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Segregation in Northern Ireland is a long-running issue in the political and social history of the province. It often been regarded as both a cause and effect of The Troubles between the Roman Catholic and Protestant populations of Northern Ireland.

A combination of political, religious and social differences plus the threat of intercommunal tensions and violence has led to widespread self-segregation of the two communities. Catholics and Protestants lead largely separate lives in a situation that some have dubbed "self-imposed apartheid".

Education

Education in Northern Ireland is heavily segregated. Most state schools in Northern Ireland are predominantly Protestant, while the majority of Catholic children attend schools maintained by the Catholic Church. In all, 90 per cent of children in Northern Ireland still go to separate faith schools. The consequence is, as one commentator has put it, that "the overwhelming majority of Ulster's children can go from four to 18 without having a serious conversation with a member of a rival creed." However, the Integrated Education movement has sought to reverse this trend by establishing non-denominational schools such as the Portadown Integrated Primary.

Employment

Historically, employment in Northern Ireland was highly segregated, with Protestants holding the majority of higher-status jobs (particularly in government, law enforcement and skilled trades such as engineering), and Catholics being more likely to be unskilled or unemployed. These trends are still apparent, though to a lesser extent than in the past. The British government has introduced numerous laws and regulations since the mid-1990s to prohibit discrimination on religious grounds, with the Fair Employment Commission (originally the Fair Employment Agency) exercising statutory powers to investigate allegations of discriminatory practices in Northern Ireland business and organisations. (See also Religious discrimination in Northern Ireland.)

Housing

Public housing is overwhelmingly segregated between the two communities. Intercommunal tensions between the two communities have forced substantial numbers of people to move from mixed areas into areas inhabited exclusively by one denomination, thus increasing the degree of polarisation and segregation. The extent of self-segregation grew very rapidly with the outbreak of the Troubles. In 1969, 69 per cent of Protestants and 56 per cent of Catholics lived in streets where they were in their own majority; as the result of large-scale flight from mixed areas between 1969 and 1971 following outbreaks of violence, the respective proportions had by 1972 increased to 99 per cent of Protestants and 75 per cent of Catholics. It was estimated in 2004 that 92.5% of public housing in Northern Ireland was divided along religious lines, with the figure rising to 98% in Belfast. Self-segregation is a continuing process, despite the Northern Ireland peace process. It was estimated in 2005 more than 1,400 people a year were being forced to move as a consequence of intimidation.

In response to intercommunal violence, the British Army constructed a number of high walls euphemistically called "peace lines" to separate rival neighbourhoods. These have multiplied over the years and now number forty seperate barriers, mostly located in Belfast. Despite the moves towards peace between Northern Ireland's political parties and most of its paramilitary groups, the construction of "peace lines" has actually increased during the ongoing peace process; the number of "peace lines" doubled in the ten years between 1995 and 2005.}}

The effective segregation of the two communities has a significant impact on the provision of local services in "interface areas" where sectarian neighbourhoods adjoin. Surveys of 9,000 people in such areas found that 75% refused to use the closest facilities because of location, while 82% routinely travelled to "safer" areas to access facilities even if the journey time was longer. 60% refused to shop in areas dominated by the other community, with many fearing ostracism by their own community if they violated an unofficial de facto boycott of their sectarian opposite numbers.

Intermarriage

In contrast with both the Republic of Ireland and most parts of the UK mainland, where intermarriage between Protestants and Catholics is common, intermarriage in Northern Ireland is rare. Only 5% of marriages cross community divides.

References

1. ^ "Self-imposed Apartheid", by Mary O'Hara, published in The Guardian on Wednesday April 14, 2004. Accessed on Sunday, July 22nd, 2007. Cite error: The named reference "SelfImposed" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
2. Lord Baker of Dorking, Daily Hansard, 18 July 2006 : Column 1189 www.parliament.uk, retrieved 22 July 2007
3. "Stop this Drift into Educational Apartheid", by Nick Cohen. Published in The Guardian on Sunday May 13, 2007. Accessed on July 22nd, 2007.
4. "Northern Ireland," Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2007
5. Frank Wright, Northern Ireland: A Comparative Analysis, p. 205. Rowman & Littlefield, 1988. ISBN 0717114287
6. Neil Jarman, Institute for Conflict Research, March 2005 http://www.serve.com/pfc/misc/violence.pdf
7. ^ New Statesman, 28 November 2005, newstatesman.com retrieved 22 July 2007
8. Edward Moxon-Browne, 1991, "National Identity in Northern Ireland", in Peter Stringer and Gillian Robinson (eds.), 1991, Social Attitudes in Northern Ireland: The First Report, Blackstaff Press: Belfast

• Northern Ireland stubs
• Politics of Northern Ireland