BELFAST -- A predictable row over flags divided Northern Ireland's power-sharing government today, a day after hopes for peace were raised by the new coalition's first cabinet meeting.
As expected, ministers from Sinn Fein, the political ally of the Irish Republican Army, refused to allow the British Union Jack to be flown on its own above their offices.They want either no flags at all or for the British and Irish flags to be flown side by side.
The pro-British Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) accused Sinn Fein of flouting the 1998 Good Friday peace accord that has brought a fragile peace to the British province.
"Flying the Union flag is a legitimate expression of the consent principle. The Union flag is a constitutional symbol," Arts and Culture Minister Michael McGimpsey, a senior UUP figure, said.
But Conor Murphy, a Sinn Fein member of the Northern Irish assembly, rejected this, saying the Good Friday agreement allowed for "parity of esteem" for both Catholic republicans and Protestant unionists.
"The two Sinn Fein ministers didn't refuse to fly. They said the union flag should not be flown alone from any department buildings under their jurisdiction," Murphy said.
"The agreement in fact does provide for such a scenario . . . to ensure that symbols and emblems are used in a manner that creates mutual respect rather than division."
But the British Union Jack was raised over the Stormont parliament building today, the anniversary of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth.
At Thursday's first meeting of the coalition cabinet, ministers postponed any joint decision on the flags, leaving the matter to each minister.
Earlier, Protestant First Minister David Trimble and Seamus Mallon, the Catholic deputy first minister, appealed to ministers for "time and space" to resolve the row over the flags.
"This obviously is an issue to which we will return. It would be a good thing if we could resolve the issue ourselves, although I have to say there isn't a great deal of prospect of that happening," Trimble said.
The first powersharing government between the Protestant majority and Catholic minority was suspended by Britain in February, largely because of the IRA's refusal to disarm.
But the coalition was back in business after the IRA pledged to put its arsenal "beyond use" and allow international monitors to verify the undertaking.
The new government's mission is to speed recovery from 30 years of strife that nearly brought the province to its knees and killed 3,600 people.
In a sign of the improving security situation, the British Army said on Friday it had begun to vacate two longstanding and unpopular observation posts overlooking Catholic strongholds in Belfast.
Apart from flags, the coalition is also running into problems over police reforms--another central plank of Good Friday. Sinn Fein will on Friday spell out the changes it wants Britain to make in draft legislation it says fails to reflect the reforms proposed in a policing review by former Hong Kong governor Chris Patten.