Fight back and vote No

Statement by the President of Republican Sinn Féin Des Dalton

Fear and intimidation are again to be the stock-in-trade of the 26-County Administration and its political masters in Brussels as they attempt once more to steamroll the Irish people into giving away the last vestiges of independence.

The political elites of Leinster House and the EU have set the tone for the forthcoming referendum on the EU Austerity Treaty by threatening people about the dire consequences of a rejection of the treaty.

Off course we have heard it all before during the referenda on the Lisbon and Nice treaties. And on both occasions people were forced to vote again for treaties they had already rejected. The power elites of the EU are not interested in the will of the people but instead are intent on grabbing even more power using the fear of the people. In this they have willing collaborators in the political establishment of the 26-County State.

The system of finance capitalism driven by France and Germany created the economic collapse of the past four years yet it is the working people of Ireland and Europe who are being asked to pay the price. As we approach the centenary of the 1916 Rising we have now an opportunity to fight back and show that the 1916 Proclamation still speaks for this generation when it declares: “The right of the people of Ireland to the ownership of Ireland, and to the unfettered control of Irish destinies, to be sovereign and indefeasible.” Begin the fight back for our country and vote No.

Who Fears to Speak of Easter Week?

Seminar: Centenary 1916-2016

Republican Sinn Féin holding the seminar in the Ireland Institute, Pearse Street, Dublin on April 21, 2012.

Doors open 11.30am, beginning 12noon sharp to 5pm

The seminar, entitled Who Fears to Speak of Easter Week, will be the first of many events that Republican Sinn Féin will host in the run-up to the Centenary of the 1916 Rising.

Speakers to date include the historian Rúan O’Donnell and President of Republican Sinn Féin Des Dalton.

All welcome, admisssion free. Doors open 11.30am.

Tribute to Brian Mór Ó Baoighill

Statement from the President of Republican Sinn Féin Des Dalton

Irish Republicans were saddened to hear the news of the death of Brian Mór Ó Baoighill, in New York. Brian was a life-long Irish Republican activist and a man steeped in the history and revolutionary Fenian tradition of Irish America.

Brian’s unique gifts as an artist were given selflessly to aid the cause of a free Ireland. His paintings were used to highlight the plight of the Hunger Strikers in 1981 as well as every other facet of the ongoing struggle against British rule in Ireland. Famously in December 1983 he was responsible for an electronic sign in New York’s Time Square sending out Christmas greetings to Republican prisoners. Brian took great pride in the fact the British Ambassador was questioned over the sign. Brian used his artwork as a weapon against imperialism and in defence of the men and women of no property. Among his last works were cartoons in opposition to the visit by the Queen of England to the 26 Counties in May of last year.

In June of last year he wrote an open letter to the Lord Mayor of Belfast to protest at one of his poster artworks, commemorating Theobald Wolfe Tone and the 1798 Rising, being hung in Belfast City hall. Brian saw this as merely an attempt to distract from the fact that Belfast and the rest of the Six Counties were still occupied by British forces. In his own inimitable style Brian finished his letter by declaring: “When the Belfast City Hall is located in a united Ireland, not the United Kingdom, I would be honored to see my artwork displayed. Until then, I request that it be taken down. Moving the picture of the Queen of England from one wall to another does not in any way make Belfast part of a United Ireland. I object to my artwork being used to pretend otherwise.”

Brian’s involvement in the cause of Ireland stretches out over five decades, he was a founder member of Irish Northern Aid (NORAID) in 1972 and worked with the Irish People newspaper for almost 20 years. In 1986 he rejected the attempts of a reformist leadership to hijack Republican Movement and was among the founders of Cumann na Saoirse of which he remained an officer up to his death. Brian had a deep understanding and knowledge of Irish history and was a living link with previous generations of Irish Republicans who fanned the flames of revolutionary Republicanism such as Michael Flannery, Joe Stynes and George Harrison. Brian very much followed in their footsteps and ensured that the torch was passed to a new generation. Brian Mór was a friend, comrade and mentor to succeeding generations of activists in the cause of Irish Freedom in the US and Ireland over many years and was always willing to give freely of his time and experience.

Brian leaves behind a gap in the ranks but his legacy of unflinching loyalty and tireless commitment to ideal of the All-Ireland Republic of Easter Week is an inspiration to his friends and comrades on both sides of the Atlantic. In the words of Thomas Davis: “The rudder of our ship was he, our castle’s corner stone.”

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dilis.

Click here to view tributes to Brian . . .

Carlow protest in support of Republican Prisoners

The Carlow town based Myles Shevlin/Tony Ruane Cumann of Republican Sinn Féin will be holding a protest at the Liberty Tree 1798 monument in Carlow Town on Saturday February 11 from 1.00pm to 2.00pm.

The protest is to highlight the ongoing struggle for their right to political status by the Republican prisoners in Maghaberry prison, near Lisburn in Co Antrim.