Republican News · Thursday 25 October 2001

PANA rejects Nice Treaty rerun

Clonakilty Sinn Féin councillor Cionnaith Ó Súilleabháin was the party's official representative at last Saturday's executive meeting of the Peace And Neutrality Alliance (PANA) at the Metropole Hotel, Cork.

He stood in for Mícheál Mac Donncha, Parliamentary Secretary to Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin TD, who was unable to attend.

PANA was founded in 1996 to promote an independent Irish foreign policy based on peace and military neutrality and has a wide range of affiliated groups and political organisations. It also believes that the UN is the only forum where international disputes should be resolved, not the aggressive military actions that we have witnessed for decades. It was one of the most active organisations in the No to Nice Campaign this summer which saw the Treaty defeated by the Irish electorate, shaking the establishment.

The fallout from the referendum was one of the issues discussed at length at Saturday's meeting, including the reaction of the government and major political parties, who are insisting on another referendum.

PANA's view is that the Irish people have spoken and the Nice Treaty is dead. If the government had respect for its own citizens, it would not be even discussing a rerun or renegotiation.

The meeting also dwelt on the efforts by Sinn Féin TD Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin to get the government to have a referendum to enshrine Irish military neutrality into Bunreacht na h-Éireann. Whilst he has the support of a number of Independent, Socialist Party and Green Party TDs in Leinster House, to date, Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, Labour and the PDs have not given any support to the proposal. Saturday's meeting agreed that a major lobbying campaign should now be initiated, with a view to getting the referendum held on the same day as the upcoming General Election.

The PANA meeting also discussed the ongoing assault on Afghanistan and the world crisis it is creating. Pointing out that the organisation condemned utterly the events of 11 September last in the US, it also recognised that the innocent people of Afghanistan are the ones suffering most as a result of the bombardment. The conference heard that Irish people are alarmed that US military aircraft are using Irish airspace and Shannon airport. The matter was not even debated in the Dáil, and PANA and its constituent organisations argue that the unconditional offer by Bertie Ahern was totally undemocratic and makes a mockery of Irish neutrality.