Over the past 30 years, the national, religious and social conflict in Northern Ireland has claimed the lives of more than 3,500 people. John Hume has always been the clearest and most consistent of Northern Ireland`s political leaders in his work for a peaceful solution. The foundations of the peace agreement signed on Good Friday 1998 reflect the principles he defended. As chairman of the traditionally dominant northern Ireland party, David Trimble has shown great political courage in advocating, in a critical phase of the process, the solutions that led to the Belfast Peace Agreement (Good Friday). In 1977, the Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the 1976 Peace Prize to Mairead Corrigan and Betty Williams, the peace people of Northern Ireland. Since then, it has been said that the time has not come. Once again, we heard that our decision might be premature, that a lasting peace was still a long way off. The argument is easy to understand and nothing could have pleased us more than to be able to say today that peace was safe. But in the context of these awards, as for others, the committee kept in mind Nobel`s clear intention that the award reflect current issues and advance the cause of peace. We know that a peace process can be long and difficult and can often be backwards. In these processes, it is important to focus on the progress that may have been made against adversity and on those who are brave enough to stand for a good cause. Reversing does not mean that their efforts have been in vain.

They may have laid the groundwork for a new effort at the next opportunity. That`s how you build peace, slowly, like drilling hardwood, as Max Weber said. Work on the path is as important as the final touch. And if you draw attention to the current phase, you may be able to contribute to further progress. In 1998, John Hume was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to bring peace to Northern Ireland after decades of conflict. “The solution will not be found on the basis of a victory for both, but on the basis of an agreement and a partnership between the two. John Hume and David Trimble are both from Northern Ireland, where they lived with and in the conflict. They are both leading politicians, leaders or leaders of Northern Ireland`s two main political parties, with parties representing both groups in a divided population. Both pledged to follow the good Friday agreement: that conflicts must be resolved by peaceful means. The strong support for the agreement in the referendum shows that they made the right choice. Trimble began his career as a law professor at Queen`s University Belfast in the 1970s, during which he began to engage with the Progressive Party of Unionism paramilitary associated Vanguard.