Mayo Sinn Féin Sinn Féin -- Building an Ireland of Equals

QUEEN'S VISIT TO CASTLEBAR IS INAPPROPRIATE AND UNACCEPTABLE

Published: 29 July, 2010

Sinn Féin Councillor Thérèse Ruane, has described an official visit by the Queen of England to Ireland and Castlebar as "totally unacceptable." At the meeting of Castlebar Town Council she voiced her disapproval for such a visit in response to a motion put forward by Fine Gael to invite the Queen to Castlebar. She has welcomed Independent Councillor Michael Kilcoyne's opposition to the motion.

Cllr. Ruane said:

"I'm totally opposed to any official visit by the Queen of England to this state for a number of reasons, which I clearly outlined at the Council meeting.

Firstly, the financial cost of such a visit is phenomenal … at a minimum ... in excess of ten million, the cost of which the hard pressed taxpayer will shoulder the burden. At a time when we're in deep recession, a deep economic crisis; we have 1 in 4 young people unemployed; in excess of 450,000 on the live register; draconian measures on social welfare; cuts to SNAs, cuts in disability services; home help, our health services are decimated, our education system in crisis, and all these cuts impacting on the most vulnerable in our communities … and yet this government are proposing to spend hard eanred taxpayers money on an official state visit by the Queen of England. This is appalling. We just can't afford it.

Secondly, an all party motion was passed nearly two years ago in the Dáil calling on the British Government to give to an international judicial figure the files in its possession relating to the Dublin and Monaghan bombings of May 1974, in which 33 people died and other acts of collusion in the 26 counties. The British Government has refused to cooperate and provide these files so that the victims and their families can have closure. It seems very cynical to me that on the same day as the Taoiseach's welcome for a Queen's state visit came, the Taoiseach admitted that he had failed to raise this issue with Gordon Browne during this term of office and refused to give a commitment to raise the issue of collusion with the Prime Minister, David Cameron."

"While the Saville Report into Bloody Sunday is a very welcome development in vindicating the dead of Bloody Sunday, it was only the tip of the iceberg of British State Killings north and south of the border. It's past time that the British government lives up to its responsibilities and answers questions on collusion. Victims and their families need justice and truth. It's apalling that just last week the government cut funding to 'Justice for the Forgotten, a group comprising of victims families and surviviors of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings.'

"And of course, the British state continues its imperial policies and human rights abuses accross the world, in particular in Afghanistan and Iraq."

"Sinn Féin opposes the proposed state visit of the Queen of England, Commander-in-Chief of the British armed forces to Ireland. Until there is complete withdrawal of the British military and the British administration from Ireland, and until there is justice and truth for victims of collusion, no official welcome should be accorded to any officer of the British armed forces of any rank."