Dublin City University remembers John Hume
DCU today remembers politician and Nobel Peace Prize winner, John Hume, who passed away at the age of 83 on August 3rd.
John Hume was conferred with an honorary doctorate by DCU on March 26th 1994. He was joined that day by former US Ambassador to Ireland, Mrs. Kennedy Smith, Stanford academic and sociologist, Professor James March, and Chairman of Killeen Investments, Timothy Mahony.
Born in Derry in 1939, the Northern Irish politician is widely regarded as one of the most important figures in the recent political history of Ireland, one of the architects of the Northern Ireland peace process.
He was a founding member of the SDLP, a party he led from 1979 to 2001. He also served as a member of the European Parliament, and a member of the UK Parliament, as well as a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Mr. Hume was co-recipient of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize with David Trimble and was also awarded both the Gandhi Peace Prize and the Martin Luther King Award. He is the only person to receive the three major peace awards.
At DCU’s honorary doctorate ceremony in 1994, the citation for John Hume spoke about the significant European dimension to his work but also about how he had never lost sight of the need to fill the political vacuum in Northern Ireland itself, to substitute discussion and dialogue for destabilisation and despair.
“His promotion of the idea for the New Ireland Forum in 1983-84 was an initiative which related directly to this perceived need. It led inexorably to the Anglo-Irish Agreement of 1985, and since then he has been at the cutting edge of a series of negotiations based on his belief that it is a partnership which respects diversity, rather than recourse to violence, which represents the best, indeed the only true way forward for his fellow-countrymen.
He has carried this message around the globe, to any country or city where there was a willing audience for it, and has been substantially responsible for putting the problems of the island, and his own creative and innovative ideas about solutions for them, on the agenda of concerned opinion internationally.
As a negotiator, his tirelessness – and his sheer physical stamina – are already legendary, even in a profession well used to interminable sessions in smoke-filled rooms. Nor should we ignore his personal courage, an attribute shared by many people working for peace in our divided communities, but one about which he would be characteristically modest, even off-hand. And, when we talk about his commitment to partnership, it is entirely appropriate to mention, on this occasion, his very special partnership with his wife Pat, whose equally unfailing energy, political skills, commitment and support are integral to his life and work.
We are delighted and honoured that John Hume, Irishman and European, has agreed to accept this award.”
President of DCU, Professor Daire Keogh, said:
“DCU is today mourning the death of John Hume, peace-maker and champion of civil rights. John played such a critical role in paving the way for peace in Northern Ireland and his work has had such a positive impact throughout the world. We are extremely proud to count him amongst the honorary doctors of our university.”
Pictured: John Hume with former DCU President, Danny O'Hare, and Jean Kennedy Smyth at the 1994 Honorary Conferring