Archbishop’s words commendable

WE congratulate the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin, Most Rev John Neill, on his courageous and thought-provoking criticism of the US military and CIA use of Shannon airport.

The archbishop’s words have not only drawn attention to one of the most morally unacceptable political scandals in the history of the Irish state, but have also highlighted the deafening silence of other churches and their failure to speak out for the victims of war and military aggression.

The silence of the Catholic bishops on the Government’s complicity in the Iraq war and their failure to criticise Government policy on this issue does a great disservice to its congregation and to many of its clergy who have actively campaigned against this illegal war.

As members of the Green Party who are continuing to campaign on this issue, we are deeply saddened and feel a moral responsibility for our party’s failure, thus far, to have one of its key principles, opposition to war, included in the programme for government. We believe the continued US abuse of Irish neutrality is morally and politically wrong.

Why must international peace always be the first casualty in political compromises? Peace was achieved in Northern Ireland by political courage and by the abandonment of guns, bombs and killing machines. The credibility and integrity of the Irish people is at stake if we continue to promote peace at home and wars abroad.

Its time to stop turning a blind eye to war, military aggression and injustice and instead to speak up for the voiceless and abandoned victims of war. The Iraq war has probably caused the deaths of more than half a million people so far, including more than 250,000 children.

We believe that in a referendum on this issue, Irish people would vote against our territory being misused for such unjust and immoral purposes.

It is a gross abuse of democracy to use Irish freedom to help kill tens of thousands of innocent “foreigners” by proxy.

The killing of innocent people can never be in the long-term interests of the Irish people.

Patricia McKenna

Cllr Niall O’Brolchain

Cllr Chris O’Leary

Cllr Betty Doran

Cllr Malcolm Noonan

Edward Horgan

Kristina McElroy

Anita Curtis

Green Party

16/17 Suffolk St

Dublin 2