A significant number of people in the Whiterock and Ballymurphy area of west Belfast feel that life has got worse or at best remained the same since the Belfast Agreement, a new academic study has found.
Some respondents to the survey, carried out by the University of York, said they felt safer during the Troubles because the presence of the IRA in the area ensured a clampdown on drug dealing, crime and anti-social activity. One group said that in many ways "it is a pity that the Troubles stopped".
The reasons for the continuing high-stress levels and deprivation in the west Belfast community was mainly down to two reasons - an intractable feud involving a number of families in Ballymurphy, and the actual legacy of the Troubles, particularly the increase in crime.
The assessment of mental health needs and problems in the general Whiterock area was conducted by Dr David Connolly of the university on behalf of the local community group, Corpus Christi Services.
The feud, in which one person has died, several more have been assaulted and many have been forced from their homes, was of particular concern to people. Earlier during the summer PSNI chief constable Sir Hugh Orde was invited to Whiterock by Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams to explore ways with the community of resolving the feud.
Dr Connolly, who specialises in post-conflict issues, found that many respondents to the survey "felt that the emotional and psychological well-being of some within the community is now worse compared to during the Troubles".
For instance, in a survey of 69 households 23 said mental health needs and problems had got worse since the Belfast Agreement in 1998, 10 felt the situation was the same, while a small majority of 36 felt the situation had improved.
There were references in the study to how some respondents felt the "the cause focused and united the community" but that the Troubles' sense of cohesion was now lost.
