Overview
The Good Friday Agreement, also known as the Belfast Agreement, is a pair of agreements signed on April 10, 1998, that established a framework for peace and government in Northern Ireland.
A major development in the Northern Ireland peace process, it helped end most of the violence associated with the Troubles. The settlement consisted of an agreement among most Northern Irish political parties and a separate agreement between the British and Irish governments.
The agreement established power-sharing government in Northern Ireland and affirmed that its constitutional status could change only with the consent of its people. It also addressed civil rights, policing, paramilitary disarmament, prisoner releases and relations among Northern Ireland, Ireland and the United Kingdom.
Voters in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland approved the agreement in separate referendums on May 22, 1998. The British-Irish Agreement formally took effect on December 2, 1999.
Quick Facts
- Date
- April 10, 1998
Community
Belfast, Northern Ireland, Travel Guide
The city played a central role in the political and social conflicts of the late 20th century, an era known as The Troubles, leaving a…
