Irish Examiner view: Amid the unrest in Belfast, let's heed the family of the stabbing victim
PSNI officers faced rioters again last night, Wednesday, at the Sandyknowes roundabout on Antrim Rd in Newtownabbey. Picture: PA
Readers will be aware of the violence which exploded across Belfast on Tuesday night, with buses being burned and families attacked in their homes.
One Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) compared the scenes to the attacks on Northern Ireland Catholics in 1969 which were a precursor to the Troubles — a telling comparison.
The families being attacked on this occasion were minorities and immigrants, following a horrific knife attack on Monday for which a Sudanese national has since been charged.
What made that original attack all the more shocking is the fact that it was filmed, with that footage inevitably making its way online.
An entirely separate discussion is needed on the circulation of that footage, one which needs to examine how social media platforms are able to profit from disseminating such horrors — while also distancing themselves from any consequences.
When these platforms argue against restrictions being imposed on them, then incidents such as this attack should be emphasised when countering those arguments.
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There is no justification for the attacks carried out on defenceless people in Belfast on Tuesday night, some of which led to families being evacuated in the back seats of police cars.
In a remarkable statement from the family of the man who was attacked on Monday night, they thanked all those who had helped him, but also added: “We want to make it absolutely clear that overnight unrest is not welcome, and peaceful protest is the only way forward.
The statement makes it plain to all that the people organising violence in Belfast do not have the support of those directly affected by the incident on Sunday evening.
In a second statement issued late on Wednesday evening through the PSNI, Stephen Ogilvie's family condemned disinformation about his condition being spread on social media which, they said, "is now forcing us to clarify that our loved one is in fact in a stable condition".
It is entirely understandable that people who have seen the footage of the attack are deeply shocked by that footage, and that those people need reassurance. But burning houses and attacking children is not reassuring anyone.
Yesterday, the Dáil debated further motions opposing Ireland’s autumn soccer internationals against Israel.
The shortest version of this long-running debate has the Government saying decisions on the fixtures are for the Football Association of Ireland (FAI), while the Social Democrats are calling for Israel’s exclusion from all international sporting fixtures, and Sinn Féin want the Government to support a boycott of the Ireland-Israel games.
The Government’s reluctance to tell the FAI what to do is understandable, up to a point. Sports bodies like to be autonomous, or to be seen as autonomous, and inserting itself into the FAI’s decision-making might not be a winning move politically for the coalition partners.
On the other hand, it is surely the Government’s job to lead the country, and the FAI’s job to lead soccer in the country. One could argue that the strongest statement on the matter came from long-serving Republic of Ireland star Seamus Coleman when he said the matter “should not have landed on our toes” but should be taken on by the relevant and senior authorities, namely Uefa, the sport’s European governing body, and the Government.
The FAI’s board of directors is scheduled to meet again today to discuss the matter, so there may be some clarity on the way, but in the meantime plenty of observers have noted huge inconsistency in how this issue has been discussed.
The outrage about Israel has not been matched by equally loud outbursts about other regimes. There was a protest by supporters at the recent Ireland-Qatar soccer friendly, but that was focused on Israel rather than Qatar’s appalling human rights record.
Australia has refused to play Afghanistan in cricket because of the latter country’s repression of women, but Cricket Ireland will play a five-day series against Afghanistan in August.
However, Uefa should be the ultimate target for criticism here. It is the governing body and has the responsibility to give direction and act. When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Uefa expelled the former country from club and international competitions, after all. By abdicating its responsibilities here, Uefa has created the mess that Irish players, officials, and politicians are now trying to solve.
It is surely the ultimate nightmare for any Leaving Certificate student. Sitting down for one of those examinations and going through the test paper is stressful enough without having to establish if there is an error in a question.
Unfortunately this week that was the case with the higher level biology paper, when one question contained a significant mislabelling error. The State Examinations Commission (SEC) has already apologised for the error and acknowledged that “this error may have been a cause of confusion for some candidates”, which is a considerable understatement.
The SEC has also confirmed that the error will be taken into account when the papers are being marked.
It is disappointing that the biology paper contained such an error, particularly when these examinations are the focus of the SEC for the entire year.
Questions must surely be asked about the proof-reading of test papers and other preparatory measures, given this mistake.
In that context, it was interesting to note that the SEC was quick to state that no artificial intelligence (AI) software or applications were used in the development of the paper, including the graphics.
It is not clear exactly how reassuring it is to learn that old-fashioned human error was responsible, rather than our new AI overlords.
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