“Comparisons between conflict and peace in South Africa and Northern Ireland—although
reinforced by a number of important links—are often misplaced. For one, the conflict in
its current form in Northern Ireland is likely to be more protracted than that in South
Africa. Here, future challenges are less likely to be those of ensuring parties remain
committed to a fragile peace settlement over a long period of time, but have now turned
to the substantial challenges of development and reconstruction. In the longer term
then, any parallels between the two societies are likely to be diverging ones.”
