Government without consensus a challenge

IT IS true that in 2003 Irish people realised their democratic process was derailed?

Their constitutionally-protected right to be the final decision makers was not honoured by government when the M3 was driven through Tara against the will of an overwhelming majority of Irish people.

The current chaos and division where Irish people simply do not relate to their government comes from this and other examples of blatant disregard of democratic sentiment.

Perhaps this is the “bitter memories” Yeats warned of in his 1929 letter.

Democracy depends on a consensual common direction.

As the race for the Áras descends into a farce, where participation and even voting seems discouraged, perhaps we should add Tara to the ballot paper and tell the government we want real reform of our democratic system.

Fine Gael and Labour got into government with many promises of real democratic reform.

In government, the priority seems to have morphed into an attitude that we’ve had one democratic revolution this year — let’s ensure we don’t have another one.

A challenge Irish people always like to live up to.

Pauline Bleach

NSW

Australia