Irish-language rap group Kneecap, who feature in an award-winning docu-fiction, on Friday won a case in Belfast over a decision by the UK government to refuse them an arts grant.

The hip hop trio from West Belfast, who rap in a mix of English and Irish Gaelic, launched legal action against Conservative party leader Kemi Badenoch for the decision, taken when she was business secretary. Kneecap accused Badenoch of discriminating against them on the basis of nationality and political opinion to block a funding award they had applied for.

While the application was approved by the British Phonographic Industry, which promotes recorded music in the UK, Badenoch refused the funding in February this year. A Conservative government spokesperson at the time had said it was “hardly surprising that we don’t want to hand out UK taxpayers’ money to people that oppose the United Kingdom itself”.

Northern Ireland is a devolved part of the UK, with pro-Britain unionists and pro-Irish nationalists forming a power-sharing government under the 1998 Belfast/Good Friday Agreement that ended three decades of sectarian violence over British rule. Kneecap members Liam Óg Ó Hannaidh, Naoise Ó Caireallain and J.J. Ó Dochartaigh have said they support Irish unity.

They are known for rapping about issues including class inequality and Northern Ireland’s “Troubles” in their punchy and provocative tracks.

The UK Department of Business and Trade finally decided not to contest the case and agreed the original decision was “unlawful and unfair”. In the Belfast High Court hearing on Friday, it was agreed that the government in London would pay the group £14,250 ($18,000).

Kneecap has said it would give the money to two youth groups on either side of the open border between Northern Ireland and Ireland. “For us this action was never about the 14,250 pounds... The motivation was equality,” the group said in a statement after the hearing.

“This was an attack on artistic culture, an attack on the Good Friday Agreement and an attack on Kneecap.” The rap group formed in 2017 is the subject of a semi-autobiographical film “Kneecap” about three Belfast upstarts who rap in the ancient language. The film has been named in 14 categories in the British Independent Film Awards in December and selected to represent Ireland in the foreign language category at next year’s Oscars.—AFP