Shannon war flights a separate issue

BRENDAN HAYES (Letters, August 13) asks “will the anti-war movement which has been protesting about US troop stopovers lend its support to the Shannon workers whose livelihoods are currently under serious threat?”

The answer is that we were, and are, protesting against the loss of lives in Iraq — not loss of livelihoods at Shannon.

It is regrettably the case that some of the workers at Shannon have been facilitating those losses of innocent lives.

The abandonment by Aer Lingus of the Shannon/Heathrow route is regrettable, but no one will die as a result. Since 2001 a route has been operated by the US military and the CIA between the USA and Middle East to fight unlawful wars and perpetrate torture. Shannon airport has been a central supporting pillar for this murderous route.

We should not be surprised by the shortsighted ‘commercial’ decision by Aer Lingus. I am not surprised either by the whinging of local Fianna Fáil politicians and business interests at this decision.

These same individuals, particularly Willie O’Dea, actively supported the use of Shannon airport by the US military for mid-west economic reasons, regardless of the economic and humanitarian effects of these wars on the people of the Middle East.

What has surprised me, though, is the response by Christian church leaders to the Aer Lingus decision (the local Muslin imam was not included).

The church leaders highlighted the social and moral implications of the Aer Lingus decision.

The silence of these same Christian leaders on the moral implications of Ireland’s, and Shannon airport’s, participation in the Iraq war has been deafening so far.

Our tears for Shannon airport should be tears of shame, tears for the Iraqi dead, and not tears for our own self-centred commercial interests.

Edward Horgan

Newtown

Castletroy

Co Limerick