Republican News · Thursday 24 October 2002

It's official: Belfast is no longer in Ireland

A panel of top journalists from RTÉ and many of Ireland's leading newspapers has issued a ruling which amounts to a declaration that Belfast is no longer in Ireland.

The adjudicators of Ireland's National Media Awards have barred Lá, Belfast's all Ireland Irish language newspaper, from entering the competition because the newspaper's head quarters is based north of the border.

This is despite a declaration in the rules of the competition that it welcomes entrants from the "Irish media".

Undeterred, journalists from Lá picketed the awards ceremony at Dublin's Mansion House on Wednesday 23 October.

"We thought we had seen the back of the partition mindset with the Good Friday Agreement but it seems that a powerful clique of Irish media interests are clinging on to the old ways," said Concubhar Ó Liatháin, a senior journalist with Lá.

"We are disappointed that we have been forced to take this course of action but we feel we must protest at this backward looking attitude."

This is the second year in succession that the newspaper has been excluded from the contest.

Following last year's exclusion, the competition organisers, Dublin-based PR firm WHPR said that "it may be appropriate to re-look at the entry criteria for future years".

The competition was re-organised, the number of awards was cut by almost half and the distinction between print and broadcast journalists was removed. A new panel chairman to replace former Ombudsman Michael Mills was appointed. He is Brian Farrell, RTE's Primetime presenter. However, it was decided not to remove the ban on Lá from entering the contest.

The exclusion also extends to Irish editions of newspapers such as The Sunday Times, the Sun, the Mirror and also excludes TV programmes such as Panorama's expose of sexual abuse of children by the late Fr Sean Fortune in the Diocese of Ferns because it was produced by the BBC.