Paving the Path to Peace: Civil Society and the Northern Ireland Peace Process

This book shifts the focus to the role played by civil society groups which sought to mobilise for peace and reconciliation in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It begins with an analysis of peace activism in Northern Ireland during the earlier decades of violence and is followed by an in-depth case study of the Peace Train Organisation, which was set up to counter paramilitary attacks on the trainline between Dublin and Belfast. The final part assembles contributions from fifteen key protagonists in civil society organisations, reflecting upon their work and lives.

The authors seek to redress the balance in the historiography and popular perception of this critical period, arguing that civil society groups helped shift the social and political climate surrounding the conflict. The book breaks new ground in the memorialisation of the peace process, highlighting the neglected role of transnational civil society peace activism.

Here we make available Part 2 - Case Study: The Peace Train only. For the full book, please see Paving the Path to Peace Civil Society and the Northern Ireland Peace Process (Peter Lang, 2025): https://doi.org/10.3726/b21303.