Letters to the Editor: Ukraine horror is a man-made catastrophe
Natali Sevriukova reacts next to her house following a rocket attack in the city of Kyiv, Ukraine, on Friday. Picture: Emilio Morenatti/AP
The unfolding events in Ukraine, and the consequent devastating humanitarian crisis, are almost too horrifying to contemplate.
Already hundreds of millions of vulnerable people across many continents are fighting crises caused by climate change, Covid-19, and economic breakdown.
The last thing the world needs is a man-made catastrophe that will result in bloodshed, displacement, and the loss of civilian lives.
Millions of people in countries in which Trócaire works are already dealing with multiple crisis.
The solidarity of the international community has to be with civilians in Ukraine at this time, and diplomatic efforts need to prevail over the coming days to stave off a disaster.
The principles of international law must be upheld to protect millions of civilians.
Failure to do so will have disastrous consequences and would constitute another unthinkable humanitarian disaster in our world.
We watch with growing horror; we are now facing a European war that we
always thought could never happen, ever again.
Sanctions are worse than useless. Russia has amassed a huge war chest for this moment and there will be no monetary pain. And anyway, China will always trade with Russia.
We know that Putin wants to reverse European history since 1989 and restore the USSR to what he perceives was its former glory.
Although his monologues suggest he is a madman, in reality his course of action has been obvious since 2014 when he marched into Crimea and the world stood by.
The Russians will dominate the entirety of Ukraine in days; there will be deaths and terrible hardship, and we will watch on the internet and on television and bemoan how useless our governments are.
Here in Ireland we are acutely aware that borders can be drawn by powerful people with no thought at all about the consequences for ordinary people.
We now see how ineffective Nato and the EU are when it comes to confronting Vladimir Putin. Europe and USA are incapable of dealing with Putin’s bully boy tactics.
In my opinion, Europe and the world are in serious difficulties from the standard of politicians in place.
Concern is being expressed at both public and government level about the negative effects on day-to-day living costs as a result of the Ukraine crisis.
Given our very high rates of VAT, it would be interesting for the Government to disclose the windfall increases in VAT revenue that these price rises will be generating.
Does this provide some room for our Government to lessen these negative effects by reducing VAT to take account of this unexpected and unbudgeted windfall?
I think President Michael D Higgins was correct to state in his recent speech in Enniskillen that it was “shameful” that there wasn’t still as of yet very much integrated education among schoolchildren in Northern Ireland.
Freedom of religion is recognised by the UN as one of the fundamental international human rights of our modern times and this right has to also include, I believe, the freedom of any citizen anywhere to have the final say about whatever religion he or she wishes to join.
To have the best education about what all religions stand for and then to have one’s own say about whether one truly wants to join any of them would be, I believe, a very good and empowering thing for any child or young citizen to experience.
In Northern Ireland especially, the religion that one belongs to should not be allowed ever again to become little more than an extra badge of division that keeps citizens apart from one another.
True religion should actually be the very opposite to being a source of division among people of goodwill as the message of the parable of the Good Samaritan, I believe, teaches!
In order to counteract the increasingly aggressive nature of exchanges on social media, our elected leaders should be able to show that it is possible to disagree with each other, while at the same time displaying some respect for opposing points of view.
Unfortunately, Mary Lou McDonald’s ongoing aggressive and personalised attacks on Micheál Martin in Dáil Éireann, to the obvious enjoyment of her fellow Sinn Féin TDs, are an appalling example of how people should engage with each other and would be called out as unacceptable if they were directed at a female politician.
Politicians will have very little success in trying to encourage young people to show respect and tolerance for each other if at the same time they are seen to be engaging in abusive and demeaning behaviour towards each other for the sole purpose of soliciting political support from those same young people.
The decision of the Irish government to establish two new Citizens Assemblies, on biodiversity loss and on an elected Dublin Mayor, is welcome.
That said, a glaring omission is any move so far by the Government towards a Citizens Assembly on the constitutional future of Ireland.
It is vital that a broad platform is created and structured debate and dialogue takes place.
We need to plan for a new United Ireland — including constitutional arrangements, the health service, education, economic and social development.
A Citizens Assembly, representative of the people of the whole island, in all their diversity, would help chart the way forward and address these issues.
You cannot argue it is premature to talk of an Irish unity referendum because of lack of preparation, and then fail to prepare with a Citizens Assembly.
