Agenda item

            The Members were reminded that the Council, at its meeting in March 2019, had agreed to accept the gift of a statue representing non-violence from The Olsson family, founders and owners of Stena Line. The owner supports many causes and charities, including the Non-Violence Project Foundation. The family was interested in exploring a potential initiative with the City of Belfast.

            The symbol for this was the famous statue by Carl Reutersvärd, which, among other places, was situated in front of the United Nations building in New York. That statue is a well-known symbol of peace and non-violence.

            While it might initially appear that the image of the “knotted gun” does not sit comfortably within the Belfast context, the Members might wish to note the statue can be customised to meet local needs  / issues and it can be colourful and vibrant.  However, given the Belfast context - a city moving out of conflict and which is being regenerated, not just centrally but in local communities with the aim of promoting connection and cohesion, the Council considered Girdwood as an appropriate place to site the statue.

            The representatives from Stena Line were impressed with the history and the development of the site. The building of a shared space in a previously contested area, the development of a further phase to continue the work at the site and beyond including linkages to a major arterial route were factors, which they recognised sat with the aims of the project as well as providing natural local connections with any potential programme.

            As the Council had agreed to the above request, the company have stated that they would be willing to invest significant funds in a programme for children and young people through schools which would look at non-violence. They had advised that they would wish the Council to take the lead on this initiative.  The Members would be aware that the Council was currently supporting a number of programmes through PEACE IV but these were confined to afterschool activities as stipulated by the funding conditions.

            In the interim, officers had met with representatives from the Education Authority (EA) who were responsible for Shared Education and the suggestion would be that a partnership approach be undertaken. That would mean that, in addition to the financial contribution from Stena Line, resources could be accessed from the Shared Education Programme through the EA. The Council had already agreed that funding from the Council’s Good Relations Action Plan be directed towards a schools intervention programme.

            In implementing this approach, it would deliver a flexibility to work with schools/groups on a single identity basis, reduce the risk of duplication, increase the significance of the programme and meant that ongoing support and progression could continue which would result in the projects being mainstreamed – a more sustainable approach.

            Such an approach would require the Council and the EA to enter into a partnership agreement and Members were asked to give approval for officers to progress this  agreement, subject to input from Legal services and approval from the Education Authority.

            It should be noted that progress reports on the programme would be brought to the Shared City Partnership in the first instance and then through the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee.

            The unveiling of the statue would take place in Girdwood on 13thSeptember 2019 from 11am - 12pm. It was envisaged that the Lord Mayor and Mr Olssen would undertake the unveiling.  In advance of the event, a creative programme was being organised with young people who use Girdwood to ensure their participation and understanding around shared space and the reason behind the statue.  Panels would also be developed to tell the story of Girdwood and the background to the statue to give the piece context.  The Lord Mayor would also host a visit for Mr Olssen on the same day to acknowledge his contribution to the City of Belfast.

            The Committee noted the update on progress and granted approval for officers to progress a partnership approach and agreement with the Education Authority regarding a nonviolence programme.