The role of planning in shifting from conflict management to conflict resolution : a case study of Belfast, Northern Ireland

The violent history shared between Catholic and Protestant ethnic/religious groups in Northern Ireland has deteriorated the trust between both communities and public institutions. This conflict is most acute in Belfast, Northern Ireland's urban center, where 'peace lines' have been constructed to divide the two conflicting ethnic/religious groups. Planning agencies have struggled having to plan around the confines of conflict. These measures have resulted in managing conflict, and as a result it has been difficult for these agencies to resolve long term planning problems. In addition, planning agencies have relied on technical analysis and in doing so have inadvertently ignored deeper social issues. This is exhibited in plans and polices thus far that have concentrated on technical analysis in decision making. The organizational problem is that Northern Ireland is notably different from the rest of the U.K., and therefore traditional planning practice is not enough to ensure successful urban development. By incorporating conflict resolution strategies into the planning process many of the problems can be successfully accomplished. The strategies for conflict resolution that are incorporated into the planning process are defined as consensus building, facilitation, negotiation, mediation, arbitration, and evaluation. Building trust is central throughout the entire planning process. If planners were to incorporate these strategies they would be more successful in achieving goals and objectives. It is designed to start locally and grow nationally, and as it does the issue between national territorial ownership increasingly becomes inconsequential because the residents associate themselves more within a co-existent community. Ideally, Northern Ireland becomes one independent and collective nation based on internal resolution.