What Is Reconciliation and Just What Is It That’s to Be Reconciled?

In the wake of Catherine Connolly being elected as Uachtarán na hÉireann, there’s been a fair bit of discussion regarding ‘reconciliation’ again. As I write this, I also note that it’s mentioned a number of times in Associate Professor at Trinity, David Mitchell’s review piece on Fintan O’Toole and Sam McBride’s book, arguing the pros and cons of Irish unity.

I think there were a few opportunities for reconciliation recently lost too. With the acquittal of Soldier F on the charge of murdering James Wray and William McKinney on Bloody Sunday DUP leader Gavin Robinson could simply have made a comment suggesting that the matter was now closed and that the accused should be left alone to live out his life. Instead, Robinson tweeted ‘there needs to be a better way of dealing with the legacy of the past and to ensure no rewriting of it’ along with the image of a Parachute Regiment symbol. Likewise, with Robinson’s party colleague Carla Lockhart, who posted a similar symbol with the message ‘for those who had tried this man before justice was served, shame on you! Those who named him, putting his life in danger, shame on you!’ Gavin’s tweet was liked over a thousand times and shared almost five hundred times while Carla’s was liked seven thousand six hundred times and shared twelve hundred times.

As someone who has experienced British Army Parachute Regiment brutality at first hand, the prominent DUP MPs’ actions angered me, and I can only imagine what it did to the friends and families of the innocents killed in the various massacres that the Regiment were responsible for. Certainly, in my eyes, they lost any moral credibility they may have had when criticising Sinn Féin for attending IRA commemorations.

But what exactly is ‘reconciliation?’ The blogger’s friend, ChatGPT, tells me that reconciliation is:

[….] the process of restoring friendly relations between people or groups after a conflict or disagreement. It involves acknowledging past wrongs, offering forgiveness, and working toward mutual understanding and trust. Reconciliation is not just about forgetting the past, but about addressing it honestly to build a more positive and cooperative future. It can happen on a personal level between individuals or on a larger scale within communities and nations seeking peace and unity.

So, how are we supposed to practice this vague, abstract notion of ‘reconciliation’? Gavin Robinson and Carla Lockhart presumably have no idea of my existence so how and what do I, as a pretty left Irish unificationist from West Belfast, do to reconcile with people like Robinson and Lockhart and the people who liked and shared their tweets? How is this reconciliation demonstrated, and, just as importantly from my perspective, how and what do people like Robinson, Lockhart, and the people who liked and shared their tweets do to reconcile themselves to people like me? Once again, ChatGPT tells me that:

Reconciliation can be measured and quantified through both qualitative and quantitative indicators that assess changes in relationships, trust, and equality between previously divided groups. Quantitative measures may include surveys on public attitudes, levels of intergroup interaction, participation in joint initiatives, and representation in institutions. Qualitative assessments, such as interviews and community dialogues, help capture perceptions of justice, mutual respect, and emotional healing. Together, these indicators provide a multidimensional picture of progress, showing not only structural improvements but also shifts in social cohesion and collective identity.

What happens if reconciliation is offered and is then rejected as insufficient or insincere? Shouldn’t reconciliation be reciprocal? What if it’s not? What of those who refuse to reconcile? What should be done with them? Is there a limit to reconciling? Is reconciliation a progressive infinite process or is it terminable and constrained by time limits? Are there any international post-conflict models we could follow, or do we construct our own framework? Who establishes and adjudicates on the scope and effectiveness of such things?

The recondite notion of reconciliation is thrown around by some like confetti, but, and particularly in the context that some say there needs to be ‘reconciliation’ before any political or geographical unification can occur, the definition, metric and scope of the process, along with the answers to the questions above, need to be stated.