From the DW:
"The Irish border — what you need to know"
These days, the Northern Ireland peace process and free trade mean you'd hardly notice that there was a border separating two parts of the Emerald Isle. Brexit could make things complicated once again. Based on their past meetings, Monday's Brexit talks between EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and UK Prime Minister Theresa May could provide further fireworks. Among the many contentious issues, the question of how to resolve the Irish border dispute could be a major stumbling block. But what makes the issue of the Irish frontier so sensitive?
Ireland splits into two:
The British response to the Irish political and armed struggle for independence around the time of World War I was a succession of Home Rule Acts that sought to allow devolution, rather than independence, on the island of Ireland. Initially, one institution was envisaged in Dublin, but unionists in the north would have been unhappy at the prospect of being ruled from such a perceived hotbed of Irish nationalism. Instead, two home rule parliaments were set up, Northern Ireland and the short-lived entity known as Southern Ireland. After a three-year Irish War of Independence, Britain admitted defeat. Southern Ireland was superseded in 1922 by the Irish Free State, as enshrined in the Anglo-Irish Treaty. This state would no longer be part of the United Kingdom.
Carved for convenience:
Unionists were in the minority in most of Ireland, but not in the mainly Protestant Antrim, Down, Armagh and Derry/Londonderry — all part of the northern ancient province of Ulster. These four were not considered enough to form a viable area, and so Tyrone and Fermanagh were also incorporated into Northern Ireland. Three of Ulster's other counties — Donegal, Monaghan and Cavan — became part of Southern Ireland. All of these considerations meant that physical practicality was never at the forefront of the minds of those who drew the borders. The border often cut through communities, a subject that was the theme of comic writer Spike Milligan's novel Puckoon, which chronicled the troubles of a fictional village cut in half by the border.
Barely noticeable boundary:
The Common Travel Area, established in 1923, has long ensured that there was no need to show passports at the border — a sort of early Schengen arrangement [a European agreement signed in 1985 that largely does away with internal border checks - the ed.] that was briefly suspended during World War II. It's a very busy border. Because of the erratic nature of the boundary, regular journeys in border areas often cross the frontier several times. In addition, the northern county of Donegal is separated from the rest of the Irish Republic by a thin territorial isthmus of land. This means it's often far quicker to reach other parts of the Republic from there by crossing into Northern Ireland. There are some 300 major and minor crossings along the 499-kilometer (310-mile) border which, unlike most other borders in the EU, is not officially marked by either government although there may be "Welcome to" signs. This makes identifying the border difficult for strangers who are unacquainted with landmarks known to locals as the crossing point.
Time of Troubles:
The border wasn't always so understated. With an escalation in violence in Northern Ireland in 1969, British troops were sent to the province. The border was heavily securitized to prevent the smuggling of weapons from arms dumps in the Irish Republic. In order to control traffic entering or leaving the province at main checkpoints, the British Army blocked off smaller access points. Roads were cratered and bridges were blown up. For some communities, the inconvenience of this was crippling, helping to fuel nationalist resentment. A study by Belfast's Queen's University, "Bordering on Brexit," asked people what they felt at the time. "I grew up a stone's throw from the border," one woman, from the Fermanagh and Omagh district on the northern side, told the survey. "I remember 22-mile detours to go 4 miles up the road. I remember the militarization of border crossings and the closure of roads. I remember how few services we had and how difficult it was for people to survive. We were completely terrorized by the British military."
Anything to declare:
Despite the Common Travel Area, movement of goods across the border was not unfettered and customs points were established. Initially, the checkpoints were only intended to regulate the movement of certain goods. However, the Anglo-Irish Trade War of the 1930s saw the introduction of tariffs on agricultural products and eventually coal and steel. Both governments enacted policies that were damaging to their border communities. Smuggling and black market trading picked up, exacerbated by World War II, in which Ireland remained neutral. The trade war ended in 1936 but there were still customs checks even after both nations joined the European Economic Community (at the same time in 1973). They only ended with the opening of the European Single Market in January 1993. Given that Britain appears set to leave the EU Customs Union and Single Market at some future point, the issue of customs checks looks likely to be revisited once again.
^ This gives a good history of how the British misunderstood modern-day Ireland throughout it's history (especially when they divided it randomly in 1922, when they sent in a non-neutral Military to stop the Catholics from asking for basic Civil Rights in 1969 and today with Brexit) and how these continued misunderstandings in London are going to have a major impact on: the different parties involved: Northern Ireland, Ireland, Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) and the EU. The main difference between the many British mistakes in Ireland and Northern Ireland during the 20th Century - when the Brits could do and did do whatever they wanted to - nowadays the British can not since they are in a weaker political state and Ireland and the EU can make things more difficult for the UK in terms of Brexit by going after the countless other areas that they all have to agree on before the UK can leave. Whereas The Troubles were allowed to continued for 30 years because it really only affected the people within Northern Ireland (I know there were several attacks done in Great Britain, Ireland and parts of Europe, but they were few and far-between) these Brexit political agreements will affect every man, woman and child in: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and in most aspects of their daily lives so they have more meaning and sway and the EU knows and understands that. ^
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