Irish nationalist Michelle O’Neill (47), deputy leader of the Sinn Féin party, was inaugurated as the new Prime Minister of Northern Ireland on the 3rd. Northern Ireland, which is located in Ireland but is a British territory, is a place where bloody conflict continues due to the conflict between the ‘pro-Irish faction’, which wants independence from the UK and integration with Ireland, and the ‘pro-British faction’, which wants to remain in the UK.
Sinn Féin also started as a political organization of the Northern Irish Republican Army (IRA), which was designated a ‘terrorist group’ by the UK for its separatist armed struggle. However, Prime Minister O’Neill is considered relatively moderate within the Sinn Fein Party, as he expressed condolences upon the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022 and attended the coronation of King Charles III last year.
According to the BBC, Prime Minister O’Neill said in his acceptance speech that day, “Something that was unimaginable in my grandparents’ or parents’ generation has happened,” and “I will serve everyone equally and become a prime minister for everyone.”
Sinn Féin emerged as the largest party for the first time in the Northern Ireland Assembly election in May 2022, and also secured the right to nominate the Prime Minister. The pro-British political party ‘Democratic Union Party (DUP)’ has refused to form a coalition government led by Sinn Féin, but recently announced that it would join the coalition government. Through this, he was also able to come to power.
Prime Minister O’Neill was born in Fermoy, Northern Ireland in 1977. His father, an IRA member, once served time in prison in the aftermath. A cousin, also an IRA member, was killed by British forces in 1991. However, Prime Minister O’Neill himself is known to have a strong belief that the Belfast Peace Agreement signed between Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom in 1998 must be maintained.
He became a member of the local council in 2007, and also served as Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development and Minister of Health. Since 2018, he has led the Sinn Féin party. Unlike the past, when his focus was on armed struggle, he emphasized life-friendly policies, such as emphasizing price stability, and gained even support from the younger generation. He gave birth to his first daughter at age 16 and became a grandmother last year.
US President Joe Biden, who has Irish ancestry, also welcomed Prime Minister O’Neill’s inauguration. On the 3rd, he released a statement saying, “I welcome the formation of a Northern Ireland administration.”
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Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.