Malachi O'Doherty
Belfast Telegraph
United Kingdom
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Past articles by Malachi:
Finance will play part as issue of euthanasia debated
The story of Ireland in my generation has been a journey over a series of social morality hurdles. Basically, the country was formed as a nation with a sense of moral responsibility. It claimed independence partly on grounds that it was innately more moral than Britain. Ireland would defer to the Catholic Church and legislate on how people conducted their private lives. → Read More
Supreme Court has left DUP with nowhere to go but back into Assembly
The wisdom of a thousand tweets last week was that the DUP had soiled its own nest. Having brought down the Assembly in protest against the NI Protocol, which the Assembly has no power to change, the party has been left by the Supreme Court with nowhere else to go but back in. → Read More
Malachi O’Doherty: Cruel humiliation of contestants on The Apprentice leaves sour taste
I wonder if the people who put themselves forward as contestants on The Apprentice have ever seen the show. If they had done they would understand that they are there not to impress us with their entrepreneurial skills but to make eejits of themselves. → Read More
Malachi O’Doherty: I’m with Prince Harry… if he was just an ordinary rich brat who ditched legacy for love, he’d be a modern hero
I’m with Harry. I don’t understand why more aren’t. If he had not been a prince in the British royal family but just an ordinary rich brat who had wised up and ditched his legacy for the woman he loved he would be a modern hero. → Read More
Malachi O’Doherty: Democratic deficit remains despite creation of Good Friday Agreement to correct flaw
The Good Friday Agreement (GFA), which is 25 years old this year, was devised to correct a flaw in our democracy. It needs to be revised for the same reason. Again, we have a minority in need of protection. → Read More
Malachi O'Doherty: The Traitors is a psychology lesson for the whole country and one of the reasons 2022 might actually be remembered as especially creative
I am on holiday in my head now, so I have nothing to say about politics, local or international. I wish a happy Christmas to everyone, apart from a small few. → Read More
Malachi O’Doherty: Only the eradication of sectarianism will stabilise politics in NI
Political culture has not changed enough in the 25 years since the Good Friday Agreement. → Read More
Malachi O'Doherty: Why true unity is a distant dream while we are so divided
Since my book Can Ireland be One? was published I have been hearing responses from critics and in conference discussions. → Read More
Malachi O'Doherty: Why it’s important for journalists to show a human side
When I started out in journalism I was given a piece of advice by one of my mentors and I have ignored it. Andrew Boyd was one of the lecturers on the journalism course in the college of business studies. → Read More
Malachi O'Doherty: Lack of open support for IRA’s campaign is a positive sign
A book by former journalist John Devine, The Seventh Man, being launched this month depicts an IRA man suing a newspaper which named him as an IRA man. This sort of thing happens in real life. → Read More
Malachi O' Doherty: Republicans who call me an Uncle Tom disgrace their cause
Is it sectarian for one Catholic to abuse or insult another Catholic with one of the jibes normally employed by Protestant bigots? I think it is. Others disagree. → Read More
Malachi O'Doherty: We must face music about importance of songs in Irish history
There is an old saying that it is more effective to write the songs of a nation than its laws. An internet search traces this back to the Scot Andrew Fletcher and shows that he was remarking on the power of hymns and ballads. → Read More
Malachi O'Doherty: Unionism will have battle to survive if it has nothing to offer
How might we rethink the Union? Margaret Thatcher famously said that the people of Northern Ireland were as British as those of her constituency, Finchley. That’s not quite true. → Read More
Malachi O'Doherty: Unionism paying the price for never trying to win over Catholics
If I was a real unionist, what might I do to try to secure the Union? I would be anxious that something needs to be done. For the first century of Northern Ireland’s existence, it had pegged its hopes to demography. So long as there was a Protestant majority and so long as Protestants could be encouraged to believe that the Union was theirs and in their interests, there was no problem. → Read More
Malachi O’Doherty: How Queen’s death brings our cultural divisions to the fore
A friend from a Protestant background phoned me up the day after the Queen had died and said he wept when he heard the news. He was telling me this because the tears had surprised him. The news had hardly come as a shock — she was 96. → Read More
Malachi O’Doherty: Preparation for Irish unity must begin before a pro-majority is evident
You would think to hear some that the country is buzzing with enthusiasm for Irish unity, that people in the bars and conference rooms have nothing else to talk about. → Read More
Malachi O’Doherty: Imagine a world where the Troubles never happened
Where would we be now if the Troubles had not happened? → Read More
Malachi O’Doherty: Tory leadership race exposes the disdain the Conservative Party has for voters
If you are a member of a political party, you are likely to be more concerned about the core ethos of that party than you expect voters to be. → Read More
Malachi O'Doherty: Sinn Fein needs to end its Westminster boycott to give us all a voice
Wouldn’t it be nice to be noticed? There have been a few heartening moments in Westminster, notably when Claire Hanna has got to her feet, when you might be tempted to indulge the fantasy that parliament in London knows about us and cares. → Read More
Malachi O’Doherty: Council sending out the wrong sign if it wants to heal division
I lived in India during the most formative years of my adult life — between 24 and 28. I immersed myself in meditation and Hindu culture. I learnt a little Hindi and I have recently returned to India and started taking up formal lessons in Hindi. → Read More