De Valera to speak at Galway Easter Commemoration

national | miscellaneous | news report Wednesday April 16, 2003 18:59 by Niall Farrell - Galway Alliance Against War jnfarrell at esatclear dot ie

and the death of Irish neutrality

Former Taoiseach, President and founding leader of Fianna Fail, the late Eamon de Valera, will be the principal speaker at a unique Easter Commemoration this coming Sunday to be held at 1 pm in Eyre Square, Galway. The Galway Alliance Against War is going to host what it is describing as the “True Fianna Fail Easter Commemoration”, which will coincide with the Fianna Fail wreath laying ceremony at Liam Mellows statue.

Galway Alliance Against War
Press Release

OLD DEV TO SPEAK AT GALWAY EASTER COMMEMORATION

Former Taoiseach, President and founding leader of Fianna Fail, the late Eamon de Valera, will be the principal speaker at a unique Easter Commemoration this coming Sunday to be held at 1 pm in Eyre Square, Galway. The Galway Alliance Against War is going to host what it is describing as the “True Fianna Fail Easter Commemoration”, which will coincide with the Fianna Fail wreath laying ceremony at Liam Mellows statue.

A spokesperson for the Galway Alliance stated: “It can be rightly argued that de Valera must be turning in his grave at what his party has done to Irish Neutrality. This Easter Sunday Old Dev’s voice and views on neutrality – the true policy of Fianna Fail - will be heard loud and clear around Eyre Square. We intend to bring him back from the grave to confront the pro-war stand taken by the present leadership of Fianna Fail including his grandson, the so-called Dev Óg. It is the height of hypocrisy for Fianna Fail to commemorate the men and women of 1916 having betrayed what these people fought and died for with its support for the US and British war against Iraq.

“The Easter rising was about achieving Irish independence and an independent Irish foreign policy, it was about keeping the Irish people out of World War I. One of the slogans at that time was “We serve neither King nor Kaiser but Ireland.” The slogan today must similarly be “We serve neither Bush nor Blair but Ireland” – US warplanes out of Shannon.

“De Valera’s famous reply to Winston Churchill is particularly pertinent to today’s situation. In this speech the Fianna Fail leader refers to “Britain’s necessity” becoming a “moral code. And when this necessity was sufficiently great other people’s rights were not to count. It is quite true, that other great powers believe in this same code and have behaved in accordance with it. That is precisely why we have the disastrous succession of wars: World War number 1, World War number 2 and shall it be World War number 3?”

“There is no doubt that this speech has stood the test of time, especially when we now hear the ideologues of the Bush administration talk of “US Interests” and the “Fourth World War”, which they claim to have started with the invasion of Iraq”, continued the GAAW spokesperson. “This speech also shows how far the present Fianna Fail leadership have distanced themselves from their roots, that is why we intend to broadcast this speech at the time when these betrayers of Irish neutrality come to lay a wreath at the statue of the great Liam Mellows in Eyre Square on Easter Sunday.”

The “True Fianna Fail Easter Commemoration” will include an actor playing the part of Eamon de Valera. There will also be a short funeral ceremony on the death of Irish neutrality, therefore anyone wishing to attend should dress appropriately. The arrangements are as follows: Assemble at the Padraic O Conaire statue Eyre Square Galway between 12.20 -30 pm on Easter Sunday.