Honouring 25 Years of the Good Friday Agreement

25 years ago today, the impossible became true.

The Good Friday Agreement was signed, ending three decades of violent conflict in Northern Ireland.

The Good Friday Agreement has a special place in history, as well as in our ethos here at Plan for Peace. It’s a reminder that peace is possible if we invest in the delicate work of building infrastructures of peace at every level of society so that different stakeholders feel included and heard.

“When I talk to people about the work we are doing at Plan for Peace, some respond by suggesting that war is inevitable and that the forces that drive violent conflict are insurmountable,” says our CEO Madeleine Mosse.

“The Good Friday Agreement is an example of peacebuilding in action. Ending violent conflict isn’t impossible, it just takes careful work and skill. And as Jo Berry demonstrates here, the courage and willingness to dig deep into our shared humanity. On the anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement I think of all the people who lost their lives in the Troubles, and celebrate the tireless work of the peacebuilding community in Northern Ireland.”

👇 Listen to this powerful take on the 25th anniversary of the GFA from Jo Berry, our Community and Engagement Lead, whose father was killed in an IRA bombing. She speaks about the ardous and necessary emotional work of rehumanising “the other side” that comes after violent conflict ends. In her own journey, she ended up befriending Patrick Magee, the man who killed her father, and the pair now take their message of peace across the UK. Still, there is work to be done, she says.