Death threat follows right-wing agitation

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald has described a threat on her life as “very shocking and very disturbing”.

Ms McDonald was the victim of an online death threat posted on TikTok and other social media after days of rioting at at a former paint factory in the north of Dublin.

The site, earmarked for asylum seekers, is one of dozens around the country which are being protested by far-right groups and some local residents who have accused the government of housing asylum seekers ahead of local people.

Over Monday and Tuesday, workers at the site were threatened and machinery and construction materials set on fire.

A security guard at the site was injured and was jeered by the crowd as he was removed from the scene on a stretcher.

A man with a megaphone encouraged locals to take action and claimed the government was going to “replace” the native Irish population.

Rioters threw bricks and launched fireworks at police, who used pepper spray to disperse a mob of more than a hundred.

The large site on the Malahide Road, in one of Ireland’s most deprived areas, is due to be repurposed as an accommodation facility for up to 500 asylum seekers.

The opposition parties, including Sinn Fein, have accused the coalition government of recklessly inflaming tensions over immigration.

In the bizarre video posted online, a man from Dublin wearing a torn, black balaclava said police commissioner Drew Harris would be shot and offered to shoot Ms McDonald “for free”.

At the beginning of the video, the man praised the violence in Coolock.

“Don’t worry, lads...Yous have more backup than yous think lads”, he said.

“F---ing take that Drew Harris [Commissioner of the Garda Síochána] prick as well. Take his whole throat, lads. Take Drew Harris’s throat off. F--- Drew Harris.... He’ll be getting shot. He’ll be getting f---ing blasted, I swear to god on that. He’ll be getting shot before the end of the year.

“And see Mary Lou? I’ll shoot her meself for free, I will, yeah. I’ll do her for f---ing free, I will, yeah. F---ing little rats.”

The man concludes his video by saying “Gavin Pepper for f---ing President. Get up.”

Gavin Pepper is a leader of the anti-immigrant far-right in Dublin and was elected as a councillor last month.

He has worked to displace support for Irish republicanism in working class areas, describing Sinn Fein as “traitors” for not doing more to oppose immigration.

In a message following the violence, Pepper compared the heavy-handed Gardaí reaction in Coolock to that of the RUC in the Six Counties and accused Garda Commissioner Drew Harris, a former RUC assistant police chief, of “bully tactics” and “bringing sectarian violence of Northern Ireland to our streets”.

Despite being accused of instigating violence, far-right groups masquerading as ‘patriots’ and ‘freedom fighters’ and espousing conspiracy theories have gained considerable support with the help of groups based outside Ireland.

Far-right groups reached a combined support of two percent in recent local elections and some have recently aligned in a pact ahead of an expected 26 County general election later this year, with left-wing parties as their top targets.

Speaking to RTÉ, Ms McDonald said the threatening video was “a real escalation of something that has been happening for about a year”.

She said she has also had people at her house.

“This threat was made to take my life, it was as blatant and blunt as that,” Ms McDonald said,

She said she was “all for freedom of expression” and she does not believe in censorship, but “she does not accept and will not accept a threat against my life or anybody else’s”.

“It is utterly unacceptable, and it is sinister, and I have reported the matter to An Garda Síochána and I expect them to deal with it appropriately,” Ms McDonald said.

She added: “There has been a trend for the last year or more, a very organised section of people online, to have a run at Sinn Féin and at me in particular.

“I think the objective of the exercise has been to cast doubt or to alienate or disrupt the relationship between myself and Sinn Féin and those that would support us, rely on us to represent them and represent them well.”

The threat was made while Ms McDonald was hosting a discussion on the need for zero tolerance when it comes to violence against women.

She added: “I have been subjected to an orchestrated and vicious campaign that has been misogynistic and sexist.

“That has been racist in some cases and that has been deliberately intent on damaging me and my standing particularly amongst those in working class communities that I represent”.

In a statement earlier in the week, Ms McDonald said her party intends to release a policy on immigration.

Referring to the party’s unexpectedly poor performance in last month’s elections in the 26 Counties, Ms McDonald said Sinn Fein had failed to listen to the concerns of its supporters.

“We must do better and we will,” she said.

On immigration, Ms McDonald said the party “failed to reflect where most people are at”.

The Sinn Fein leader said the current government’s immigration policy did not make sense, was not transparent, and was unfair.

She said: “Sinn Fein stands firmly against racism. So, too, do the Irish people.

“We are a modern European economy and a strong one. We depend on migrant workers in so many areas of our society, not least our health service.

“Everyone must be treated with dignity with respect and in accordance with human rights standards. That is not in dispute.

“However, the State must also have an immigration policy that makes sense to people, that’s transparent, that’s fair – and that works. And at present, that is not the case.”

Urgent Appeal