Write a commentAttending a Palestinian Youth Conference in Denmark this week Newry and Armagh MLA Megan Fearon spoke of the "shared experiences" of Irish and Palestinian people.
The South Armagh representative was invited to speak at the Palestinian Youth Today- Challenges, Struggles and Hope for the Future event held by Palestinian Youth in Europe in Copenhagen at the weekend.
"Friends and comrades, it is an honour to be here with you today," she told the conference.
"As a proud Irish republican I bring the solidarity of the Irish people with me. Our relationship with the Palestinian people goes back many decades. Our history too, is steeped in division, oppression and war - but importantly also a deep sense of duty and resistance.
"We have shared similar experiences under the injustices of colonialism and we should always continue to help each other in advancing our struggles. Irish and Palestinian political prisoners throughout the years have always shared a special bond. Given our own history, we are acutely aware of the plight of the hunger strikes carried out by Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
"Last year we came out in our thousands to protest the slaughter and devastation in the Gaza strip. The Irish people sent out a clear message from the streets of Derry to Cork – a message of solidarity with our Palestinian brothers and sisters. "
As well as extending solidarity to the Palestinian people she called on the british and Irish Governments to end their "tacit support for Israel."
"I want to take this opportunity to condemn the sheer cowardice of the Irish government, who last year abstained on a vote to establish a UN inquiry into Israeli war crimes in Gaza. They do not speak for me and they certainly do not speak for the people of Ireland," she declared.
"The Irish and British governments must end their tacit support for Israeli terror. I want to repeat the call that Gerry Adams and Sinn Fein have repeatedly made. There is no room for war criminals in Ireland. They are not welcome. The Israeli ambassador should be expelled immediately and members of the Israeli government and military should be brought before the International Court and face charges of war crimes.
She also called for unity among the various Palestinian parties.
"As a Sinn Féin representative, we are proud of the role we played in the Irish peace process - although it is still a work in progress. It is important that we share our experiences – however it must be stressed that it is not a template. It cannot be lifted and applied to the Palestinian/Israeli conflict – or any other conflict for that matter," she said.
"However there are some universal principles in conflict resolution. For us what was an absolute strategic imperative was internal unity and cohesion. Without that there couldn't or wouldn't have been a process.
"The Irish republican movement has its own history of splits and division– so we understand the importance of unity. It seems self-evident to us that it would be very difficult for any oppressed people to build a successful peace process without that cohesion and unity."
Echoing The Proclamation she called on Palestinians to seek help from allies in Europe but rely in the first on their own strength.
"Young Palestinians should lead way in building alliances with other groups in European society. People want to help, you will encounter a lot of open arms and goodwill towards the Palestinian cause but key to this is giving direction and that cannot be achieved without political unity," she said.
"Young Palestinians are the future. You should lead way in designing a clear road map to take your struggle forward.We know it is difficult - we know the challenges that face a divided movement - but to get solutions it is absolutely necessary.
"Comrades I will leave you today, in the knowledge that you have our support. In times of struggle, remember the words Irish hungerstriker Terence MacSwiney spoke. “It is not those who can inflict the most, but those that can suffer the most who will prevail"
