Irish Neutrality

Saturday February 15, 2003 14:04

by (required)

The Irish Anti-War Movement has focused on Shannon as an issue of neutrality - what of the north?

American military planes refuelling at Shannon has been characterised as an issue of neutrality by anti-war protesters. Is this really about neutrality across the board or only when it comes to America?

Discussions on Indymedia.ie regarding the anti-war movement have centred the issue of Irish neutrality, asking questions of how it is applied in modern times when the context of war has changed and the lines are not so firmly drawn.

The use of Shannon as a stopping off point for refuelling has become a lightening rod example of the greyness of the issue. As it seems obvious to some that the planes passing through are part of a larger picture of war, does it violate Ireland's neutrality to let the Americans use the airport and surrounding amenities? Questions such as these are fair enough and have sparked debate in the country - but are they applied across the board?

Many times the question has been raised on Indymedia of when the Anti-War "Axtivists" will start their protests and direct action in the north. No answer yet has been forthcoming, aside from one bright spark who suggested that as there was a "peace process" ongoing in the north it would be unwise and unproductive to focus on the British military presence there.

Is it only Americans that the anti-war movement is concerned with? Is this really about neutrality at all? If it is, where does the north come into the equation, if at all?

Many British soldiers stationed in the north are preparing for war as you read this. Where are the protests? Where is the direct action? Where are the cameras, the videos, the questions about who is watching the watchers?

What, exactly, makes the British so different from the Americans? What makes British use of Ireland better than American? Why is the Irish Anti-War Movement afraid to confront this issue?

The Irish government is up to their necks in complicity with the British on a range of issues, including the "peace process". Does not this violate the neutrality of Ireland, too, in fact, more so than the use of an airport?

This is not a "republican" issue. There is no avocation to go and help the CIRA plant bombs outside army bases. There seems to be a double standard however in the Anti-War approach that belies it's claims of not being "anti-American". You have the war machine you are supposed to be against literally on your doorstep. What are you going to do about it?