The fight for a New Ireland goes on

Statement by the President of Republican Sinn Féin Des Dalton

The result of the 26-County referendum on the Austerity Treaty marks a battle lost but the war remains to be won on the road to a New Ireland. The voting patterns tell us much about the breakdown of Irish society and the increasing divide between rich and poor. Those who have suffered most from the slash and burn economics of the political and financial elites recorded the highest percentage of No votes. Like millions of working people across Europe, working people in the 26 Counties have given out a strong signal of their determination to oppose the neo-liberal economic agenda which is at the heart of the entire EU project.

The coming years will see an increase in grass-roots opposition as we see with the various campaigns against the household charge, the septic tank charge, turf cutting, health and education cuts. The need for unity between urban and rural, employed and unemployed, young and old, the public and private sector has never been greater. People must set about the essential task of building a mass movement that is capable of acting as a vehicle for radical political, social and economic change. That is the only means by which we will create the New Ireland set out in the 1916 Proclamation. We believe that our programme for a federal Ireland Éire Nua along with our social and economic policy Saol Nua provide the basis for such a New Ireland.

Public Meeting: Say NO on May 31

Republican Sinn Féin are holding a public meeting in Wynn’s Hotel on Wednesday May 23 at 7.30pm as part of the Campaign against the Austerity Treaty.

Speakers:

Republican Sinn Féin President Des Dalton

Editor of Saoirse Ruairí Og Ó Brádaigh

Republican Sinn Féin, Comhairle Laighean, call for the rejection of the Austerity Treaty

Republican Sinn Féin is calling on the 26-County electorate to vigorously reject the further integration of the Ireland into the undemocratic European super-state. The upcoming vote on the fiscal integration of the European economic area is not to be mistaken as a genuine attempt to solve the economic woes of this state. This system of undiluted capitalism that has caused the economic crash in recent times and which is responsible for the serious and fundamentally inhumane cutbacks are in effect a conspiracy to rob the Irish people of whatever remains of the sovereignty this state once had.

The argument of the pro-Treaty side is the usual lies we have become accustomed to. Threats that the 26-County State’s economy will not recover and that we will face even more unemployment and cutbacks if a rejection is the outcome is the lowest form of political deceit. Consistently the establishment parties have been proven wrong in their analysis. Stability will only be achieved when a clean break is made from the failed financial system that has stolen the sovereignty of the people and left them in a depressed state of political isolation and irrelevance. Since membership of the EU we have slowly over a long drawn out period of time been coaxed into conceding more and more sovereignty to the European elite. If we vote Yes to this treaty our elected representatives will have little or no say in Irish budgets, we will be at the mercy of the bureaucratic elite, austerity will be enshrined, poverty will be guaranteed for thousands throughout the state and the people will remain the economic slaves to a financial and European elite.

In 2008 when our political representatives so slavishly gave away our futures and the futures of our children to bail out unknown private financiers to the amount of billions with tax payers money Iceland was in a worse position than us. Did they bailout the banks at the cost of the welfare of their nation? No! They took the morally correct and courageous decision to let the private banks fail. Because they had their own currency they were able to devalue it by up to 50%. This allowed them to export their way back to growth, they now have a larger debt to GDP ratio and this has given Icelandic bonds investment grade status. Irish bonds on the other hand have junk status because we give away all the nations wealth to private bankers and unelected bureaucrats in Brussels.

The people of the 26-County State are in a tug of war with the European and Corporate elite, it is a tug of war not just for the economic control of the state but for vast wealth of resources we have at our disposal. If we allow them to enslave our so-called political leaders then control of our resources and economy will be lost. Take Ireland’s side in this war against Neo-Imperialism and Vote No on May 31st. Victory in this referendum is only the first step on the road to reclaiming our nation’s sovereignty but let us face the challenge and go about re-establishing the All-Ireland Republic that in the words of James Connolly must serve as “a republic that would be a beacon-light to the oppressed of every land.”

More News on the Austerity Treaty / Fiscal Treaty Referendum on: www.nofiscaltreaty.net

It is time to live up to the ideals of 1916 by voting No

Statement by the President of Republican Sinn Féin Des Dalton

The Austerity Treaty is the creation of the same political and financial elite who created the present economic collapse. During the so-called boom the profits of the wealthy were privatised to ensure they would not be shared with society, now during the bust they socialise their losses, forcing people across the EU to pay for them. Political events in France, Holland and Greece indicate that people have had enough of this kind of lop-sided economics. On May 31 the people of the 26 Counties have an opportunity to add their voice to this growing Europe-wide movement of resistance by voting No.

The way forward is not to resurrect a failed political and economic model but to begin anew. A radical change in thinking is demanded creating real economic as well as political democracy. This means ensuring that the decisions which affect people and their communities, are made by them rather than unelected and unaccountable bureaucrats in Brussels or elsewhere. Our political and economic policies Éire Nua and Saol Nua set out a blueprint for such a New Ireland.

In four years time we will be marking the Centenary of the heroic 1916 Rising and the Proclamation of Ireland’s right to nationhood. Rejecting the Austerity Treaty would be a statement of our intent to not merely pay lip service to the ideals of the 1916 Proclamation but instead our determination to live up to them.

More News on the Austerity Treaty / Fiscal Treaty Referendum on: www.nofiscaltreaty.net

Republican Sinn Féin launch No to Fiscal Treaty website

As part of its campaign against the 26-County Austerity Treaty Republican Sinn Féin have launched a campaign website: www.nofiscaltreaty.net

The website provides up to date information on the campaign over the coming weeks.