How they see it in the south.

I was lucky enough to spend two weeks in Ireland last month just before and after the May 22 vote on the Northern Ireland peace agreement. A few nights after the historic vote, I attended a large panel discussion in Dublin about the probable effects of the referendum. It was striking that all the speakers were positive about the vote. Both the "no" voters and the "yes" voters were optimistic. As the Irish would say, "Lovely."

The agreement commits both Northern Ireland and the Republic to establish four institutions: a North/South Multi-Level Council, a British-Irish Council, a British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference, and implementation bodies through which cooperation will take place on a cross-border, all-island level. In the Republic, the vote was only to change the Constitution to eliminate the claim of a legal right to a united Ireland, and that only if the peace agreement were accepted in the North would the Republic be bound by it. Any future union must come by a vote of both the North and the Republic.

The agreement puts in place a jerry-built system of fragmented but shared responsibility. Moreover, there is to be a thorough review of the criminal justice system in the North. There also will be a new power-sharing assembly, sitting in the North, elected by proportional representation.

People of good will on both sides of this bloody conflict are going to have to begin to trust one another. Trust can only come from contact: working together; being in a dub, school, or union; or serving together on a hospital board. The extremists will not magically disappear. Terrorists on both sides have historically dipped into crime: drugs, prostitution, and theft. That will not end soon. But even looking at the immediate past we see signs that bitterness was not universal. For example, two sisters of the murdered Protestant terrorist Billy Wright are married to Catholics.

Some, looking at the very large vote favoring the agreement, have said, simplistically, "It was the economy, stupid." The improved economy throughout Ireland certainly helped, and maybe the referendum's success could not have been achieved in the poverty and unemployment of the past. The Ireland of today is not the Ireland of the jaunting cart, but the Ireland of a Catholic mayor in Belfast; an Ireland of new bars, restaurants, and boutiques; of young people, nose rings and tattoos; of cellular phones; of participation in the European economic community; of a merger of the Boy Scouts from the North and from the Republic; and of technological revolution. There is soon to be a cross-border fishing agreement. A nonsectarian college for 4,000 students open to both "sides" is planned for the North. Unemployment is down, and the economies are up. In the 3.5 million Republic, 6 million tourists are expected this year.

In addition, on May 22, to help all of Ireland, the people of the Republic clearly endorsed the Amsterdam Treaty by 61.7 percent of the vote. That agreement broadens the number of countries in the European Union and ties Ireland more securely to it. This should bolster the economic position of the Republic, furthering Ireland's modern image as the "Celtic Tiger."

There are other bright lights on the horizon. Britain has recently promised to pump $160 million into Northern Ireland. The United States and the World Bank have pledged $325 million in aid to the North.

When the euphoria dissipates a bit, the people of Ireland will retain warm memories of America's George Mitchell, whose wisdom and patience kept the negotiations going through the intransigence and the prima donna displays - and despite the ghastly memories of the recent past.

I have heard Mitchell mentioned for the Nobel Peace Prize, but I think he should get special prizes: a prize for a display of great "lawyering" by keeping out of the media spotlight and giving that to his "clients"; a prize for his discipline in not revealing his own feelings about the participants; the Order of Saint Lazarus for resurrecting the talks time and time again; the Job Award for his patience, humility, and perseverance in a terrible situation. And finally, a simple medal for courage.

Norris L. O'Neill lives in West Hartford, Connecticut.