Choyaa – Page 2 – Slugger O'Toole

Orange Institution and Politics…

Choyaa on June 22, 2021, 10:21 am

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Much has been said in recent times about how Unionist voices are not being heard, however, when Reverend Mervyn Gibson appeared on ‘Talkback’ recently it was one of those times when I wished this sentiment was true. Reverend Gibson was interviewed in his capacity as the Grand Secretary of the Orange Institution; however, his appearance was at times a mix of poor representation, misrepresentation and it also added further confusion as to what the Orange Institution stands for. It also …

Fragmented Unionism and Broad Churches…

Choyaa on May 29, 2021, 10:10 am

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It has long been the formula within political Unionism that if a Unionist party is both united and able to accommodate a broad church of Unionist opinion then it will be the dominant Unionist party. In many ways this formula has never been attained within political Unionism, however, in recent times it’s becoming more difficult to find a party that can solve this formula, and never has this been more apparent than now. However, is the formula relevant in 2021 …

Has the UUP Past the Point of Rescue?

Choyaa on May 9, 2021, 8:32 am

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With the DUP being in a highly distressed state, this should be an opportune time for the UUP to step up and assume the leadership of Unionism. However, the UUP at present is not fit for purpose and few are considering them as a viable option at the forthcoming election. Rather than being contenders to the throne, the UUP is in reality simply fighting for its political survival. Some UUP members have contacted me to query why I never discuss …

Who can save the DUP?

Choyaa on April 28, 2021, 7:38 am

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In December of 2016 when Jonathan Bell revealed to Stephen Nolan the extent of the Renewable Heating Incentive (RHI) scandal, Arlene Foster’s tenure as leader of the DUP was over. This was a sliding doors moment for the DUP, Unionism, and Northern Ireland as a whole, by remaining in charge Arlene Foster has undoubtedly damaged all three entities when this scenario was avoidable had she resigned at the time. This week a significant number of DUP elected representatives including over …

Unionism in a tailspin is bad for Unionism but it’s bad for everyone in Northern Ireland too…

Choyaa on April 9, 2021, 8:18 am

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For some time now I have been voicing grave concerns about the direction in which Unionism is travelling in and indeed the underlying problems that have hamstrung it, however, over the last week we have seen Unionism and Loyalism in a tailspin, and as both groupings begin to lose control, pockets of violence have broken out across Northern Ireland. The core issues that have stymied Unionism at present are as follows: – Leadership vacuum – Lacking a vision – Incompetence …

Unionism Playing Senior Hurling?

Choyaa on April 1, 2021, 12:01 pm

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For many in the Nationalist community, the ‘United Ireland’ debate broadcast on RTE and hosted by Claire Byrne was highly significant as it represented the first such debate on mainstream Irish media. Following the debate, I was sent a short message from a Nationalist friend that went, “Unionism is now playing senior hurling and you’ve lost the first match”. My last article for Slugger outlining why I felt it was an apt time for Unionism to be confident and call …

Unionism needs to step out from the shadows on the Unity referendum question…

Choyaa on February 28, 2021, 10:14 am

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It’s difficult to avoid the reality that discussions about a referendum on the constitutional position of Northern Ireland are gaining momentum. For better or for worse it has become part of our daily lexicon in which every problem within Northern Ireland that arises is a result of partition which can easily be rectified if only the island was united. It also means that every mistake Unionism makes (and there are innumerable) make the demands for a referendum louder. The conversations …

Unionism Fighting a Border Poll…

Choyaa on January 17, 2021, 9:06 am

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There are two fixed rules within Unionism – (1) you do not talk about a ‘Border Referendum’ and (2) you do not talk about a ‘Border Referendum’. However, today I will break that cardinal rule and discuss how Unionism approaches such a referendum and what we can learn from the two recent big referendums, namely ‘Scottish Independence’ and ‘Brexit’. It’s difficult to hide that calls for a ‘Border Referendum’ have been growing in recent years. We may not be quite …

Unionism’s Year-End Review…

Choyaa on December 13, 2020, 8:58 am

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During a year in which a global pandemic has eclipsed all other matters in Northern Ireland, Unionism still managed to have an extremely troubled 365 days which has left it in a damaged and weakened position. As it is the time of year for year-end reviews, I thought it would be interesting to take a look at how Unionism has performed in 2020. The major talking point is the Northern Ireland Protocol which has come about as a result of …

Unionisms Difficulty Reaching Out…

Choyaa on October 18, 2020, 7:00 pm

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When discussing Unionism, a characteristic often cited is the difficult relationship it has with anyone from outside of its ideology. However, it would be equally true to state that Unionism has a difficult relationship with itself, both its internal and external relationships are a problem. In this article, I wanted to focus on Unionist outreach in terms of those seeking to better understand Unionism and also how Unionism projects itself onto others. Nobody Understands Us Unionism is unhelpfully stereotyped by …

Some thoughts on leadership within Unionism…

Choyaa on September 13, 2020, 9:39 am

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When talking about Unionism in Northern Ireland, one of the most frequent issues brought up is leadership. Looking at Sinn Fein, the SDLP, and Alliance, there is an abundance of effective leadership on display with more in reserve if the need arises. Unionism, by contrast, is not experiencing similar fortunes, and this has become an issue. Never before has leadership within Unionism been so problematic, especially during a time that could eventually define Northern Ireland. With a massive appetite for …

There’s no Twelfth, so no parades or bonfires are required…

Choyaa on July 4, 2020, 4:08 pm

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As a starting point, I am fully aware of the irony, I’m an Orangeman, penning an article outlining my opposition to any type of parade or bonfire over the Twelfth weekend this year. Like Unionism, Orangeism (bands, lodges, and supporters) doesn’t do long term planning, so when the leadership of the Loyal Orange Institution (LOI) decided to cancel this year’s Twelfth celebrations back in March, it was an unexpected and decisive move. The Institution made a long terms decision (well …

If Unionism is to maintain Northern Ireland’s membership of the UK then it must change and evolve – otherwise, it will become a footnote in a forgotten story…

Choyaa on June 28, 2020, 7:10 am

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There is an old joke within Orange circles that goes, if you put 10 Orangemen into a room for 3 hours and task them with putting together a strategy on their lodge’s ambition for the next 10 years, the outcome would be – 15 completely different and contradicting ideas that all must be implemented. The results being 3 people leaving the Orange for good (2 indicating it’s gone soft, 1 citing it’s got too extreme), 3 leave to set up …

Unionism needs a Reformation of its own, one that turns it into a movement that is fit for the modern era…

Choyaa on May 31, 2020, 7:53 pm

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I woke up early on the 9th of June 2017 to tune into the election coverage and see how the new UK government was shaping up. All of the Northern Ireland seats had been decided before I had retired the night before and it had been a reasonably good night for Unionism taking 11 of 18 seats, with the DUP capturing 10 of them. However, when I tuned into the election coverage, I was alarmed to see the DUP included within …

What happened to the Polish people under Russian Occupation?

Choyaa on May 9, 2020, 11:14 am

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“History is written by the victors” is a well known and often accurate statement, however, for me it was never truer than when examining Russia’s role in World War II (WWII). With VE day (Victory in Europe) having now just passed, it was notable that many people highlighted the important role Russia played in bringing about freedom in Europe by helping to defeat Nazi tyranny. Whilst there is absolutely no doubt that Russia played a huge role in defeating Nazism, …

The Loyal Orange Institution may not be on parade this year, but there is still an important role for us to play in society at large…

Choyaa on April 8, 2020, 7:00 am

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As April arrives to borrow a phrase that’s popular now, the Loyal Orange Institution (LOI) would be ramping up its efforts in preparation for the Twelfth. This year however, the 2020 Twelfth will not go ahead. As things stand and if we are lucky the UK and ROI will hopefully be emerging from the epidemic in July with the lockdown being slowly released, it would be entirely irresponsible to have 17 large scale Twelfth demonstrations across Northern Ireland and an …

What sort of a society does that make us if we feel certain lives are more valuable than others?

Choyaa on April 6, 2020, 6:33 pm

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I have temporarily sidelined two articles I have penned for Slugger to instead discuss the Covid-19 epidemic and how it questions our morality and values. I have always been hugely passionate about history and I sometimes wonder how I would have reacted to wrongdoings of the past if I was in that situation. The persecution of Jews at the hands of the Nazis, the discrimination that many black people faced (unfortunately some still do) and societies treatment of minorities including …

The Orange needs to go back to basics and look at what it stands for in 2020 and beyond…

Choyaa on February 1, 2020, 7:50 pm

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There is something worryingly out of sync with the Loyal Orange Intuition when over three weeks after the “New Decade, New Approach” deal is agreed upon by politicians which brought about the immediate restoration of Stormont, senior delegates of the Institution meet to discuss the deal. The outworking of such a discussion was always going to be predictable, one might even say boring, however, the actions of the Orange have reinforced their status as being almost irrelevant and certainly not …

The Orange Order’s Complex Relationship With The Irish Language…

Choyaa on January 12, 2020, 8:33 am

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In an ever-changing world there are now few constants and certainties, however, in Northern Ireland some remain including the fact that Unionism will find itself on the wrong side of a debate and be forced into a massive climb-down. The second certainty is that a spokesman (it’s always a man) for the Loyal Orange Institution will awkwardly enter the political arena with an ill-informed and often inaccurate intervention which will usually oppose whatever is being proposed. Unfortunately, as both a …

As Unionism across Northern Ireland licks its collective wounds, what next?

Choyaa on December 17, 2019, 7:55 pm

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As Unionism across Northern Ireland licks its collective wounds after a devastating Westminster election, I wanted to focus on two crucial battlegrounds where political Unionism acted in an unacceptable manner, namely North Belfast and Fermanagh and South Tyrone (FST). Both battles were on paper, good old-fashioned knockdown and drag-out fights involving a single Unionist candidate against the might of the old foe – Sinn Fein. Unionism approached both campaigns in a very different manner but the outcome was the same …