Author Archives: andypollak

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About andypollak

Irish Times journalist in Belfast and Dublin, 1981-1999. Founding director of Centre for Cross Border Studies, 1999-2013

The Seamus Mallon I knew: a brave and generous Irish chieftain

Posted on Tuesday, 28 January, 2020 by andypollak

My much-admired friend Seamus Mallon was buried yesterday. This was my tribute to him in yesterday’s ‘Belfast Telegraph’. Courage and generosity: those are the two words that come to mind when I think of Seamus Mallon. Courage because for 25 … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Northern Ireland | 4 Comments

Fear of Irish nationalism is now the main obstacle to a united Ireland

Posted on Friday, 3 January, 2020 by andypollak

Fear is the main obstacle to the age-old dream of a peaceful united Ireland becoming a reality: unionists’ fear of Irish nationalism. In the first week of what many nationalists hope will  be a momentous decade, marking major movement towards … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Irish reunification, Northern Ireland, Protestantism, unionism and loyalism | 4 Comments

Are the Unionists in the last chance saloon, or will Alliance come to the rescue?

Posted on Tuesday, 17 December, 2019 by andypollak

I was delighted to see the centre ground, represented by the SDLP and Alliance, doing so well in last week’s British general election in Northern Ireland: the former giving Sinn Fein and the DUP a drubbing in Foyle and South … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Northern Ireland, Protestantism, unionism and loyalism | 1 Comment

Is this the kind of ‘new conversation’ Northern Nationalists want?

Posted on Friday, 15 November, 2019 by andypollak

Earlier this month 1,000 nationalists – although their spokesman claimed they are not nationalists – signed an open letter to the Taoiseach calling on the Irish government to set up a ‘citizens assembly’ to discuss reunification. In an advertisement listing … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Irish reunification, Northern Ireland, Protestantism, unionism and loyalism | 3 Comments

Now they’re going to be on the losing side again, is it time to be nice to the Unionists?

Posted on Thursday, 24 October, 2019 by andypollak

Writing this on 24 October, I forecast that Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal, despite parliamentary delays and perhaps a general election,  will eventually pass through the British parliament (the 30 vote Commons majority for the second reading of the Withdrawal Agreement … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Ireland, Europe and the world, Irish reunification, Northern Ireland, Protestantism, unionism and loyalism, Republic of Ireland | 4 Comments

A pessimistic speech on the 20th anniversary of the Centre for Cross Border Studies

Posted on Friday, 27 September, 2019 by andypollak

The Centre for Cross Border Studies celebrated its 20th anniversary in Dundalk last week with a conference reflecting on the Good Friday Agreement and cross-border cooperation. The importance of the Centre’s work was recognised by the keynote speakers, the three … Continue reading →

Posted in British-Irish relations, Cross-border cooperation, General, Northern Ireland | 2 Comments

Why don’t we have a competition to compose a new national anthem?

Posted on Friday, 13 September, 2019 by andypollak

As a sports fan I find myself singing Amhrán na bhFiann quite a lot at this time of year: whether it is watching soccer or rugby internationals at the Aviva or (less frequently) all-Ireland finals at Croke Park. I belt … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Irish reunification | 4 Comments

Two Irish mistakes as we hurtle towards the Brexit cliff edge

Posted on Wednesday, 21 August, 2019 by andypollak

Readers of this blog will know that I have been a voice in the wilderness when it comes to querying the wisdom of the Irish government’s ‘backstop’ strategy to avoid a hard border on the island following the UK’s exit … Continue reading →

Posted in British-Irish relations, General, Ireland, Europe and the world, Irish reunification, Northern Ireland | 3 Comments

A walk through Ireland’s bloody history in Wicklow’s peaceful mountains

Posted on Wednesday, 31 July, 2019 by andypollak

Last month I went on my annual longish summer walk through the Irish hills and countryside. This year I decided, as a change from my usual cross-border itineraries, to go far away from the North to the deep south-east. I … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Republic of Ireland, The island environment | 8 Comments

A bit more complexity in Northern Ireland: the rise of the ‘Neithers’

Posted on Tuesday, 16 July, 2019 by andypollak

In last month’s blog I was complaining about the simplistic views of many people in the Republic on the complexity of demographic change in Northern Ireland. Too many of them insist on holding to the ill-informed belief that when Northern … Continue reading →

Posted in General, Irish reunification, Northern Ireland | Leave a comment