23 years ago today, 3 May 1997, was a historic day for peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland – Mo Mowlam aka Marjorie Mowlam was appointed as the first female Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. She became central to the ultimate Good Friday Agreement. Yet, she was 
later largely airbrushed from the official history. Was this because she was a woman?
A "magic mediator", she was as Peter Hain said following her death in 2005, "the catalyst that allowed politics to move forward which led to the signing of the Good Friday Agreement".
Unlike
A "magic mediator", she was as Peter Hain said following her death in 2005, "the catalyst that allowed politics to move forward which led to the signing of the Good Friday Agreement".
Unlike
male predecessors, she had a very down-to-earth, direct and unique interventionist style, with an issues-based perspective and inclusivity which allowed her to overcome stereotypes and conventional ways of doing things.
She was not afraid of flouting conventions, put her feet on
She was not afraid of flouting conventions, put her feet on
the table during negotiations, tossing off her wig to expose her cancer treatment induced baldness, calling people like Martin McGuinness a bastard, to their face, et cetera.
From her autobiography:"I used to do weird things. Yes, I used to make tea when working late night on
From her autobiography:"I used to do weird things. Yes, I used to make tea when working late night on
the Good Friday Agreement. I used to wander around with chips and get Chinese takeaways. Making tea for Clinton was just to take the piss out of him."
"One of the ways you get people to break down their ego and neuroses is to deal with them as human beings," she said. "One of the
"One of the ways you get people to break down their ego and neuroses is to deal with them as human beings," she said. "One of the
difficulties in the past with extreme republicans and loyalists was that people treated them with kid gloves. Whether republican or loyalist, you breathe, you shit, you're normal, apart from your ideology and beliefs, which causes you to kill people."
Inclusiveness and openness
Inclusiveness and openness
and willingness to talk to any and all was a hallmark of her style. Contrary to all advice, she went into the Maze Prison, on her own, to talk to loyalist paramilitaries including Mad Dog Adair and Michael Stone, when the loyalists withdrew their support for the peace process. It
proved crucial as it showed she respected one and all as having a voice. She was successful in restoring the IRA ceasefire and including Sinn Fein in multi-party talks.
In 2009 Julie Walters portrayed Mo Mowlam in a Channel 4 film "Mo", Walters receiving the BAFTA Best Actress
In 2009 Julie Walters portrayed Mo Mowlam in a Channel 4 film "Mo", Walters receiving the BAFTA Best Actress
award for her portrayal.
Mowlam's central role was later largely airbrushed out of the official history, leading to her stepdaughter Henrietta Norton (and former Labour Party leader Harriet Harman) complaining about the omission on the 20th anniversary celebration of the Good
Mowlam's central role was later largely airbrushed out of the official history, leading to her stepdaughter Henrietta Norton (and former Labour Party leader Harriet Harman) complaining about the omission on the 20th anniversary celebration of the Good
Friday agreement in 2018 about the fact that she was not even mentioned by Tony Blair in his speech. theguardian.com/commentisfree/…
