Pro-Palestinian protesters and young voters have been urged to register to vote and “choose wisely” in the coming general election at a march in Dublin city on Saturday afternoon.
Calls were made for Palestine to be made a major general election issue as large crowds descended upon O’Connell Street chanting “sanctions now” and labelling Israel as a “terrorist state”.
More than 43,000 Palestinians are estimated by Gaza’s health ministry to have been killed in the war since October 7th, while a United Nations report issued on Friday shows that nearly 70 per cent of the 8,000 fatalities verified by the UN Human Rights Office were women and children.
After arriving at Leinster House, protesters chanted “Simon Harris, shame on you, Micheál Martin, shame on you” and “Irish Government, shame on you”.
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They were urged by speakers to ensure they are registered to vote and to “choose wisely” when voting.
Zoe Lawlor, chair of the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign, told those gathered that the next government “must reflect the will of the people”.
“We are sick of endless words of concern and condemnation, it is meaningless unless it is turned into action,” she said, adding: “We will not let promises be dangled to us before an election only to be shelved again.”
Ms Lawlor said the outgoing Government should have enacted the Occupied Territories Bill (OTB), aimed at banning trade between Ireland and Israel’s illegal settlements in Occupied Palestinian Territories, describing it as the “bare minimum” to uphold international law.
She told those present to let every politician know that Palestine is a “key” issue for them in the lead-up to the general election, while People Before Profit’s Richard Boyd-Barrett said the outgoing Government is “afraid of this movement on the streets”.
After outlining crises in housing, healthcare, and the cost of living, Mr Boyd-Barrett said: “Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael’s people will vote, the young people, the people who believe in common decency, have to get out and vote and make your voice heard in this election.”
Speaking at the Garden of Remembrance before the march, Labour Party leader Ivana Bacik said Palestine is a “huge issue” for voters who are in “deep distress” at the doors.
“Everyone wants to see more meaningful action from Government, it’s deeply disappointing and frustrating that the outgoing Government did not do more to pass the OTB into law,” she said.
Ms Bacik, who said her party has aspirations to form part of the next government, added that enacting the bill is a “must” for the party, in advance of any coalition talks.
“We absolutely want to be in government to ensure that we can deliver for our communities,” she said, adding that she will seek to develop a “common platform” across centre-left parties such as the Green Party and the Social Democrats.
“My concern is that the next Government will be any two of the three biggest parties propped up by a handful of right-wing independents who will not have the commitment to deliver on state investment and meaningful climate action that we on the left have,” she said.
Agreeing that Palestine will be a major issue for voters, People Before Profit’s Paul Murphy, meanwhile, said there is a narrative that Fine Gael or Fianna Fáil will return to power.
“The election is just starting, the outcome is not predetermined,” he said, adding that a change in government “is possible”.
“The best way for that to happen is for Sinn Féin and the Social Democrats to join with us in ruling out a coalition with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael and therefore giving people a clear choice,” he said.
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