Write a comment
Senator Conor Murphy, has said the Irish government now needs to take a lead on preparing for Irish unity following universal support across the Houses of the Oireachtas for a Sinn Féin unity motion.
The motion was discussed in the Dáil chamber in October and in the Seanad 3 December, with both houses supporting the proposal that the government must establish an all-island representative Citizens' Assembly or Assemblies and a Joint Oireachtas Committee on Irish Unity.
Seanadóir Murphy said: "I am delighted that both houses supported the motion and that the position of the Houses of the Oireachtas is now that the government must establish an all-island representative Citizens' Assembly or Assemblies and a Joint Oireachtas Committee on Irish Unity."
He added: "the motion commits the government to produce and publish a plan towards Irish unity in conjunction with civic society and key stakeholders, and to engage with northern protestant and unionist opinions about the future of Ireland as Sinn Féin has done, publicly and privately, for many years."
Senator Murphy said the unity campaign can be a great unifier among both the parties and the people who support reunification, with a major role to be played by civic and community groups who will be central to winning the referendums adding that the global diaspora must also be included.
He said: "We want to be free to govern ourselves and determine our own destiny. That is what uniting Ireland is about. That is what self-determination is about. Without the right to self-determination for the people of the north all other rights are illusory."
Senator Murphy emphasised that people from the Protestant tradition are a vital and integral part of a new shared future, stating: "There cannot be a new Ireland that does not celebrate and include those from this tradition. They will be every bit as valid Irish citizens as anyone who sits in the Dáil and Seanad Chambers."
He added that there is an opportunity to forge a new relationship with Britain, which will always be Ireland's nearest neighbour, with ties of family and friends meaning there will always be a close affinity with that country. Going forward it will be a partnership of equals, he said, adding that this is one of the lessons of the Brexit experience.
Senator Murphy concluded: "Significant change must be planned for and managed by governments. The Good Friday Agreement clearly identified where such responsibility lies. To ignore the process of change that is gathering pace across Ireland is not simply to stick your head in the sand, it is a dereliction of duty for any sovereign government."
