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President Bill Clinton said today that \u201cinclusive tribalism\u201d, as witnessed in Northern Ireland and in other parts of the world, is key to creating a greater global peace.<\/p>\nPresident Bill Clinton said today that \u201cinclusive tribalism\u201d, as witnessed in Northern Ireland and in other parts of the world, is key to creating a greater global peace.<\/p>\n
The 42nd US President was speaking to a packed hall at Dublin Castle for Concern Worldwide\u2019s 50th anniversary conference, \u2018Resurgence of Humanity: Breaking the Cycle of Conflict, Hunger and Human Suffering.\u2019<\/p>\n
President Clinton, who said he had witnessed Concern\u2019s work in Haiti and on the African continent, said: \u201cThe Irish peace process and the work of Concern is rooted in both our common humanity and our notion of what I would call inclusive tribalism. We are all tribal.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur common humanity is the most important thing. In an interdependent world, we have to decide which is more important, our differences or our common humanity. We must expand the definition of \u2018us\u2019 and shrink the definition of \u2018them.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you think about Concern, it\u2019s basically Ireland at its best, even though it is increasingly global<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s about inclusive tribalism, inclusive economics, inclusive social policy, inclusive politics.<\/p>\n
\u201cAverage people who feel stuck in their own lives don\u2019t have enough space left to be generous to others. It\u2019s not a good time. There is literally no final defeats or victory. This is a demon you have to battle your whole life.\u201d<\/p>\n
President Clinton praised Ireland for its overseas humanitarian work and the multicultural diversity of its capital, Dublin.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cIreland is the only country in the world that every single day since the United Nations was formed after World War Two, has had a citizen in some country trying to help people who needed help because they were poor or repressed because of conflict. No other country in the world can say that.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is something in your DNA that makes you feel connected to the rest of the world.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou go down a street in Dublin and it\u2019s so diverse that you may as well be in a street in Manhattan. And yet you don\u2019t feel anything like the sense of uncertainty you see in some parts of America or some places [in the UK] where they voted for Brexit.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the end, like the songs you sing and the things you live should not be defined by the color of your skin, the creed you worship or anything else.\u201d<\/p>\n
Concluding the conference, Concern\u2019s Chief Executive, Dominic MacSorley, thanked all attendees and said: \u201cIn order to see real change there must be a fundamental shift of thought and action.<\/p>\n
\u201cTwenty million people facing starvation is not fake news, it is an obscenity, especially because it doesn\u2019t have to be the way. We have the knowledge, the technology and the early warning systems to prevent it happening.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the status quo is wrong, it is always right to be radical. I don\u2019t just mean our voice. Denunciation is easy, but radical in our way of thinking, our ambition and our action.<\/p>\n
“If we are to see an end to hunger we must challenge the inevitability of violence, and deliver on the promises to those most in need of a safer, fairer world.\u201d<\/p>\n
He added that Ireland was in a prime position to mobilize action for a much-needed international resurge of humanity: \u201cOne that prioritizes diplomacy over militarization, the hard graft of negotiation over dropping bombs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Clinton went on to urge politicians in Northern Ireland to \u201ctake a breath\u201d and keep working towards restoring the devolved power sharing Assembly.<\/p>\n
The former US president also said that the ongoing negotiations around Brexit were hampering the restoration of Stormont, as politicians do not know what the terms of the withdrawal agreement will be.<\/p>\n
Northern Ireland has been without a Government for 20 months following a row over a failed green energy scheme.<\/p>\n
There have been a number of failed negotiations between Sinn Fein and the Democratic Unionists, however fresh talks are due within weeks.<\/p>\n
Addressing the audience at Dublin Castle on Friday, Mr Clinton said: \u201cIf you were a Northern Irish politician you probably wouldn\u2019t want to go into Government either if you didn\u2019t know the details of Brexit and how it will affect Northern Ireland or how it will affect the relationship between Northern Ireland and the Republic, because how would you know what the terms of the agreement would be.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are still cranes up in Belfast and nobody wants to go back to the bad old days, so I think everybody should take a deep breath, and keep working.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s almost impossible to solve real problems if there is no basic trust.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf people are smart enough to realize that you didn\u2019t have to have a document that would solve every problem, that would permit some solutions to emerge.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe most important thing to me is that the Irish peace process and the work of Concern is rooted in both our common humanity and our notion of what I call inclusive tribalism.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Clinton first visited Northern Ireland in 1995, when he switched on the Christmas tree lights at Belfast City Hall, a little over a year after the paramilitary ceasefires, and when the peace process was still in its fledgling stages.<\/p>\n
He added that Brexit has created uncertainty on the island of Ireland and how it will impact on the ongoing process of peace and reconciliation.<\/p>\n
\u201cTherefore it is a good time to be reminded of first principles and I think the example of the GFA is as good a place to start as any,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
He said that what made the peace process work in Northern Ireland was people willing to compromise, as well as the persistence of ordinary people and the \u201ccourage of local leadership\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, the understanding of what the world should become starts with the Good Friday Accord and ends with the movie, the Black Panther.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Good Friday Accord worked first because it came from the bottom \u2013 people desperately wanted peace and the citizens weren\u2019t just expressing their wants, they were doing things.<\/p>\n
\u201cI still don\u2019t think the women\u2019s groups involved in the Northern Ireland peace process have got the credit they deserve.\u201d<\/p>\n
Speaking about the legacy of Concern, he described it as Ireland at its best.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s about inclusive tribalism, inclusive economics, inclusive social policy and personal empowerment.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t expect a pat on the back every day, you have to do it because it\u2019s right, because you know it\u2019s right and understand what you are dealing with.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Clinton was presented with a Dublin Gaelic football jersey by footballer Michael Darragh Macauley following their All-Ireland win on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Details about Concern Worldwide\u2019s 50th Anniversary Conference, \u2018Resurgence of Humanity: Breaking the Cycle of Conflict, Hunger and Human Suffering,\u2019 are available here<\/a><\/p>\n Since its foundation in 1968, Concern has gone on to work in over 50 countries, responding to major emergencies as well as implementing long term development programs.<\/p>\n Today, with more than 3,900 staff of 50 nationalities, Concern operates in 26 of the world\u2019s poorest countries, helping people to achieve major and long-lasting improvements in their lives.<\/p>\nShare this:<\/h3>