Wicklow councillor caught up in Egypt ordeal on Global March still committed to reaching Gaza

Irish Independent

5 hours ago

Social Democrats councillor Mark Barry was planning to link up with demonstrators from 80 countries who planned to march to Egypt's border with Gaza last Thursday, but Egyptian authorities detained many of the activists, while security forces in eastern Libya blocked a many more en route to meet them.
The 'Global March on Gaza' was pitched as the largest demonstration of its kind in recent years, but organisers said hundreds arriving in Cairo last week had been detained and deported.
While attempts to contact Cllr Barry were unsuccessful, his colleagues have been assured of his safety and in a recent social media post, he said: 'Despite our attempts to march being stalled due to legal hurdles and coordination challenges, we remain committed to our cause."
There were fears for Cllr Barry when the march from Al Arish to the Egyptian border was met with resistance by authorities and he was amongst those whose passports were confiscated and were forced to turn back. Others on the march had been detained. While there were plans to regroup at a campsite outside of Cairo to prepare for a Sunday march, there was no clearance given, despite hopes the protestors wanted to 'proceed peacefully under the guidance of Egyptian authorities'.
On Father's Day, Sunday, the Greystones councillor posted a touching and heartfelt message dedicated to his two sons from a rather sparse hotel room, in which he said he 'can't help thinking about the kind of world they are growing up in. A world where genocide is happening in real time – again'.
'Our parents believed they had left that horror behind in history. But here we are. We speak up because we must,' he said. 'Because dignity, freedom, and justice for the Palestinian people is non-negotiable. Because a world that allows man-made famine and genocide is not a world I want for my children.
"Together, we are calling for the immediate opening of the border to allow vital aid into Gaza, so that aid workers can distribute food and water to save lives. We're demanding an immediate ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.'
Cllr Barry described how the previous night 'power was cut off to Gaza. It went black. No internet, before the people were bombed while they slept in their beds."
He said he was 'calling on our government and the governments across the EU and I'm asking the people of Wicklow in Ireland, contact your public representatives, contact your government, contact the Department of Foreign Affairs, get on to anybody you can, media outlets. This is not good enough. Now is the time we all have to stand up and take action.'
He urged people to 'remember why 3,000 people from all over the world are here', which was, he said, 'to march peacefully in solidarity with the Palestinian people and put pressure on governments across the world to take all action needed to re open the borders with Gaza to allow humanitarian aide into the people of Gaza.'
Despite the harrowing scenes that emerged over the weekend, he added that 'we are not here to protest or disrupt the Egyptian authorities', but noted that 'we are being monitored, and some delegates were detained from their hotels last night'.
While previous posts seemed hopeful for the group of protesters, who had 'regrouped' and were planning 'the next steps we can take safely and peacefully', an air of resignation, or perhaps realisation, has set in and now the message from cllr Barry was for 'all delegates to return home safely' in the coming days.
'We are actively strategizing our next steps to keep and increase pressure on our governments and the EU to heed the voices of those who elected them – voices demanding justice and humanitarian aid for the Palestinian people. We have energy, we are mobile, we are many – and we're heading to Europe!'