Immigrants are not the enemy: Recognise the State of Palestine: The Bluebells are Back

Immigrantsare not the enemy. 

Divide and conquer is an age oldtactic. It is often utilised by conservative elements to advance theirregressive agendas. This is true of the Irish as it is of any other nation. Infact historically some Irish people have acted against the interests of Irelandand supported imperialistic and other colonial or domestic adventurers. Nonetheless the vast majority of Irish people are fair minded, decent andprogressive. 

At this time conservative and right wing elementsare exploiting the issue of asylum seekers and immigrants or race to advancetheir own agenda. They deliberately heighten the mistaken belief by some that‘outsiders’ are responsible for too few jobs, low wages, or a lack of housing,All of the ills of society are blamed on these ‘others’ who are of a differentethnicity or race or religion, colour or language or customs. Northern societysuffers to this day from divisions supposedly based on religious belief.Nowadays however many have come to understand that this is false. It issectarianism pure and simple, created and sustained to divide. So too with racism.Not everyone concerned about immigrants is a racist.  But their fears arebeing whipped up by those who are. 

The reality of course is that it is governmentsthat have responsibility for managing their societies and economies. If thereare not enough homes it is because the government is not planning for orbuilding them. It is not the fault of immigrants. But if there is a housingshortage and there is and immigrants are being accommodated - even in tents, itis easier to pick on them. 

Today theright wing is at it again. Lies are being told and they are being aided in thisby the incompetence of a bad government in Dublin.  A lack ofplanning or consultation with local communities and a failure to investadequate resources in communities affected has provided the right wing with theopportunity to raise tensions and fears. The government’s immigration policycan best be described as shambolic. It is not fit for purpose.

In recentweeks the Minister for Justice claimed that 80% of those applying for asylum inthe South are coming from Britain via the North. She has no evidence, nostatistics, no data to support this claim but the result is that the right wingand some of its allies in the political system and media demand that the borderbe re-imposed and checkpoints established.

Add thisto the lack of planning; the chaotic and very public mess by government offinding hotels or other accommodation. The recent removal of tents in Dublin -and let’s not forget that is how the Traveller community has been treated fordecades - is a disgrace. 

What isneeded is an immigration policy that is rooted in the human values ofcompassion, fairness  and friendship. 

As MaryLou McDonald told the Oireachtas last week: “That means an immigrationsystem that is fair, efficient and enforced, and a system with common sensethat safeguards social cohesion and protects human rights. Both can be doneeffectively in parallel.”

Thereality is that public services North and South would collapse if it were notfor the many immigrants who have travelled to the island of Ireland in recentyears. Our hospitals, nursing homes, schools, transport system, retail sectorand much more would crumple without the new Irish. And they all pay their taxesand contribute to the well being of our society. Just like we Irish do in otherparts of the world. 

Accordingto Migrant Rights Ireland:

·        The South is in the top ten of states whosenationals emigrate to work.

·        It has the second highest proportion of itspopulation living in other countries of the EU.

·        International studies show that it will needmigrant workers to support an increasingly dependent population.

·        The majority of migrant workers are of workingage and contribute more to the economy in taxes and PRSI than they receive inpublic services or social welfare.

·        It has been estimated that migrants contribute€3.7 billion to the economy annually through taxes and PRSI, work permit fees,immigration registration fees, higher education fees and personal consumption.

·        Migrant workers and their families contributeto society and their local communities.

Inaddition a report from the National Economic and Social Council (NESC)several years ago found that migrants help increase economic growth, easelabour market shortages, improve output and contribute to reducing earningsinequality. And Róisín Fitzpatrick, of Deloitte Ireland said in 2022 of theimpact of the pandemic: “The foreign nationals who have taken up thehealthcare assistant roles in nursing homes and care facilities since July 2021have allowed us to support and care for those most vulnerable in Irishsociety.”

So, weneed a fair and responsible, human rights compliant immigration system.Immigrants are not the enemy but those who promote hatred and divisioncertainly are. 

There wasa time when it was the Irish, fleeing hunger, poverty and the repression andexploitation of British colonialism, who were marginalised, denigrated anddepicted as thuggish and ape-like. The diaspora that escaped to Britain, theUSA and elsewhere across the globe, especially after the great hunger, weretreated dreadfully in their new countries. We should never allow ourselves todo on to others what was done on to us. 

 

Recognisethe State of Palestine

SinnFéin’s National Party Chairperson Declan Kearney MLA was in South Africa at theweekend where he spoke at the ‘Global Anti-Apartheid Conference onPalestine.’  The conference was attended by Palestinian groups. Whilethere Declan met with South Africa’s foreign minister and ANC MP Naledi Pandorwho has led the international condemnation of the Israeli state’s genocidal waragainst the Palestinian people. Declan also told Minister Pandor that Sinn Féinfully supports South Africa’s courageous case against Israel at theInternational Court of Justice.

SinnFéin has had a close relationship with the African National Congress going backmany decades and we each have a long history of international solidarity,particularly in support of the right of the Palestinian people to national selfdetermination.

Also atthe weekend the assault by the Netanyahu government on Rafah has forcedhundreds of thousands of Palestinians to again tread the refugee path in theirown place. Over 35,000 Gazans, including 15,000 children, have now been killedwith many more bodies still under the rubble. Western governments, led by theUS and Britain, have refused to demand an immediate and permanent cessation,the release of all hostages (over 6,000 are held by Israel) and unrestrictedhumanitarian aid for the people of Gaza.

In themidst of this carnage the United Nations General Assembly last week took theimportant step of voting in favour of granting "new rights andprivileges" to the state of Palestine, creating a path toward fullUN-member status. Almost 150 countries voted in favour of upgrading Palestine'sstatus, with nine voting against and 25 abstentions. The resolution also callson the Security Council to reconsider the request for Palestine to become the194th member of the United Nations.  When this last came before theSecurity Council in April it was vetoed by the United States.

Finally,in what could be a historic decision the EU'sHigh Representative for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell appeared to confirmIrish media reports that Ireland, Spain and other like-minded EU member statescould formally recognise the State of Palestine on 21 May. It should no longerbe conditional. It is long overdue especially for Ireland. The Irish governmentmust take this vitally important step and do what the Oireachtas voted for tenyears ago. 

 

The Bluebells are Back

Comhgairdheasto all of those involved in the planning of Féile na gCloigíni Gorma – theBluebell Festival 2024. This is the eighth year of this wonderful event inBelfast’s Upper Springfield/Ballymurphy area. Féile includes mountain walks andtalks and poetry and music. 

TheFestival will honour the dedication of visionary community activist Seán MacGoill whose name adorns the local Glór na Móna centre. Several weeks agofollowing his death I wrote about Seán.  He was one of a band ofactivists who was centrally involved in the growth and development of the Irishlanguage in Belfast. The festival itself is a celebration of life and natureand of the contribution of the Black Mountain in the lives of the people of theUpper Springfield.

Itis on until this Saturday and a programme of the events can be foundhere: https://www.glornamona.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/FNAG_2024_Digital-2.pdf