Sinn F\u00e9in\u2019s Spokesperson on Foreign Affairs, Se\u00e1n Crowe TD, has moved and introduced a bill in the D\u00e1il which seeks to amend the Constitution to ensure that Ireland would not and could not aid foreign powers in any way in preparation for war save with the full assent of the D\u00e1il.<\/p>\n
The Bill also affirms the view that Ireland is a neutral state, and that the State would have a policy of non-membership of military alliances.<\/p>\n
Speaking after introducing the Bill at First Stage, Deputy Se\u00e1n Crowe said:<\/p>\n
\u201cI have sought to introduce this Bill to ensure that this Government cannot continue to undermine and erode Irish neutrality.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe continued use of Shannon airport for foreign armies to facilitate war, coupled with the increased militarisation of the EU and this State\u2019s deeper integration in the EU\u2019s military system, ensures this bill is coming up for debate at a good time.<\/p>\n
\u201cAdditionally a recent Red C Poll commissioned by the Peace And Neutrality Alliance (PANA) suggests that approximately 8 out of 10 Irish people are in favour of neutrality.<\/p>\n
\u201cSinn F\u00e9in\u2019s support for neutrality is the product of a developed and coherent republican position stretching back over 200 years of Irish history.<\/p>\n
\u201cSinn F\u00e9in continues this republican tradition and is committed to promoting positive Irish neutrality and an independent foreign policy. We believe Ireland should actively work to promote conflict resolution, peaceful democratic settlements and the right of people throughout the world to self-determination.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe continued stockpiling of nuclear weapons, chemical weapons, and other weapons of mass destruction by some countries, poses a major and serious threat to international security and human survival.<\/p>\n
\u201cSinn F\u00e9in fully supports the role of Irish troops in peacekeeping missions around the world under the auspices of the UN. We believe that this state\u2019s history of serving in UN \u2018Blue Helmet\u2019 peace keeping missions is a matter of pride and can enhance our standing as a neutral state.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Crowe continued:<\/p>\n
\u201cSinn F\u00e9in believes in Positive Neutrality and believes this is the best policy for Ireland and its people.<\/p>\n
\u201cPositive Neutrality is not about sitting on the fence. It is certainly not about taking no action. It is not about pacifism. It is about actively seeking to promote and participate in conflict resolution, demilitarisation.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is quite simply about making politics work to redress legitimate grievances, inequalities and achieving needed social and economic changes \u2013 at both the state and international levels.<\/p>\n
\u201cSinn F\u00e9in recognises that increased global militarisation does not increase security because the biggest threats to peoples safety and security are not perceived military threats; they are poverty, hunger, disease, and injustice.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe believe that a policy of Positive Neutrality recognises the need to adopt a holistic Human Security approach \u2013 which essentially means understanding, confronting, and redressing the social, political and economic roots of conflict.<\/p>\n
\u201cSinn F\u00e9in believes that if Ireland takes the path of Positive Neutrality this State could make a highly significant contribution towards the long-held global objective of international peace with justice and equality.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope this bill will reenergise a debate around Irish neutrality and eventually ensure neutrality is enshrined in our constitution.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
ENDS<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sinn F\u00e9in\u2019s Spokesperson on Foreign Affairs, Se\u00e1n Crowe TD, has moved and introduced a bill in the D\u00e1il which seeks to amend the Constitution to ensure that Ireland would not and could not aid foreign powers in any way in preparation for war save with the full assent of the D\u00e1il. The Bill also affirms […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,79],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1478","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-foreign-affairs","category-neutrality"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/seancrowe.ie\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1478","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/seancrowe.ie\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/seancrowe.ie\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seancrowe.ie\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seancrowe.ie\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1478"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/seancrowe.ie\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1478\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1479,"href":"https:\/\/seancrowe.ie\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1478\/revisions\/1479"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/seancrowe.ie\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1478"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seancrowe.ie\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1478"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seancrowe.ie\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1478"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}