Protestant Fears May Derail Irish Peace

Prime Minister John Major, facing a Protestant rebellion that threatens to torpedo the Northern Ireland peace process and his own government, appealed to the province’s people Wednesday for time and trust.

Unionist politicians, representing the pro-British Protestant majority in Northern Ireland, were alarmed by a leaked document dealing with British and Irish proposals for a Northern Ireland settlement. They threatened earlier Wednesday to bring down Major’s government.

The chance of peace “shouldn’t be thrown away by fears that are unreal and accusations that are untrue,” Major said in a nationally televised address.

Members of the Ulster Unionist Party were outraged by a report in The Times of London that the two governments envisioned a transborder agency in which unionists would be compelled to participate.