Top Issue 1-2024

10 February 2016

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Fine Gael/Labour, Fianna Fáil guilty of exploiting crime murders for election advantage

FINE GAEL AND LABOUR are guilty of exploiting two horrific gang murders in Dublin to divert attention from their under-resourcing of An Garda Síochána, a neglect that has allowed drugs cartels and gangsters to reassert their power – and not just in recent days but for many years.

The manufactured controversy over the non-jury Special Criminal Court – criticised by Labour candidate and former President Mary Robinson, the United Nations, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties and Amnesty International – has been fuelled by media distortion of Sinn Féin's position and claims that Sinn Féin is “soft on crime”.

Really?

Where were the other parties and the mainstream media when Sinn Féin was front and centre with communities in the anti-drugs movement in the 1980s? They were condemning the direct action forced upon neighbourhoods all but abandoned by 'Official Ireland' to the drugs gangs.

The alleged 'revenge killing' for the Regency Hotel murder took place in Ballybough, in the Dublin Central constituency of Sinn Féin deputy leader Mary Lou McDonald.

She is angry about the insulting deflection tactics from Government and skewed coverage by mainstream media that portrays areas of Dublin as “Gangland”.

“I don't think it serves any purpose or the interests of my community to have party political sniping or, worse still, political opportunism when we deal with this issue,” Mary Lou has said.

 “We need to enable An Garda Síochána to find those responsible, ensure these people face justice and ensure that our court system adheres to the best principles and the best qualities of an open judicial system that you would expect in a democratic society.”

The existence of the jury-less Special Criminal Court is clearly not a deterrent to those intent on carrying out such vicious crimes as those witnessed in Drumcondra and Ballybough in the last few days. A properly-resourced, sufficiently-staffed police service with a presence on the streets is.

Fine Gael Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald's posturing as being tough on crime flies in the face of her Government's record which has seen 140 Garda stations closed and Garda numbers depleted to its lowest number in a decade.

Criminal gangs are emboldened by the notable absence of gardaí on the streets across the state.

Suggestions by Sinn Féin that the Irish state should adhere to best international practice by using anonymous juries via video link to protect them from jury tampering have been dismissed by the Irish Independent and rival political parties.

This dismissal is little more than a cowardly capitulation to intimidation and a blatant insult to the ability of An Garda Síochána to protect citizens doing their civic duty by serving on juries.

Addressing Irish Independent journalist Kevin Doyle, who seemed confused by the suggestion that the Special Criminal Court should be scrapped and replaced by the normal rule of law, Mary Lou said:

“There is an issue around the protection of juries. The Government has never looked at the alternative or options in keeping juries or jurors safe.

“There is nothing to say juries must be in the same courtroom. We live in an era of massive technological advance. Is it not beyond the wit of this state and policymakers to uphold the democratic norms of a fair trial on the one hand and protect juries and jurors on the other?”

Hitting out at the Independent's pathetic attempts to associate Sinn Féin with the recent horrific incidents, she added:

“Never mind the point scoring and headlines in Independent News & Media – the people of Ballybough want to know: 'What are you going to do to ensure our safety? What are you going to do to prevent these crimes from happening?'

“Far from this negative association being made between Sinn Féin and this outrageous thuggery, people on the ground know we stand with them, they know we stand up for them and that we stand for community safety. These are decent neighbourhoods and communities. We live in them, we stand with them, and we always stand by them.”

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Contributions from key figures in the churches, academia and wider civic society as well as senior republican figures

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