What difference does peace make? Intimate partner violence and violent conflict in

Northern Ireland

Abstract

This article investigates how the transition from violent conflict to peaceful political

settlement has shaped experiences of and responses to Intimate partner violence (IPV) in

Northern Ireland focusing on three issues which are policing, paramilitarism and firearms. It

does so on the basis of a comparative analysis of findings from semi-structured interviews

with more than 100 women victims of IPV from across Northern Ireland conducted at two

junctures; first in 1992 during a period of protracted armed conflict, and more recently in

2016 at a time of enduring peace. The findings trace the changes that have occurred across

each of these areas, and highlight any problems that remain in the post-conflict environment.

The implications of these findings for research and policy are then discussed.

Introduction

Intimate partner violence (IPV) refers to a pattern of threatening, controlling, coercive

behaviour, violence or abuse (psychological, virtual, physical, verbal, sexual, financial or

emotional) used by adults or adolescents against their current or former intimate partners.

This type of violence can occur among heterosexual or same-sex couples and is experienced

by both women and men, although studies show that the vast majority of violence in

relationships is from men to women (Breiding, Chen & Black, 2014; Department of Justice,

2013). IPV is increasingly recognised as a major public health problem associated with a

wide range of serious physical and psychological effects for victims of IPV and their children

(World Health Organization, 2012). Research suggests that IPV is very much a global

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phenomenon1, experienced by individuals from all backgrounds and societies. However, a

number of factors have been shown to increase its prevalence in society. One factor which

has been significantly under-researched but consistently linked to the prevalence and patterns

of IPV is the presence of violent conflict. Global statistics reveal that the highest prevalence

rates of IPV are generally found in those countries recently affected by violent conflict (Ali,

Asad, Mogren, & Krantz 2011; Garcia-Moreno et al. 2006), and the results from quantitative

studies suggest an increase in levels of IPV following the onset of violent conflict (Saile,

Neuner, Ertl, & Catani, 2013; Peterman, Palermo & Bredenkamp 2011; Clark, et al., 2010).

Indeed, one quantitative study from Uganda found that women from conflict-affected regions

were 37% more likely to report experiencing IPV in the previous year than those from

peaceful regions (Koenig et al., 2003), while a study of Congolese women living in Rwandan

refugee camps found that women exposed to violent conflict were 11 times more likely to be

at risk of IPV when other risk factors for violence (e.g. age, education, parity within a

relationship etc.) were controlled for (Wako et al., 2015).

However, the reliability of quantitative data from conflict-affected settings is often

limited by the distorting effect of conflict on data collection and by the variations in methods

of collection and assessment which make comparison between studies difficult (Saile,

Neuner, Ertl, & Catani, 2013; McWilliams & Ní Aoláin, 2013). Moreover, while the results

of quantitative studies certainly suggest that a relationship exists between violent conflict and

IPV, they typically tell us little about how this relationship is mediated, and the specific ways

in which the presence of violent conflict and the cessation of hostilities in a society shapes

victims’ experiences of IPV. Despite the obvious value of empirical research in this regard,

there have been very few comprehensive empirical studies of IPV and violent conflict. In

1 Research carried out by UNICEF (2000) in both industrialised and developing countries from across six global regions (Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Europe/CIS and Baltic state, Middle East, North America, and Latin America and the Caribbean) found that between 20 and 50 percent of women had experienced violence from their intimate partners.

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part, this reflects the difficulties of researching IPV in conflict-affected and post-conflict

societies, but it also reflects the way in which the scholarly and policy focus on systematic

rape by armed actors during conflict has diverted attention from other forms of gendered

violence, including IPV, and how they are shaped by conflict (Cardoso, Gupta, Shuman,

Cole, Kpebo, & Falb, 2016; Wood, 2014; Holt, 2013; McWilliams & Ní Aoláin, 2013).

The limited empirical research which does exist, however, has exposed the

considerable impact of violent conflict on IPV, detailing how many of the 'normal’ drivers of

IPV are compounded during times of conflict, and also how the more distinctive features of a

conflict, such as the increased presence of armed/paramilitary groups, influx of firearms, and

breakdown in criminal justice mechanisms shape experiences of and responses to IPV

(Guruge et al., 2017; Cardoso, Gupta, Shuman, Cole, Kpebo, & Falb, 2016; Swaine, 2015;

Saile, Neuner, Ertl, & Catani, 2013; McWilliams & Ní Aoláin, 2013; Annan & Brier, 2010).

This article contributes to this emerging body of literature by providing the first longitudinal

examination of how the experiences of victims of IPV change as a society transitions from

conflict to peace. The value of comparative longitudinal studies as one of the most reliable

methods for assessing changes to experiences and patterns of IPV following a peaceful

political settlement, and their global absence have been well-noted in the literature (Clark, et

al., 2010). Thus, the current study presents a unique contribution to the literature on IPV and

violent conflict.

Within this context, the core objective of the article is to examine how the transition

from violent conflict to peaceful political settlement has shaped IPV in Northern Ireland

between 1992 and 2016. Related to this are three supplementary objectives, each of which

considers an aspect of the relationship between violent conflict and IPV. These are: (1) to

assess any changes that have occurred in the policing of IPV between the study periods; (2) to

examine the impact of paramilitarism on experiences of IPV and any changes that have

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occurred therein between the study periods; and (3) to examine the impact of firearms on

experiences of IPV and any changes that occurred over the same time period.

IPV and violent conflict

A holistic approach to IPV views risk factors for violence as existing across different and

interacting levels; namely personal/individual, interpersonal/relationship, community, and

societal levels (Heise, 1998). Personal/individual factors refer to those risk factors associated

with an individual’s background, such as childhood experience of violence, the

‘normalisation’ of violence - particularly violence against women (VAW) - as acceptable,

alcohol and drug use/abuse, and circumstances which limit an individual’s capacity to exit a

violent relationship (e.g. poverty and social/economic dependency) (Michau et al. 2015;

Heise 1998). Interpersonal/relationship factors include a high level of discord/conflict

between partners and factors indicative of a relationship power imbalance, such as

inequitable decision-making and control of assets by one partner. These individual and

interpersonal risk factors interact with and can be compounded by a set of community and

societal level factors which increase the likelihood of individuals experiencing violence

and/or limit their capacity to access support and exit a violent relationship. Influential

community level factors include factors that normalise violence in society, such as the

presence of conservative gender norms which support male dominance over women and

create a cultural stigma towards divorce and single parenthood. Societal factors augment

violence by deepening inequality between women and men and by creating a culture of

impunity within the criminal justice perspective, and include discriminatory legal

frameworks, and low levels of political and economic empowerment for women (Michau et

al., 2015; Heise, 1998).

Research and national statistical data from conflict and post-conflict societies has

confirmed that many of the established risk factors for IPV are often magnified by conflict,

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with societies typically becoming poorer, more gender unequal and espousing more

conservative traditional roles for women as wives and mothers following conflict (Ní Aoláin,

Haynes & Cahn, 2011). Whilst a substantial body of literature has acknowledged and drawn

attention to the connections that exist between the onset of violent conflict and issues like

poverty and gender inequality on the one hand, and between poverty and gender inequality

and IPV on the other hand, it has tended to treat violence in the public sphere (violent

conflict) and in the private sphere (IPV) as distinct. Moreover, the established literature had

tended to overlook the striking congruency between the consequences of violent conflict and

risk factors for IPV. A few notable exceptions exist, as outlined below, with these studies

variously seeking to illustrate how the presence and features of violent conflict in a society

interact with the risk factors for other kinds of violence, and how violent conflict shapes

individual experiences and/or service responses to IPV.

Research by Guruge et al. (2017) with more than 30 victims of violence and service

providers in Sri Lanka revealed how the conflict there shaped individual experiences of IPV,

increased the levels of IPV in society, and extended impunity to perpetrators of these crimes

(Guruge et al. 2017). For example, service providers participating in the study reported higher

levels of IPV among women from those communities most affected by the conflict and

furthermore directly connected this to the higher exposure to violence at a community level

during conflict and increased tolerance of violence in general as a result of it. Other factors

related to the conflict, crucially the presence of armed (militant) groups, were found to

weaken accountability for and criminal justice responses to IPV, with participants reporting

that police in particular refused to intervene in incidents where perpetrators were involved in

militant groups for fear of reprisal (Guruge et al. 2017). Swaine (2015) recorded similar

findings in her study of VAW and violent conflict in Liberia, Northern Ireland and Timor-

Leste, finding that women were too afraid to report IPV crimes and police refused to

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intervene where perpetrators were involved in armed (paramilitary) groups.

Elsewhere, studies on criminal justice responses to IPV in conflict-affected and/or

ethnically divided societies show how limited access to and/or a breakdown in legal and

policing systems during conflict increase impunity for IPV crimes as IPV can be perpetrated

with little fear of accountability and thus the law loses its deterrent value (Erez, Ibarra, &

Gur, 2015; Swaine, 2015; McWilliams & McKiernan, 1993). Erez, Ibarra and Gur’s (2015)

analysis of policing of IPV among the Arab community in Israel, for example, shows how the

policing of a minority group by a majority group and dynamics of a conflict overlay policing

to shape both community responses to the police and police responses to the community. A

key impact of this noted by the researchers is to create ‘mutual suspicion’ between the Arab

community and the police whereby the Arab community are often mistrustful of the

responsiveness of the majority Israeli Jewish police, and the police in turn are reluctant to

respond to IPV calls from the Arab community for fear of ambush. In Northern Ireland

McWilliams and McKiernan (1993) and later Swaine (2015) also highlight how the dynamics

of the conflict overlaid policing and specifically how the preoccupation of police with

political violence and majority policing of a minority population limited reporting of IPV

crimes to police and police responses to these crimes.

Finally, a few studies from conflict-affected societies and a great deal of research

from countries with a large ownership of firearms have underscored the negative implications

of the presence of these firearms in IPV situations. Campbell et al. (2003), for instance, found

that the presence of a firearm in the home increased the risk of a women sustaining an injury

during an abusive incident by more than three times and further cited this as a key risk factor

for femicide in IPV relationships in the United States. While Dobash et al. (2007) based on

their analysis of two distinct studies with more than 200 violent men also cited the possession

of a firearms as a key risk factor for femicide. In this regard, the increased quantity and

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availability of firearms, common following the onset of violent conflict has obvious

implications for women in IPV situations. Research from conflict-affected countries,

including Northern Ireland and Liberia, has also shown how the influx of firearms there

following the onset of conflict provided perpetrators of VAW with an additional resource and

source of power over their partners, even where firearms were not used to cause physical

harm in IPV situations (Swaine, 2015; McWilliams & Ní Aoláin, 2013).

The Northern Ireland context

The Northern Irish sub-state came into existence in 1921 as a result of the partitioning of

Ireland by the British Parliament. While Southern Ireland became a state in its own right, the

Protestant majority in Northern Ireland sought to remain part of the United Kingdom.

However, a sizeable Catholic minority in Northern Ireland remained politically and culturally

aligned with the independent Irish state in the south. Thus, the ethnic and religious

polarisation between the two communities in Northern Ireland – the Protestant, British

majority (unionists) and the Catholic, Irish minority (nationalists) – was fomented from the

inception of the state. This polarisation was embedded in the hostility between the two

groups, with several outbreaks of violence in Northern Ireland and a prolonged period of

violent conflict running for thirty years from 1968 to 1998 (Tonge, 2002; Todd & Ruane,

1996). Throughout the Northern Ireland conflict, referred to locally as ‘the Troubles’,

approximately 3,500 individuals were killed and a further 37,800 seriously injured (see

CAIN, 2016). While in relative terms these numbers appear quite low, the small population

size (around 1.6 million for most of this time) and density of Northern Ireland (which has a

total area size of only 5,456 miles) and the long duration of the conflict meant that the effects

of the violence impacted upon the lives of most people living there (Kennedy-Pipe, 2014;

Coakley, 1994).

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The conflict in Northern Ireland formally came to an end in 1998 with the signing of

the Belfast Agreement (also known as the ‘Good Friday Agreement’) and the establishment

of a devolved power sharing government in which both nationalists and unionists must be

represented. Following from the agreement a radical reform of policing was implemented

which dissolved the existing police force (the Royal Ulster Constabulary, RUC) and replaced

it with a reformed organisation (the Police Service of Northern Ireland, PSNI) with a 50%

quota for Catholic recruitment to address the lacunae in religious make-up that had hitherto

existed. However, while the Belfast Agreement and emerging peace process have

significantly reduced violence in society and transformed Northern Ireland in many ways,

ethno-national antagonisms have remained strong, divisions and mistrust continue to exist

and there have been intermittent episodes of violence with some of the existing paramilitary

groups refusing to disband and new groups emerging to replace those on ceasefire (Ashe,

2012; 2007).

Concerning the extent of IPV in Northern Ireland, the absence of regular large-scale

survey data renders it difficult to reliably ascertain prevalence. Among the most reliable

sources of statistical information on IPV in Northern Ireland are the annual PSNI reports

which detail the number of domestic violence2 incidents reported to police. While these are

likely to be an underestimation of the true prevalence of domestic violence given the recorded

tendency among victims not to report (PSNI, 2015, p. 31), they nevertheless provide a

valuable indication of the extent of IPV in Northern Ireland as set out below for the years

2004/53 to 2016/7 in Table 1. Prior to this, statistics were not recorded in the same (and thus

comparable) format, but it is worth noting that closest available official statistics to the 1992

2 Although the terms IPV and domestic violence are often used interchangeably in the literature, in this article domestic violence is used to denote violence which is perpetrated by either an intimate partner or other family member while IPV refers only to violence committed by intimate partners. 3 Although the PSNI was formed in 2001, domestic violence statistics in the current format were not made available by the PSNI’s statistics branch until 2004.

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study, for the year 1995/6 put the number of domestic violence incidents reported to the

police (then RUC) at 5,903 (Royal Ulster Constabulary, 1995/6).

Table 1: Reports of Incidents of domestic violence for Northern Ireland 2004- 2017

Year Number of reported incidents2016/17 29,1662015/16 28,3922014/15 28,2872013/14 27,6282012/13 27,1902011/12 25,1962010/11 22,6852009/10 24,4822008/09 23,5912007/08 23,0762006/07 23,4562005/06 23,0592004/05 20,959Source: Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI, 2017)

This most recent figure of 29,166 for 2016/17 represents the highest level recorded and is

39.2 per cent higher than the level of 20,959 when consistent recording began in 2004/05

(PSNI, 2017). There has been some debate in the literature as to whether the increase in

reports of instances of domestic violence over this time frame relates to an actual increase in

instances of violence or to an increase in reports of incidents (Hoewer, 2013; Jarman, 2004);

and is an issue returned to below. The official prevalence rate recorded by both Women’s Aid

Federation, Northern Ireland’s leading voluntary organisation addressing domestic and sexual

violence, and the Northern Ireland Crime Survey (NICS) survey are higher than the PSNI

figures suggest; between one in every four and one in every five women respectively

experience domestic violence (Women’s Aid, 2015; Department of Justice, 2013). The rate

for men was considerably lower, around one-in-ten (Department of Justice, 2013).

Empirical studies from Northern Ireland have also recorded the serious physical and

psychological impacts of this violence on victims and their families. Devaney (2013) and

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Dorahy, Lewis and Wolfe (2007), for instance, found that women who had experienced IPV

had higher levels of depression and anxiety, poorer physical health and were more likely to

report excessive alcohol and drug use, while McWilliams and McKiernan (1993) recorded a

list of twenty-two different negative effects of IPV on children. At the most extreme end of

the spectrum, domestic homicides account for, on average, one in every four murders,

manslaughters and attempted murders in Northern Ireland (Northern Ireland Policing Board,

2011; Devaney, 2013). In assessing the criminal justice and professional response to IPV in

Northern Ireland, the outcomes are generally mixed with a recent Department of Justice

(2016) report finding that while the police score well on speed of response and suitability of

referral, they were criticised for not taking reports of IPV seriously, not believing victims’

accounts of incidents, and a perceived lack of sensitivity towards victims of IPV. Other

services (e.g. public prosecution, courts and victim support) received similarly mixed reports,

with the exception of voluntary support services (e.g. women’s organisations) which were

positively appraised (Department of Justice, 2016). Finally, while there is a shortage of

literature which examines how experiences of and responses to IPV have been shaped by the

conflict in Northern Ireland, three studies which do consider this issue are by Swaine (2015),

McWilliams and Ní Aoláin (2013) and McWilliams and McKiernan (1993). These studies

exposed how the consequences of the violent conflict in Northern Ireland including limited

access to policing for victims of IPV (especially from nationalist areas); the influx of firearms

and the dominance of paramilitary groups in society; shaped individual experiences of IPV;

weakened responses to IPV from professional and statutory agencies; and extended impunity

to perpetrators of IPV.

Methodology

This study uses the 1992 study by McWilliams and McKiernan (published 1993) as the base

comparator for the results that follow. Accordingly, the methodological approach of the 2016

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study mirrors that of the 1992 study. Both studies used qualitative research methods, and

identical approaches to sampling and data collection were employed. These approaches were

also considered to be the most appropriate fit for the nature of the research and its aims and

objectives. The method of data analysis, however, did differ slightly for the two studies. For

the 2016 study, qualitative data was coded and also quantified to assess the prevalence of

issues raised among study participants; this was not consistently done for the 1992 research.

This means that quantitative comparison between research findings is limited to a few core

issues and, therefore, the results are mainly compared qualitatively.

Sampling

A non-probability sampling strategy was used to identify potential participants, taking care to

contact and include women4 from across different age groups5, geographic locations,

religious, ethnic and economic backgrounds. As with the previous study, Northern Ireland

Women’s Aid Federation (hereafter referred to as Women’s Aid) partnered the research,

assisting with the recruitment of women from across their refuges and outreach centres and

providing support to interviewees during and after interviews6. A total sample size of 60-70

women was sought, which is consistent with both the 1992 study, for which 64 women were

interviewed, and considered to be more than adequate taking into account Mason’s (2010)

finding that the median sample size of studies using a qualitative approach is 20-30. In all

cases only participants identified by Women’s Aid staff as not especially likely to become

distressed by the interview content were approached for interview. This sampling approach

produced a final sample size of 63 women victims of IPV, some background details of which

are shown in Table 2.

4 Only women were included in the sample, a decision taken to ensure methodological consistency and thus comparability with the 1992 study which had a women-only sample, and on the basis of research findings that most violence in relationships is from men to women.5 For ethical reasons no women/girls under the age of 18 were interviewed.6 Ensuring the provision of qualified emotional and practical support for participants was a high priority throughout the research and the research gained full ethnical approval from the University ethics committee.

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Table 2: Overview of study participants7

Participant information (# of 63)From Age group Religious backgroundNorthern Ireland (47) 18-29 years (14) Catholic (28/63)

Irish Travellers (4)30-39 (12)

Protestant (24/63)

England (4) 40-49 (19) Mixed Catholic-Protestant (3)

Eastern Europe (3) 50-59 (11) Muslim (2)

Middle East North Africa (2)

60-69 (11) Other unlisted8 (4)

Asia (1) 70+ (1) Baptist (1)

Methodist (1)

Data collection and analysis

The main body of interviews took place between February and June 2016. An interview

guide was developed to inform the conduct of semi-structured interviews and designed so as

to re-examine the issues raised in the 1992 study and explore the factors related to the

transition from conflict. More specifically, the interview guide explored the following key

themes: (1) experience and impact of IPV, (2) assistance sought by participants from formal

(professional services/agencies) and informal (family, friends, clergy) sources, and (3) the

impact of the Northern Ireland political context on IPV. In relation to the latter, key issues

explored included any barriers to seeking help at a local and community level, including the

presence/impact of cultural and religious attitudes, segregation at a community level, and

matters related to the security situation in Northern Ireland. The latter include the

decommissioning of weapons (disarmament), paramilitary presence in communities, the

7 Limited information is shown here as the small population of Northern Ireland make it impossible to provide more specific details on participants without risking their anonymity and thus safety, a high priority for the research.8 This is listed as ‘other’ as it refers to single participants who are from religious backgrounds with a very low representation in Northern Ireland and therefore providing the religious background of these participants may jeopardise their anonymity.

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reintegration of prisoners with a political conviction following the peace agreement and other

aspects related to the legacy of the conflict. Interviews ranged in length from 36 to 105

minutes, with the average interview lasting 66 minutes. The majority (60 of 63) interviews

were recorded using a digital recorder and where this was not possible one of the researchers

took detailed notes throughout the interview. In order to ensure the safety of participants,

protect their right to privacy and increase openness and frankness9 the anonymity of study

participants was maintained at all stages.

Figure 1: Example of coding method

Code reference

Description of code Interviewees referring to code

PJ Police and Judiciary Interviewee number Overall total

PJ1 Contact police?

Yes2,6,7,9,10,12,13,17,18,19,20,22,26,27,31,32,33,34,35,37,38,39,41,42,44,45,47,49,52,53,56,57,58,60,63

35/63

No 1,4,5,8,11,14,15,16,21,23,24,25,28,29,30,36,40,43,46,48,50,51,54,55,59,61,62 27/63

The interviews were transcribed verbatim and series of thematic codes drawn from the

research questions, interview questions and main debates in the literature were used as a

template for analysing interview data. Each transcript was assigned a random number

between one and 63 and reviewed in-depth by the researchers. In each instance where an

issue was mentioned, the corresponding interview number was inserted next to the relevant

code in a spreadsheet. For example, if participant number ‘2’ reported that they contacted the

police in relation to the violence then the number ‘2’ was inserted next to ‘Contact police –

yes’ in the coding sheet (see Figure 1). Coding in this way ensured that the analysis was data

9 Gaps between what interviewees say takes place in the interview setting, and what actually happens in reality are a well-known limitation of qualitative interviews (see Dunn, 2007) so it was important to take steps to overcome this.

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driven, while quantifying the qualitative data highlighted common themes and their

prevalence among participants, and reduced the possibility of researcher bias, thus adding to

the robustness of the study.

Results

Policing

It has already been mentioned that the presence and features of violent conflict shape the

policing of IPV by determining the level of their responsiveness to IPV and access to and

perceptions of police among citizens (Erez, Ibarra, & Gur, 2015; Swaine, 2015). On this

basis, one might expect to see improvements in policing of IPV following a successful

transition from violent conflict to peaceful political settlement. In this context, Table 3 sets

out participant appraisals of police response to IPV incidents for both the 2016 and 1992

studies. The majority of participants in the 2016 study reported positive experiences with the

police, with 25 of 40 participants who had contact with the police (62.5%) describing them as

‘helpful’ compared to 12 participants (of 40; 30%) who described them as ‘not helpful’ and

four participants (7.5%) who reported ‘mixed’ experiences whereby they had a positive

experience on one occasion but a negative experience on another. Conversely, for the 1992

study most participants reported negative experiences with the police, with 26 of 35

participants (74.3%) describing them as ‘not helpful’ compared to nine (of 35; 25.7%) who

described them as ‘helpful’.

Table 3: Participant assessment of policing response

Police response 1992 study 2016 studyNumber Percent Number Percent

Helpful 9/35 25.7% 25/4010 62.5%Not helpful 26/35 74.3% 12/40 30.0%Mixed 0/35 0% 3/40 7.5%

10 This figure includes participants who had not directly contacted the police but who had contact with them, such as when neighbours had contacted the police. In total, there were five of these participants.

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At a broad level, a striking finding is the difference in appraisals of policing responses

to IPV between the studies and specifically the increase in the proportion of positive

appraisals and decrease in the proportion of negative appraisals. Statistically, the proportion

of participants describing the police as ‘helpful’ increased 39.8% from 9/35 (25.7%) in 1992

to 25/40 (62.5%) in 2016, and perhaps more revealing the proportion of participants

describing the police as ‘not helpful’ decreased 44.3% from 26/35 (74.3%) in 1992 to 12/40

(30%) in 2016. These changes are clearly reflected in the qualitative accounts given by

participants, and many of the 25 participants in the 2016 study who described the police as

helpful recounted very good experiences with them:

‘I had a lovely police officer, he was really nice. They [police] came out right away

and then came [back] the next day and took photographs…and put out a warrant for

him… I’d give them [police] ten out of ten’ (Interview 35, April 2016)

‘I actually think they [police] were really on top of things….[Giving a statement] even

wasn’t daunting; you felt quite at ease because you were with people that you trusted

– you felt safe with them.’ (Interview 10, March 2016)

These accounts differ considerably from those cited in the 1992 study where a common

feature of the reports was that police sided with perpetrators, minimised violence, and/or

refused to intervene in what they often referred to as ‘domestics’ (McWilliams & McKiernan,

1993: 93). By way of example, one 1992 participant spoke of an incident in which the

responding officer had taken an almost apologetic tone with her violent partner and she had

overheard him saying ‘Look, we have to let her see we’re coming over here’ (McWilliams &

McKiernan, 1993: 93). Moreover, trust in the police was found to be particularly low among

participants from Catholic, nationalist communities who tended to view the police as a source

of harassment rather than as a source of protection (McWilliams & McKiernan 1993: 56).

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This was directly related to the structure of policing composed of officers from an almost

exclusively Protestant background (more than 92%) at that time and the resulting view that

the police as an institution did not represent the society from which it came (McWilliams &

McKiernan 1993; also remarked upon by Jarman, 2004, and Garrett, 1999). That distrust of

police was no longer raised as an issue by participants from nationalist communities in the

2016 study points to the positive implications of the peaceful political settlement and in

particular of the reforms to policing following the peace agreement. This was particularly

significant for victims of IPV in Northern Ireland as discussed in the concluding section.

In addition to changes in appraisals of policing between the studies, significant

change is also evident in terms of how the police respond to IPV incidents. For the 2016

study, most participants who had contacted the police reported that the police took official

action, either by arresting the perpetrator (in 14/40 cases; 35%) or issuing them with an

official caution (13/40 cases; 32/5%). A further nine participants reported that the police took

a statement but did not follow through with an arrest or official caution, although in several

of these cases the police had assisted in some other way requested by the victim, for example

by organising to have the locks changed on their home or by bringing them to a place of

safety. No participant in the 2016 study reported that the police failed to respond or arrive

when called, although four participants (of 40; 10%) reported that the police took no action

once on the scene (always in situations involving non-physical violence). In most cases,

however the police did take official action and in a number of cases they took multiple

actions, as the following extract demonstrates:

‘[I contacted the police] maybe three or four times…the first time they arrested him

for breach of [the] peace…the last time they lifted [arrested] him and charged him…

They took photographs of injuries…The domestic violence liaison [officer]…stayed

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in touch - let me know what [was happening]… I must say they did help anytime.’

(Interview 40, April 2016)

In the 1992 study, by contrast, few participants reported that the police took official action,

with only three reports (out of 35 respondents; 8.6%) stating that the police arrested the

perpetrator and three (out of 35; 8.6%) reporting that they issued an official caution. Between

the two studies, this represents an increase of 26.4% in reports of arrest and of 23.9% in

official cautions being issued. Most striking is that while in 2016 there were no reports of the

police not arriving after being called, reports of ‘no action’ were commonplace in 199211,

with several participants reporting that they waited ‘all night’ for police to respond

(McWilliams & McKiernan, 1993: 92). While the reports of ‘no action’ in the 1992 study

came from participants from different localities, they were most common for participants

living in nationalist communities. This is due to bogus domestic violence calls being used by

nationalist paramilitary groups to lure police officers into these areas making officers

reluctant to respond (McWilliams & McKiernan, 1993). By the time of the 2016 study, there

were no longer areas of Northern Ireland regarded as ‘off limits’ or ‘no go’ which meant that

participants from nationalist communities in particular reported that the police responded

promptly to their calls. This is a significant change and reflects the outworking of the

transition from violent conflict for victims of IPV, which is further discussed below.

Whilst the 2016 results underscore a notable improvement in policing response to

IPV, there were still some negative and mixed appraisals of police responses. The results

show that these typically concerned negative experiences with individual police officers,

and/or poor police response to situations involving emotional/psychological violence.

Participants referred to discrepancies in policing response and how certain officers –

domestic violence liaison officers in particular – offered very competent responses to IPV

11 The prevalence of this issue among study participants was not recorded in the 1992 study.

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incidents, whilst others perceived to be poorly trained or lacking in empathy were

unresponsive to incidents or in a few instances increased the level of risk to participants. By

way of example, one participant spoke about how one domestic violence liaison officer she

had dealt with ‘was very, very good’ but other officers often ‘didn’t know what they were

doing’ (Interview 32, April 2016). Another participant gave the following example showing

how the response discouraged her from disclosing an important point of information:

‘I’ll give you an example; and it sticks with me; in my gut…when this fella [junior

officer] was asking me “did he [perpetrator] ever harm his pet?” [and] he actually

looked at the other [officer] and he laughed. He laughed. And I wanted to say “He

battered the shit out of his poor dog” but I didn’t say it because I was too embarrassed

‘cause they were laughing. When I mentioned this to my support worker afterwards

she said that him doing that was a sign I was at risk.’ (Interview 44, May 2016)

Also related to negative or mixed experiences with police was a perceived lack of policing

response in situations where violence was non-physical. Several participants reported that

while the police were helpful and reactive when an incident involved physical violence they

were often quite dismissive when an incident involved psychological violence. As one

participant remarked ‘unless they [perpetrator] draw blood nothing is going to happen’

(Interview 47, May 2016). The failure to respond raises concerns as these incidents were

causing considerable distress to participants and/or were potentially quite dangerous with

respondents reporting that they were being stalked and harassed by extremely violent ex-

partners. Both of these findings reinforce the arguments made elsewhere by Lagdon, Armour

and Stringer (2015) that emotional violence needs to be taken much more seriously and

requires a more serious response by the criminal justice system in Northern Ireland.

18

Paramilitaries

The impact of paramilitary/armed groups on IPV has been recorded in studies from Northern

Ireland and Sri Lanka which detail how membership of these groups increase the level of

power, control and impunity available to perpetrators (Guruge et al., 2017; Swaine, 2015).

Although 20 years has passed since the ceasefires (declaring an end to formal paramilitary

hostilities), the 2016 results reveal that the control of paramilitary organisations in Northern

Ireland continues to impact on women experiencing IPV. In the most recent study, 11 of 53

participants12 (20.8%) raised the impact of paramilitarism on their lives when asked about the

conflict and its aftermath, making it a highly prevalent legacy. The impact of paramilitarism

was evident in two main respects: on the one hand, affiliation to paramilitary groups provided

a source of power to perpetrators of IPV; whilst on the other hand, they represented for

victims an alternative and more rapid response to IPV that by-passed the established criminal

justice system.

Considering the first and most prevalent issue among study participants, nine

participants (out of 53; 17.0%) stated that their partners used/had used paramilitary

connections or alleged paramilitary connections to threaten, control and/or abuse them13. The

following extract provides an example and illustrates how the threat of paramilitary

connections was used as a method of control in the household:

‘He used to say that he was in the UDA [Ulster Defence Association; a Loyalist

paramilitary organisation]. Whether he was or wasn’t I don’t actually know but he

would sit you down and say that he’d get them to sort you out. Like that a phone call

12 Ten participants had partners/ex-partners from outside of Northern Ireland and/or had resided in Northern Ireland for only a short period of time and thus did not consider Northern Ireland specific issues relevant for their case; as such figures are out of 53.13 Prevalence among participants was not recorded in the 1992 study, although it was raised as an issue (see below and McWilliams & McKiernan, 1993).

19

was all it would take. I was too frightened [then], maybe even more cautious of saying

anything (to the police) in case…you know…’ (Interview 22, March 2016)

As suggested by this extract, the authenticity of a connection to paramilitary organisations

was open to question with many of the participants who raised this issue claiming they had

been fabricated with the specific intent of controlling and threatening them:

‘… he would pretend he was involved in things and he was the Mr Big guy, but I

knew he wasn’t because he was never out the door - he stayed with me twenty-four-

seven. He would’ve let on [he was involved] though, saying when he did go out “oh I

was away getting such and such sorted out”. But I knew rightly it was a load of

rubbish…that it was just another control’ (Interview 51, June 2016)

While this participant was aware that her partner was misleading her at the time, several other

participants only discovered the fabrication after exiting the relationship meaning that these

threats had the same impact for these participants as if they were actually real. The fact that

perpetrators of violence use affiliation with armed groups to threaten and abuse their partners

points towards the different sources of power that may be open to perpetrators of IPV in

conflict and post-conflict contexts. The impact of paramilitarism on perpetrator power,

reporting and impunity has also been recorded in post-conflict Sri Lanka (Guruge et al.,

2017), as well as in the previous Northern Ireland study in which prior to the ceasefires, in

1992, it was a central issue (McWilliams & McKiernan, 1993; see also Swaine, 2015). In

highlighting the continued influence of paramilitarism on experiences of IPV in Northern

Ireland twenty years following the ceasefires, the findings call attention to the gendered

implications of a demilitarisation process. In noting the awareness among several 2016

participants that paramilitary connections were falsified, an issue not reported in the 1992

study when the connections were real, the respondents agreed that the formal process of

20

disarmament in 2007 had to some extent closed off this control for perpetrators in the context

of IPV. These issues are rarely discussed as part of the demobilisation, disarmament and

reintegration (DDR) process associated with conflict transformation following a peace

agreement.

A second, although much less commonly reported way in which paramilitarism

shapes experiences of IPV is where paramilitary/armed groups act in a policing role by

offering what they perceive as protection to victims of IPV. Typically, this ‘protection’

involves a paramilitary group issuing a warning/threat to a perpetrator to stop harassing or

abusing a victim. In the 2016 study only two (out of 53; 3.8%) participants had contacted

paramilitary groups for this purpose. One participant spoke about how following her request

for ‘somebody [from a paramilitary group] to speak a wee word in his ear’ her partner had

after many years stopped harassing her (Interview 37, May 2016). The second participant to

make a similar request of a local paramilitary agreed her request served its purpose. In

general, however, participants did not seek contact with or assistance from paramilitary

groups, even where this was potentially an option. In the 1992 study when the conflict was

still at its height, victims reported their concerns that perpetrators were being recruited as

police informers to avoid prosecution or enforcement orders for IPV (McWilliams &

McKiernan, 1993). An allegation of this kind was sufficient to prevent victims from

approaching either the paramilitaries or the police. Given the strong connection that generally

exists between paramilitarism and (militarised) masculinity (Ashe, 2012; Theidon, 2009), the

different pathways to seeking help have to be weighed up by those living with, or amongst,

paramilitaries.

Comparing the 2016 post conflict study, to that taking place in 1992 during the

conflict, the number of participants contacting paramilitary groups for assistance fell from

four (of 56; 7.1%) in 1992 to two (of 53; 3.8%) in 2016. One likely explanation for this is the

21

increased confidence in and access to policing, particularly in nationalist communities which

was an outcome of the institutional reforms following the peace agreement. Across both

studies participants reported that they only turned to paramilitary organisations when they felt

they ‘had no more options’ (Interview 22, March 2016) which was a situation they were less

likely to find themselves in when mainstream criminal justice mechanisms became available.

Moreover, whilst participants in the 1992 study spoke about how paramilitary groups had an

advantage over the police because they were ‘quicker [to respond to an incident] than the

police’ (McWilliams & McKiernan, 1993: 56), police having to wait for clearance and/or a

military escort to enter nationalist areas, no such situation existed in the 2016 study and

participants from all areas commended the police on the speediness of their response. Finally,

one participant from the 2016 study spoke specifically about the increased contact between

her (nationalist) community and the police, making tentative connections to the past use of

paramilitary groups for assistance in lieu of police:

Participant: ‘I see the police [in this area] now. During that period though [the

conflict] if you were in trouble you did nothing - you didn’t go to the police…’

Interviewer: ‘Did women go to the paramilitaries?’

Respondent: ‘Probably, yes’ (Interview 28, March 2016)

These findings suggest that in addition to the demobilisation of paramilitary groups,

changes to policing as part of the political settlement in Northern Ireland have left less of a

role for paramilitary groups in policing IPV. However, it should also be highlighted that even

in the 1992 study when access to policing was limited and the police response generally

weak, only a small number of four participants reported that they had contacted paramilitary

groups for assistance. The reasons for this was the same across both studies; that participants

feared paramilitary groups and more particularly feared that paramilitary groups would use

22

excessive force when dealing with their partner. Historically, physical beatings and shootings

have been used by paramilitary groups to police both communities and there have been

almost 4,000 recorded casualties resulting from such attacks since the start of the conflict

(Alderice, McBurney & McWilliams 2016). While there has been a considerable decrease in

the prevalence of these attacks in recent years, they do still continue and there were 88 such

casualties from these attacks recorded by the PSNI in 2015 (Alderice, McBurney &

McWilliams 2016). That punishment through excessive force, including with firearms, is

perceived to be an appropriate response to situations of IPV by paramilitary groups, though

not by female partners of abusive men, again underscores the connections that often exist

between paramilitarism and militarised masculinity (Ashe, 2012).

Firearms

Research has repeatedly sought to highlight the danger posed by firearms in IPV situations,

finding that the presence of a firearm in the home significantly increases the risk that a victim

of IPV will sustain an injury or be killed during an incident (Dobash et al., 2007; Campbell et

al., 2003). Even in situations where firearms are not used, their presence in the home can still

increase the level of threat for victims of IPV (McWilliams, 1998). With the onset of conflict,

the availability of firearms frequently increases, even for ‘ordinary’ members of society

outside of the security forces. During the conflict in Northern Ireland, for instance, members

of the security forces, politicians, members of the judiciary, and even business people were

legally permitted to own ‘personal protection’ firearms and there was a very marked increase

in the number of legally held firearms over the years from the start to the end of the conflict14.

Add this to the considerable arsenal of illegal weapons (including firearms) held by members

14 From 105,000 near the start of the conflict in 1973, to almost 139,000 by the time the Belfast agreement was signed in 1998 (Irish Times, 1998).

23

of paramilitary groups active at the time15, and one starts to build up a picture of the extent of

firearm ownership in Northern Ireland during the conflict.

Within that context, it is perhaps hardly surprising that a main feature of the 1992

study was the considerable extent to which firearms impacted on participants’ experiences of

IPV. Participants spoke about incidents in which a firearm was held to their head, incidents in

which their partner had threatened them by saying they would get a firearm, and refuge

workers recalled seeing women with circular bruising on their necks caused by a firearm's

muzzle. These incidents created a high level of anxiety and fear among participants,

particularly where victims, as noted below, reported incidents of partners copying ‘Russian

Roulette’, made famous by the film ‘Deer Hunter’, where the trigger of the firearm (held to

the victim’s head) would be pulled but without the victim knowing if a bullet was inside

(McWilliams & McKiernan, 1993). Comparing these findings to those from 2016 study,

however, it appears that the end conflict and crucially the disarmament processes in Northern

Ireland have had a positive impact by reducing the availability and use of firearms in IPV

situations. Although there is no quantitative data to ascertain the prevalence of firearms

among the 1992 study participants, their presence and impact was recorded as a main feature

of the study. By 2016, only two participants (3.8%) reported their use in IPV situations

indicating that the prevalence of use among participants had decreased between the studies.

The findings also reveal a shift in police attitudes and responses towards firearms in IPV

situations. In the 1992 study, participants reported that the police were reluctant to remove

‘personal protection’ firearms and/or removed them only temporarily, returning them the next

day. This is in contrast to what is recounted by each of the two participants in the 2016 study

who reported that firearms were immediately removed by the police, and not returned, when

they contacted them. One potential explanation for this relates to the improvements to

15 By way of example, the BBC News (2005) provided a full inventory of the list of firearms and other armed weapons owned by the main nationalist paramilitary group, the Irish Republican Army (IRA).

24

policing of IPV in Northern Ireland, although an alternative explanation may simply be that

the changes to the security situation in Northern Ireland mean that police officers or those

working for the security services no longer see the need to take personal protection firearms

home as was the case during the conflict. The results underscore the significant impact of

disarmament and demobilisation processes for women victims of IPV, which often gets little

attention in negotiations or in policy and practice that follows (Vanessa, 2003).

While the results bring to light key changes that have occurred between the studies in

terms of the prevalence of and police response to firearms, they also reveal certain

similarities with regard to how firearms are used in IPV situations and their impact.

Participants in both studies reported that firearms were used specifically to threaten them and

that their use increased their level of fear and anxiety. The following interview extracts from

the 1992 and 2016 studies demonstrate this:

‘It was both mental and physical. You know, I am thinking of times when he would

put a gun to my head, and play Russian Roulette with it, with me...but there was no

physical harm done then.’ (McWilliams & McKiernan 1993: 36)

‘he had the gun in the hot press and when I approached him about [something]… …

[he said] “if you don’t move from me…I’ll blow your brains out” and he kind of went

to step up to take the gun...Jesus, that certainly left me fearful…I was too frightened

after that, maybe even more cautious of saying anything in case you know…[sighs], it

was more control over me.’ (Interview 17, March 2016)

The implications of a firearm for an individual’s capacity to resist and crucially to seek

assistance for violence within an IPV relationship is also highlighted by the second extract.

This finding reinforces findings from other studies which show that the availability/use of

25

firearms in IPV situations can decrease the likelihood of a victim reporting and thus

perpetrator being held to account for violence (Swaine, 2015).

Discussion and conclusion

This article sought to elucidate the ways in which the transition from violent conflict to

peaceful political settlement has shaped responses to IPV in Northern Ireland focusing

specifically on the impact of the changes to policing, paramilitarism and firearms. The

findings to emerge are based on the first comparative examination of how the experiences of

victims of IPV change in a society as it moves from conflict to peace and the study is one of

only a few studies which have attempted to empirically decipher the relationship between

violence in the public sphere (violent conflict) and IPV. While recognising that violent

conflicts within a society and IPV are deeply influenced by societal level factors and thus the

findings from Northern Ireland presented here are to an extent context-specific, they

nevertheless corroborate key findings from other empirical studies which suggest that violent

conflict is linked to IPV in concrete ways. Moreover, they reinforce the arguments made on

the basis of these studies that factors such as limited policing, the presence of

paramilitary/armed groups and increased availability of firearms assist with understanding

this link between violent conflict and IPV (Guruge et al. 2017; Erez, Ibarra, & Gur, 2015;

Swaine, 2015; McWilliams & Ní Aoláin, 2013).

For the Northern Ireland case, the most significant change from conflict to peace

relates to the police response to IPV as the results record sizeable increases in both positive

appraisals of police and reports of action (arrests, official cautions) taken by them between

the studies. Moreover, in the post conflict situation, participants from nationalist backgrounds

were no longer distrustful of police or hesitant to contact them and police were now in a

much safer position to respond to such victims. Conversely, the findings of the 1992 study

and other studies of policing of IPV in conflict-affected and divided societies record high

26

levels of mistrust between communities and the police in situations where a minority

community is policed by an almost exclusively majority force (as was the case in Northern

Ireland) and show how this limits access to policing and reporting of IPV crimes (Erez,

Ibarra, & Gur, 2015; Swaine, 2015; McWilliams & McKiernan, 1993). That the introduction

of a more representative police force16 as part of the peace agreement in Northern Ireland has

had an impact on the ground is suggested by the findings of the 2016 study that participants

from nationalist communities no longer report that police did not respond to their calls and

the more general view among all participants (including those from nationalist backgrounds)

that the police were a group they could go to for assistance. In this regard, the findings

suggest that the uptick in the number of incidents reported to the police since the end of the

conflict is more likely a result of greater reporting of IPV following increased trust in and

access to policing than simply an increase in incidents of IPV (Hoewer, 2013; McWilliams &

Ni Aolain, 2013; Jarman, 2004).

While a number of other factors have undoubtedly contributed to improvements in

policing of IPV, including local and global shifts in criminal justice and societal attitudes

over the decades, what this research tells us is that the transition from violent conflict to

peaceful political settlement has also a pivotal role to play. In this regard, the findings

reinforce other arguments that the end of a conflict and crucially the reforms (institutional,

legislative etc.) as part of the new political settlement provide a unique opportunity to

positively transform a society (Zinsstag, 2005). While the analysis presented here has focused

on the consequences of the intended reforms to policing and specifically on the impact of the

changes to the religious make-up of the force, an interesting avenue for further enquiry is

how the unintended changes to the gender makeup of the force17 following these reforms 16 Around 68% and 32% of officers were from protestant and catholic backgrounds in 2016 (PSNI, 2016; CAIN, 2004).17 The proportion of female officers has increased 15.8% from 12.6% (one third of whom were in the part time reserve) to 28.4% (none of whom were in the part time reserve) over the study period (PSNI, 2016; CAIN, 2004).

27

have shaped policing of IPV in Northern Ireland.

Improvements to policing and demilitarisation have also played a key role in limiting

the power and control of paramilitary groups in conflicted communities. Greater access to

and trust in police for participants from nationalist communities following mainly from the

aforementioned reforms has seemingly meant participants from nationalist communities are

no longer compelled to contact paramilitary groups for assistance. Also with regard to the

influence of paramilitarism, and although a certain level of continuity exists between the

studies with some perpetrators attempting to derive their coercive control from an affiliation

with armed groups, the reduction in the paramilitary influence post conflict has meant that

this is often unsuccessful. Finally, the results show that disarmament processes and better

police responses where legally held firearms do exist has limited the use of firearms in IPV

relationships. These findings mean that, in essence, perpetrators of IPV are now much less

able to control their intimate partners using the threat of paramilitarism or firearms.

These conclusions have several implications for policy, both locally in Northern

Ireland and in other societies exiting violent conflict. First, the results underscore the

important consequences of effective and balanced policing reforms for victims of IPV,

particularly in societies where a conflict has an ethnic or sectarian basis. It is clear that, for

the case of Northern Ireland, the reforms to policing as part of the peace agreement, such as

the more representative, transparent and accountable police service has had a positive impact

for victims of IPV. It should be kept in mind that these outcomes are not inevitable, and while

the results from Northern Ireland have shown the positive implications of post-conflict

policing reforms for victims of IPV, the findings from other post-conflict nations in which

reforms of the police and policing practice were also a critical component of peace processes

have not measured an improvement in policing responses to IPV (Muftić, 2014). Within

Northern Ireland, our research shows that the creation of a more representative police force

28

following the introduction of a quota system for police recruits and the re-orientation post

conflict towards community policing were important steps. These provide examples of what

works and could potentially be drawn on by policymakers and those working in criminal

justice systems making the transition from conflict to peace.

Second, the research highlights the importance of ensuring that in the various

processes of DDR, the impact of militarism/paramilitarism and masculinity on women’s lives

is also addressed. It shows the imperative of policy makers incorporating these aspects into

their work on peace building. These issues are often overlooked by policy makers,

particularly from a gendered perspective. In the Northern Ireland peace process for instance,

it was only the female negotiators who raised the issue of the impact of firearms and

disarmament for women domestic violence situations (Waylen, 2014; McWilliams & Ni

Aolain, 2013). An outcome of this in the negotiations was the introduction of a protocol

requiring police officers to keep these firearms in their workplace. This accentuates the

importance of involving women in peace negotiations and how their involvement can break

down the presumed barriers between ‘ordinary’ (IPV) and ‘extraordinary’ (rape by armed

forces) violence (Waylen, 2014; McWilliams & Ni Aolain, 2013). Perhaps more than

anything, the results show the value of political settlements as pivotal points for societal

transformation. It is therefore imperative that global policy makers increase their awareness

of and attention towards the terms and implications of political settlements not only for

victims of IPV but for all of society.

29

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