THERE is widespread anger at the decision by the Irish government to convert the historic GPO in Dublin into shops and offices. Last Saturday hundreds gathered in O’Connell Street to protest at the government’s plans for the GPO and for the Moore Street. Battlefield site. Their demand is for the protection of the cultural and revolutionary heritage of this part of Dublin.
Every nation that fought for its freedom from colonial rule – often from the British – has hallowed ground, the place where patriots made a stand against injustice and occupation. For the people of Ireland, the GPO is one such place. It is the place where the revolutionary generation of the early 1900s declared for a Republic and where Pádraig Pearse read the Proclamation of that Republic.
Instead of imposing an ill-thought-out plan that will ruin the iconic nature of this site, the Fianna Fáil/Fine Gael government should hold a public conversation to agree an imaginative and visionary plan which will reflect the importance of the GPO and Moore Street. Properly managed, this area can play a vital part in the regeneration and revitalisation of Dublin city centre.
Uachtarán Shinn Féin Mary Lou McDonald described Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael’s plan as “shameful”.
She told the government: “The regeneration of Dublin must be driven by the things that really matter to us. Our history. Our heritage. Pride in those gallant patriots who came before us. This historic area must be redeveloped as a Cultural and Historical Quarter and in line with the Masterplan by the Moore Street Preservation Trust.”
Earlier last week, a newly formed Moore Street Oireachtas Group made up of elected representatives from North Inner City Dublin, including from Sinn Féin, Fianna Fáil, the Social Democrats and the Labour Party, visited the Moore Street 1916 terrace. This is where the revolutionary leaders of 1916 met together for the last time before their executions.
The cross-party group recognises the responsibility of elected representatives to safeguard and preserve, and to act as guardians of the National Monument at 14-17 Moore Street and the streets and laneways around it. The group’s aims are in keeping with the recommendations of the Ministerial Advisory Group and the findings of the Dublin Inner City Task Force Report.
The visit was facilitated by the Office of Public Works, and it gave representatives an opportunity to inspect the historic terrace. Afterwards, Mary Lou McDonald TD said she was “pleased to be joined by my constituency colleagues".
“We will work together on this issue. I am concerned at the state of the buildings and there is an urgent need for remedial work to be carried out,” she added.
Seven days in the life (and death) of Gaza
I FIRST met Mustafa Barghouti in the West Bank in 2014. The General Secretary of the Palestine National Initiative is a physician, an activist, and is head of the Palestinian Medical Relief Society.
Each day Mustafa sends out a WhatsApp update on the latest news from the region. The following is an edited daily diary for the week beginning Sunday, July 6, and ending on Sunday, July 13.
Sunday, July 6
The Israeli bombardment on Gaza killed 80 Palestinians, including many children, and injured 304 others in the past 24 hours. Among the victims were eight civilians who were targeted while trying to receive humanitarian aid. Since October 7, 2023, the total number of casualties has risen to 57,418 killed and 136,261 injured.
Monday, July 7
According to Israeli TV Channel 12, the Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is proceeding with his plan to evict the whole population of Gaza Strip from their districts and to concentrate them in a narrow concentration camp between Moraj and Philadelphi/ Rafah corridors to facilitate their ethnic cleansing. The Israeli bombardment on Gaza killed 105 Palestinians and injured 356 others in the past 24 hours. Among the victims were seven civilians who were targeted while trying to receive humanitarian
aid.
Tuesday, July 8
The Israeli bombardment on Gaza killed 52 Palestinian civilians and injured 262 others. Among the victims were eight civilians who were targeted while trying to receive humanitarian aid.
Wednesday, July 9
The Israeli army destroyed five Palestinian houses in Shuqba village in Ramallah in the West Bank. In Gaza the Israeli bombardment killed 105 Palestinian civilians, including many children. Among the victims were seven civilians who were targeted while trying to receive humanitarian aid.
Thursday, July 10
A horrible Israeli massacre of Palestinian children and women in Deir Albalah in Gaza who were bombarded today while they were trying to receive baby supplements. 16 civilians were killed including 10 children.
Friday, July 11
Israeli terrorist settlers conducted several attacks with live ammunition and stones on Palestinian civilians in the West Bank. They injured 10 Palestinians in Sinjel town in Ramallah and burned several cars. They also killed by beating and shooting two Palestinians in Sinjel.
Saturday, July 12
The Israeli army committed huge massacres today in Gaza. It conducted 250 air strikes on the civilian population, killing 120 civilian Palestinians and injuring hundreds. According to the UNICEF representative Israel kills 27 Palestinian children every day.
Update: The number of Palestinian civilians killed today by Israel in Gaza is up to 145.
Sunday, July 13
The Israeli army bombarded this morning a group of civilian Palestinians in Nuseirat while they were trying to get drinking water, killing 10 including six children and injuring 20 others. The Israeli army bombarded during the last period 122 sources of water in Gaza, killing 700 innocent Palestinians seeking water. The Israeli air strikes on Gaza killed the surgical consultant at the Baptist Hospital, Dr. Ahmad Qandil. More than 1,588 medical doctors, nurses and other health professionals were killed in Gaza by the Israeli bombardment since October 7 2023.
Freedom tree puts down roots in Mayo
I SPENT the weekend in Galway and Mayo. The weather was amazing. The countryside with its miles of stone walls separating plots of land and the lush colours of green and rocky inclines was a joy to travel through.
I was in Galway on Saturday to attend the Galway Film Festival/Fleadh where Trisha Ziff’s film, A Ballymurphy Man, was receiving its world premiere. The cinema in the old Town Hall where the Festival is centred was packed to capacity for the screening. The audience was hugely attentive and very welcoming when Trisha and I went on the stage at the end of the screening to talk about the making of the documentary.
The next day I was in Mayo when Trisha texted me to say that A Ballymurphy Man had taken the Festival award for Best International Documentary. So well done Trisha and her team, who worked hard over five years, with very limited funding to produce this film.
NATIVE: Gerry Adams and Martin Neary plant an oak tree on land Martin has made into woods
In Mayo I met Martin Neary, who has bequeathed his 40-acre homestead to the local community. Martin, who is in his 80s, has spent years planting native indigenous trees so that a woodland now stands where there was once a farm and bogland. His book – ‘Madogue Memories’ – tells in his own words Martin’s love of land, his community and culture, his county and our country.
It was an honour to meet such an inspiring leader and a great privilege to plant an oak tree – a Crann na Saoirse – in the Martin Neary Woodland Park.
