answer him in those terms. It’s all about alienation. There is concession after concession to republicans. A Protestant child in west Belfast is three times more likely to fail the 11-plus than a Catholic.”
The rioting “makes no sense but people see no alternative”."
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/focus-back-to-the-future-x6zkjgb2phl
I think people do not go on the Nolan show because of its tendency to inflame rather than inform.
DeleteNolan is a fool and only accepts callers who bend over. He wont accept any caller who has fact checked facts. He simply cuts them off.
ReplyDelete