Brian Dougherty says constitutional debate must be based on ‘premise of generosity’ as ‘climate very dangerous’

Mr. Dougherty said: “We need to manage expectations. The impact of this debate in the current civic climate is very dangerous because young Protestants have to realign their sense of identity and sovereignty and move us back from some of the progress and peace-building we have done.

“As important if not more important is managing the expectations of young nationalists within Northern Ireland. What happens when they finally realise that after all of the questions we are asking and all of the practicalities of a united Ireland, it will not happen in their lifetime and how will that then impacts on civic stability in Northern Ireland?”

Mr. Dougherty made the observation at the Seanad during a discussion on the Constitutional Future of the Island of Ireland.

Providing evidence he appraised senators of the unique position of unionism in the north west.

"Derry people like to whinge. I do not particularly want to go down that line today, but there is important context to this discussion. We can say the same of our colleagues in the north west, in Donegal.

“Unionism in Derry, or Londonderry, is different from unionism in Ballymena, Belfast and everywhere else. Derry is peripheral to Belfast, Dublin and London.

“If people are unionists in that city, they are even more peripheral. Mr. Moore [Derek Moore of the North West Cultural Partnership who also briefed senators] referred to the Protestant exodus, particularly after Bloody Sunday, how that divided the city and how it made unionists feel even more isolated.

“Much of our thinking on the constituent base we work with reflects on how our position within Derry, as it is, may then change within a broader united Ireland. Is there is evidence there to say we would feel any more or less isolated or marginalised?” asked Mr. Dougherty.

The long-standing community worker told members of the Oireachtas how Derry had led the way in resolving disputes over parading 25 years ago.

“In the mid-1990s, there was a lot of very positive, progressive stuff that happened within the city...

“There was a negotiation around parading, which created the groundwork for much of the stuff that Mr. Moore's and my organisation has done since. However, unfortunately, that was negotiation out of necessity.

“It was around Protestants trying to find their place within a city and what might happen if they did not negotiate. We have to be very careful in this debate that we do not fall down that same line. The whole constitutional conversation needs to be based on the premise of generosity,” he said.

A high point, he said, was the 2013 Fleadh.

“At the Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann, five loyalist bands played on gig rigs to a point where Martin McGuinness himself talked about that need for mutual respect and generosity to be maintained. At that point, we had got to a stage where parading, for example, was both promoted and celebrated. However, somehow, in the past ten years since that, we have gone back down to that simply tolerance level,” he said.

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