Word: northerners
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Three decades of sectarian conflict faded, at least temporarily, when Protestant Democratic Unionist Party head Ian Paisley, 81, became Northern Ireland's First Minister and Sinn Fein leader Martin McGuinness, 56, became Deputy First Minister. The historic union of Northern Ireland's major Protestant and Catholic parties prompted praise from Paisley for the "new beginning" and an optimistic declaration from Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams: "We are going to succeed...
...high unemployment and we've created two and a half million jobs. We had public services that people thought were incapable of reform, that were neglected and underinvested, and we've doubled the investment as a result of economic growth. They forget also that he's brought peace to Northern Ireland, that we've led the world in debt relief, in tackling HIV/AIDS and poverty in the poorest countries and, at the same time, while he didn't go out to achieve this, we've been at the forefront of helping international endeavors in a whole range of different continents...
...flexibility: When Unionists dumped Nobel Peace Prize winner David Trimble as their leader, Blair adapted the process to bring in Paisley. He also employed "creative ambiguity" to get over the toughest hurdles by letting each side believe they were scoring points. Even today the central question of whether Northern Ireland will ultimately be British or Irish remains unresolved, but the matter will be settled in politics...
...Perhaps more than anything, though, Blair brought patience and determination. Even when more pressing issues of global importance put demands on him, he still devoted extraordinary amounts of time to Northern Ireland - even though it offered him almost no political benefits...
...Blair's hard work usually bought time, however, and that was crucial. The more people in Northern Ireland became accustomed to a peaceful atmosphere, and the improving economy that came with it, the harder it became to contemplate a return to violence. A decade after he launched the process, Blair - and the IRA leadership - can contemplate retiring in peace...