 In 1978, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) trial "Ireland v. the United Kingdom" ruled that the techniques used in interrogating prisoners in Northern Ireland "amounted to a practice of inhuman and degrading treatment", in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights.An attempt by the two governments to resolve the conflict in Northern Ireland politically in 1972 through the Sunningdale Agreement failed due to opposition by hard-line factions in Northern Ireland.With no resolution to the conflict in sight, the Irish government established the New Ireland Forum in 1984 to look into solutions.