Ceasefire

The song was inspired by a Belfast mother who I met on an Italian television programme broadcast from Belfast around the 1994 ceasefire. Her husband had been murdered during the Troubles and she spoke on the programme of how she had forgiven those who had killed him rather than allowing herself to be destroyed by bitterness. As she related this on the television show, I observed how her children watched her and I thought of the power that a mother has in shaping the future of the world for her children, even in the face of the greatest adversity. The song also looks at how ceasefires are bad news for those who deal in the arms trade.

The ceasefires of 1994 signalled a major shift in mindset by both Republican and Loyalist paramilitaries to engage in dialogue as opposed to violence.

Lyrics and Music by Colum Sands, Copyright Elm Grove music