To other people, Thatcher\u2019s political conduct in Ireland is described as being \u201chugely divisive\u201d. Irish Republican Leader Gerry Adams commented that Thatcher\u2019s Irish policy \u201cfailed miserably and delayed the achievement of peace in 1998.\u201d [Source]<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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He said, \u201cher espousal of old draconian militaristic policies prolonged the war and caused great suffering.\u201d
He added that \u201cShe embraced censorship, collusion and the killing of citizens by covert operations\u2026and refused to recognize the rights of citizens to vote for parties of their choice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
An area of concern about Thatcher\u2019s political activities in Ireland was linked to suppression of the right of citizens to vote for representatives of their choice [Source]<\/a>. This law was rolled out into action after Bobby Sands was elected in Fermanagh and South Tyrone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Guardian also noted that \u201cMargaret Thatcher\u2019s government defended structured political and religious discrimination. This included political vetting in the north, legislated for political censorship and institutionalized, to a greater extent than ever before, collusion between British state forces and unionist death squads\u201d. She oversaw a deal struck by Nelson in South Africa which saw the shipment of AK-47 automatic rifles, pistols, grenades, and RPG rocket launchers in the 80s. Thatcher government’s The Collusion Policy caused an uproar after the death of Pat Finucane<\/a> in February 1989. He was a human rights lawyer. One of the key moments that defined her relationship with Ireland is related to her role during hunger strikes in 1981 by Bobby Sands and other fellow prisoners [Source]<\/a>. The Iron Lady was not moved and 10 prisoners including Sands lost their lives in the strikes, and republicans started hating Thatcher more. Despite opening the path to peace talks which led to the IRA\u2019s first ceasefire in 1994 and the 1998 Good Friday peace accord through the Anglo-Irish agreement, she is criticized for delaying progress because of her hard line against the IRA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cShe didn\u2019t ever seem to be able to realize that when a government starts to act like a paramilitary organization then the paramilitary organization essentially wins,\u201d as noted by Seamus Mallon, a moderate Irish nationalist who served as Northern Ireland\u2019s deputy leader.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Irish Times noted that \u201cThatcher did more for Ireland than other UK leaders\u201d [Source]<\/a>, and explained that \u201cShe was loathed by republicans, disliked by nationalist and distrusted by unionists yet she paved the way for peace by committing her country to the Anglo Irish Agreement of 1985\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sources revealed how Margaret Thatcher contributed to creating government organizations that housed agents responsible for killing citizens. During Thatcher\u2019s reign, in 1982, the Force Research Unit was introduced in the British Army, and it recruited agents that were tasked to eliminate certain citizens. This unit led to the death of loyalist Brian Nelson, a former British soldier, and member of the Ulster Defence Association.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This military hardware had a negative impact on the streets of Northern Ireland and caused a surge in the death rates. About 224 people were killed and many wounded three years later after the shipment of weapons, and this happened while Thatcherism was still active.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was later revealed that \u201cAt every level of his killing, British agents and agencies had a hand. The leader of the UDA group that carried out the killing was a Special Branch agent, as was the man who confessed to being the gunman, and the man who supplied the gun. And, of course, Nelson provided the intelligence\u201d. Thus, showing Thatcher\u2019s hand in committing these acts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She went on to ban broadcasting and defended her stance by saying she is being tough on republicans and terrorism. In her words, she wanted to \u201cdeny terrorists the oxygen of publicity in which they thrive\u201d. For Thatcher, Ireland needed a stern leader as a way of bringing order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n