Letters to the Editor: For and against Michael D Higgins' comments about neutrality

Readers mull over the President's remarks about neutrality — and another looks forward to tomorrow's summer solstice with trepidation given the radical climate change we are witnessing 

President Michael D Higgins applauds before the Republic of Ireland's UEFA Euro 2024 qualifier against Gibraltar in the Aviva Stadium, Dublin, on Monday night. Picture: Niall Carson/PA

President has got it wrong on neutrality

“The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis.” So said Dante and it was repeated by Martin Luther King. 

If there was ever a moral crisis, then the world is facing one now.

There is nothing in the Constitution referring to our neutrality, yet President Higgins continues to take this line. However well-meaning he may be, he has it wrong when it comes to neutrality and the safety and protection of the country he is the President of.

Take the Ukrainian conflict for example. It’s hard to imagine anyone taking a neutral stance concerning it. This is a perfect situation of what is right and what is wrong, a David and Goliath fight, if there ever was one. You are either with Ukraine or against them and sitting on the neutral fence is a dishonourable place to be.

Russia or any other country outside of Nato could invade Ireland just as they did Ukraine and we could do nothing about it, and neither could Nato, as we are not a member.

Take this scenario: The Russians have their ships off the coast of Galway and decide to invade Ireland. They land at Galway and take over the city then the country. So, the enemy opens the gate and walks up your path. You put your hands up and tell them you are neutral and so is Ireland. 

What would their response be to your neutrality? Chances are they would riddle you and those about you, as they did with the citizens of Ukraine.

There is no Utopia in this world, more’s the pity and unlikely to ever be one. The human condition is not equipped to achieve or live in a Utopia. We don’t have the tools for it. All we can do is protect what we have, our independence, our democracy, and our freedom. And if that means an alliance with others such as Nato for that protection then we should take it.

Jim Yates, Old Bawn, Dublin 24

Michael D is leading the conversation

Uachtarán na hÉireann Michael D Higgins has done it yet again. He has spoken out.

President Michael D Higgins inspecting a guard of honour during last year's State commemoration of the 1916 Easter Rising. Picture: Brian Lawless/PA

Most notably, some time back, he hit out at what  he described as a housing disaster. This intervention caused consternation among some government circles.

His latest intervention in relation to Irish neutrality is almost certain to awaken government benches as we head into the summer recess. Some will say that his interventions go beyond to constraints of the Office of President. But surely the role of Uachtarán na hÉireann is to lead national conversations? To reflect the national mood and express it?

He was right about the housing disaster.

He was correct in his assessment not to attend a service of reflection alongside Queen Elizabeth II in October 2021 as the event had moved from being a religious service to one with political undertones marking the partition of Ireland and the creation of Northern Ireland.

President Higgins is now right about this. Ireland has built up an international reputation as peacekeeper, a mediator and as a country of integrity and high regard on the international stage. We have done this by safeguarding our positive neutrality. Regardless of one’s view on the subject, President Higgins has now opened up a conversation that needs to take place and this trait will be one that will mark his legacy as Uachtarán na hÉireann.

Killian Brennan, Clare Village, Malahide Road, Dublin 17

Poodle president?

Is the Government thinking that when it wants the President’s opinion, it will give it to him?

Tom Gilsenan, Dublin 9

How transparent is neutrality forum?

I have serious concerns in relation to the transparency of the upcoming consultative forum on international security. To this end, I have written to the organisers of the forum with four questions:

• 1. What model is being used for this consultative process, and what will be the model for the decision-making process which will follow?
• 2. Are there examples of where this model has been used before?
• 3. Will all submissions to the process, whether of public, private, corporate or of state origin, be made available to the public?
• 4. Will a full list of those involved in the exercise be made available to the public, including all contributors, experts, and consultants?

I have written to the forum organisers twice over the past three weeks and have yet to receive an acknowledgement. Is there anybody in a position to answer these questions?

Elizabeth Cullen, Kilcullen, Co Kildare

Michael D's overreach

We, rightly, have separation of powers. That is at the very core of our Constitution and a president has no more business preaching to us, or to the Government or to the Oireachtas, on neutrality than the chief justice. By doing so he has grossly abused his office.

Tom Carew, Ranelagh, Dublin 6

Politicians unite on a divisive issue

It seems that our Tánaiste and Taoiseach have finally found some common cause to fight, by burying their hatchets in Irish neutrality.

It would greatly help if they told us what’s in it for them, because if it’s anything like politicians’ promises, they may well find themselves on the frontline.

Liam Power, Dundalk, Co Louth

Nato’s history doesn’t inspire

The history of Nato involvement in European and Middle Eastern conflicts since the breakup of the Warsaw Pact with its recruitment of former Soviet countries into its fold, has not been inspiring — destructive, to say the least.

It has resulted in divisions in Yugoslavia which were managed with great skill in Tito’s time. Kosovo is now neither a country nor a state. Where you had one country in Yugoslavia, you now have six. The situation in Kosovo is a tinder box, ready to ignite at any time. The Nato bombing of Yugoslavia was the beginning of the slippery slope to following hidden agendas.

Nato involvement under the guise of security through various UN articles has resulted in mass influx of millions of refugees into Europe from Afghanistan, Libya, Syria, and Iraq. It has brought disaster for the civilians of these countries, not peace or democracy.

It does not take an astrologer to predict that Ukraine is heading down the same road as Nato pours more and more weapons into a country denuded of its youth.

Does Ireland really want to part of this pursuit of ongoing wars by Nato which have led to the destruction of normal life in the countries listed above?

The reason the Irish peacekeeping force is respected, is because it has no hidden agendas. Ireland should plod it’s own course and stick to its constitutional neutrality promoting peace.

President Michael D Higgins is right. After all, he is guardian of the Constitution for the Irish people.

Nuala Nolan, Bowling Green, Galway

Courage to speak

If President Higgins is not allowed defend Irish neutrality, then who will speak for the people? Certainly not the current coalition who seem to be in a headlong rush to abandon the neutral position that the vast majority of our citizens hold.

President Michael D Higgins at the Aviva Stadium on Monday before the Republic of Ireland's UEFA Euro 2024 qualifier match with Gibraltar. Picture: Niall Carson/PA

Mr Higgins has spent a lifetime articulating the causes of the poor, the defenceless, the people of no property. He is held in the highest regard in the top echelons of international diplomacy.

As for the present government, Micheál Martin as its spokesman, says that among the discussions in the forthcoming Forum on International Security, will be threats to critical infrastructure such as undersea cables. But where was Nato when the Nordstream pipeline was destroyed?

Where was Nato when the US, without UN approval, destroyed Iraq 20 years ago, because it held non-existent nuclear weapons?

May I suggest that we are infinitely more likely to have our infrastructure sabotaged by actors much closer to home, than by Russia, which could have no possible reason to damage our puny defences. 

America has form in destabilising regimes across the world in its ongoing neocon policy of perpetual warfare, that bolsters its military industrial complex but does little for the lives of ordinary Americans.

Mr Higgins sees this clearly and has the courage to say so.

Maurice O’Callaghan, Ballydehob, Co Cork

Solace in solstice

Summer solstice, tomorrow, is the longest day of the year or, as Met Éireann might put it, the day in the year with the greatest amount of daylight. We can expect, at least, 17 hours of daylight around summer solstice. The sun is at its highest over Ireland at this time of the year, delivering the warm weather and glorious sunshine of recent weeks.

Although the sun begins to slowly journey south, the next three months is the period when nature is most active in all its glory. The trees are in full foliage, plants and shrubs are blooming, hay and silage are being saved and the coastline and landscapes are at their finest and prettiest. It’s summertime and the living is easy. It’s the season for the glorious days of outdoor living. It’s a time to treat ourselves to 99s and ice-cold drinks.

The effects of global warming on Ireland’s summer are more apparent than ever this summer. 

The sea around our coast is warming much faster, already reaching 15C in late May and likely to surpass 20C by August. Smacks of jellyfish, harbingers of warm water, are already basking off the Wild Atlantic Way. 

Summer season is lasting longer and Mediterranean level temperatures are becoming the norm. Although the summer solstice is upon us, the good weather should keep our green and pleasant land blooming well into September. Make the most of it!

Billy Ryle, Tralee, Co Kerry

CLIMATE & SUSTAINABILITY HUB