‘Palestinian lives being weighed against bond markets,' Dáil hears in debate over Israeli bonds
Taoiseach
Micheál Martin
has been accused of 'speaking the truth in order to bury it' by acknowledging genocide in Gaza but failing to prevent the Central Bank's role in the sale of Israeli war bonds.
In a Dáil debate calling for an end for the bank's involvement in the sale of the bonds, Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon said the Israeli bonds prospectus advertisement says ''stand with Israel. Israel is at war.' These bonds bankroll the bombs, the starvation, the extermination,' he said.
He said that while the Government states that genocide is happening, 'Ireland must do nothing that might affect our GDP, that might affect our relationship with the US. This is what it comes down to - Palestinian lives being weighed against bond markets and bilateral trade flows'.
What is happening 'by virtue of the fact that we're refusing to meet our obligations for the prevention of genocide is collusion. And what the Taoiseach is doing is speaking the truth only in order to bury it'.
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Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe insisted the Government 'is working relentlessly with partners and with others to affect the type of change that Israel may not be able to ignore'.
He said 'our efforts are making a difference, but I accept that they need to deliver more'. Ireland's approach to the unfolding tragedy is one of 'principled conviction, but also a recognition of the realities that we face, that we have to build up a diplomatic coalition to achieve more.
'We also have to be conscious of laws that are already in place,' he said as he introduced a countermotion.
He said that, similar to the Sinn Féin motion, the Social Democrats proposal 'would be unworkable, will contravene EU law and would not achieve its intended objective'.
The Social Democrats introduced the motion two weeks after
Sinn Féin introduced legislation which was voted down
, to stop the Central Bank's involvement in the sale of Israeli bonds.
Party deputy leader Cian O'Callaghan said 'men, women, and children are being starved to death'.
'Mothers have been forced to try and boil grass to feed their children and starvation is being used as a weapon of war against innocent people.
'The Governor of the Central Bank says that the Central Bank cannot act on this, that it's beyond their competency to decide whether or not genocide is taking place.'
But he said in January 2024 'the International Court of Justice confirmed the plausibility of the charges of genocide taken against Israel by South Africa'.
The Government recognised that 'what's happening in Gaza is genocide' but 'it is not simply enough to say that what is happening is genocide'. The Government 'must do everything you can to stop and prevent genocide in Gaza.'
The Israeli government 'is selling these bonds to help finance the genocide. And the Irish Central Bank is facilitating the sale of those bonds in Europe. That is a direct link between these bonds and the genocide that is taking place and this has to stop.'
Sinn Féin finance spokesman Pearse Doherty described the Government's response as 'shameful' and that they would be 'on the wrong side of history' as 'genocide is staring us in the face'.
People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy asked 'is your argument seriously that a regulation on financial prospectuses should override the UN Convention on the prevention and punishment of the crime of genocide'.
Minister of State Robert Troy said measures have to be negotiated and agreed internationally 'at EU and UN level for them to have real impact and credibility'. He added that 'any attempt to act unilaterally could undermine the unified approach that we're beginning to see form at EU level. We cannot seek to uphold international law by breaking EU law.'
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