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Irish Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Daily Mirror
Get set for the presidential election, the dirtiest in Irish politics
Politics is a dirty game, but it doesn't get grubbier than the presidential election. The race for the Áras has suddenly got more interesting with the news that Michael Flatley is to seek a nomination to run. The Irish-American dancer will make a bid as President, his High Court case over his Castlehyde mansion heard last week. But if the Riverdancer goes for it, he needs to be prepared for the toughest and roughest contest in Irish politics. Campaigns are known controversies, scandals and shock revelations. Fake tweets, mud-slinging, smears and anonymous letters are all part of the game. Front runners - such as Brian Lenihan in 1990 and Sean Gallagher in 2011 - were taken out at the last minute. Celebrity candidates such as Eurovision singer Dana and charity boss Adi Roche were put through the wringer. Dana recalled it as a "a truly terrible time", while Roche described it as "mental torture". Even two-term Michael D Higgins was deemed "too old" and his predecessor Mary McAleese was called a "tribal time bomb". David Norris' bid was one of the biggest surprises, with the senator being pummelled throughout the campaign until he was eventually forced to stand down. Political pundit Ivan Yates described entering the race as "a punishment beating - it's open f***ing season on your life". David Norris pulled out of the presidential race Since the role was created by Eamon De Valera in 1937, it's been controversial. De Valera, who served two terms as president himself, once joked: "I wanted to create a nice quiet job without too much work in my old age." In 1973, there was a poignant battle between Fine Gael's Tom O'Higgins and winner Erskine Childers, whose families were on either side of the Civil War. Erskine's father had been executed by the Free State authorities, while his rival's uncle Kevin O'Higgins was the justice minister who signed the orders. But it wasn't until the 1990s that the contest got really intense. Labour candidate Mary Robinson was believed to have derailed her campaign when she gave, what was then, a controversial interview with Hot Press magazine. She told the publication that she would officiate at a stall selling contraceptives, which led to a newspaper calling the interview "the longest suicide note in history". Mary Robinson Her team initially said she was misquoted, but then the journalist Liam Fay produced an audio recording of it. Then Mary Robinson was subjected to a cutting personal attack from Fianna Fáil politician Padraig Flynn. He accused her of having a "new-found interest in her family" as part of her public persona in pursuit of the presidency. But it was all nothing compared to the scandal that engulfed her rival, Fianna Fáil's Brian Lenihan Snr. He gave an interview with an academic researcher of how he had been involved in controversial attempts to pressurise President Patrick Hillery not to dissolve the Dáil in 1982. But in an RTÉ interview, he said: "I want to say I'm absolutely certain on mature recollection I did not ring President Hillery. And I want to put my reputation on the line in that respect." It led to Fianna Fáil leader Charlie Haughey firing him a week out from the election. It triggered a sympathy vote for Lenihan, who nearly caught up with eventual winner Robinson. She made a veiled reference to Flynn's jibe when she later thanked the women of Ireland who voted for her and, "instead of rocking the cradle, rocked the system". Chernobyl children's charity boss Roche had a particularly bruising time in 1997. Anonymous letters were sent to national media outlets which falsely alleged her brother Donal de Roiste had IRA connections. Some were followed up by phone calls, saying: "Do we want somebody so close to the Provos in the Aras?" The smear campaign against Roche's campaign was vicious and entirely baseless. Dana was taken out with an attack on her family during her second attempt at the presidency in 2011. Accusations were made against her brother, John Brown, in the middle of the campaign. Dana (Image: BBC) She called the claims "vile, malicious and untruthful". He was acquitted of historic child sexual abuse charges in 2014. At one stage, it was suggested her car tyres had been knifed and there was a plot to kill her. She said afterwards: "No, I don't regret anything I've done but that was a truly terrible time." Former senator David Norris withdrew from the presidential campaign following the controversy over letters he wrote to the Israeli authorities seeking clemency for his former partner in relation to a serious crime. It finally led the academic and gay activist to pull out of the race, dramatically quoting Samuel Beckett: "Ever tried. Ever failed. Try again. Fail again. Fail better." Perhaps one of the biggest surprises in a presidential election was the takedown of 2011's front runner Sean Gallagher. Cavan entrepreneur and Dragons Den star Gallagher was set to walk into the Áras when it all went drastically wrong. Standing as an Independent, he was the favourite until he was unable to answer questions about his Fianna Fáil past. At the time, the party's brand was toxic, after the financial crash bailout, recession and persistent accusations of cronyism and corruption. The tweet that downed Gallagher's 2011 presidential campaign was fake news before the term had entered the public's consciousness. Gallagher was set to win. But in the final TV debate, before a live studio audience on RTÉ, a malicious tweet was read out by Pat Kenny, which falsely claimed a man had given him money for a Fianna Fáil fundraiser. Former presidential candidate Sean Gallagher (Image: Colin Keegan, Collins, Dublin) A momentarily panicked Gallagher said he had "no recollection" of "an envelope". To many people, that response was an unfortunate reminder of previous Fianna Fail scandals. His campaign could not recover and he ultimately lost to Michael D Higgins. However, Gallagher later received substantial damages and an apology from RTÉ over the false allegations. Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here. The Irish Mirror's Crime Writers Michael O'Toole and Paul Healy are writing a new weekly newsletter called Crime Ireland. Click here to sign up and get it delivered to your inbox every week
Extra.ie
4 days ago
- General
- Extra.ie
Ryan Tubridy: This isn't a rant - just the thoughts of a dad who feels helpless on Gaza suffering
Watching and reading the coverage of Live Aid's 40th anniversary recently, I was reminded of the fact that Irish people donated more than any other nation per capita. It has always struck me as an astonishing outcome and yet, when we consider the effects of the Famine on this country, maybe it shouldn't be so shocking. More recently, when then-president Mary Robinson visited famine-stricken Somalia, she became uncharacteristically upset at a press conference as she described the scenes she had just visited. Mrs Robinson was there as a representative of a country that has known hunger, degradation and despair. We understood her tears. A few years ago, I interviewed the Booker prize-winning author of Schindler's Ark (renamed Schindler's List for the film), Thomas Keneally. Our conversation turned to the Irish Famine and his ancestors. He suggested at one point that the reason we drink so much as a nation is because the pain of the Famine travelled and its dark shadow still stalks the Irish psyche. Live Aid recently marked it's 40th anniversary. Pic: Getty Images In a different context, talk of inter-generational trauma is rife, particularly when it comes to families but there's no reason to question the notion of a national trauma that stretches across decades and centuries. Could this be why we donated more than any other country when Bob Geldof urged us to pick up the phone and donate some money? Is this why the composed president broke down in tears when she saw humans starving before her very eyes? And is this why so many Irish people I spoke with this week are so upset with what's happening in Gaza? We don't have footage of Irish people brought to their knees by hunger. We don't have YouTube clips of families being burnt out and evicted from their homes. We don't have TikTok clips of well-fed dogs with silky coats, grotesquely well-fed for reasons you don't need me to get into here. We don't have photographs of food crates competing with human cargo to get the next ship off the island. We simply have collective memory, oral and written history and some largely idealised paintings to tell the story. SO when we looked at our news feeds this week, we saw ribcages protruding from the backs of children being carried by distraught mothers and we watched aghast at another desperate display of empty pots beseeching food workers at food distribution points (if there are any) for a small portion of grain. It's been a relentless and depressing war from the start with the savage attack by Hamas and the brutally disproportionate response by Netanyahu. The biblical fire and fury that is beamed into our homes and onto our phones is disturbing and infuriating but it also makes so many feel helpless, powerless and voiceless. There doesn't appear to be a geopolitical adult in the room to say; 'Enough, time for diplomacy' in the way there used to be. It feels like there's an international lawlessness in the air and nobody is winning. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. Pic: AFP via Getty Images So is there a red line for the so-called adults? Is there a point where European leaders (or those beyond) square up to the most powerful leader in the world and suggest that it's time to pull the emergency cord here and shut this catastrophe down? It's worth remembering that when he was president, Barack Obama declared the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian conflict as a red line that should not be crossed or else? Well soon thereafter, we watched children contorted in pain on hospital beds following a chemical weapons attack. The red line was crossed but sadly, Obama didn't deliver on his threat. Some say this weakness emboldened a resurgent Putin whose stock in trade is testing the red lines of the powerful with a view to taking advantage of weakness, perceived or otherwise. But we must return to the point at hand and that is the looming spectre of starving citizens falling to the ground from lack of food. In the course of three days this week 43 people starved to death. A slice of pitta bread in Gaza is now €4 if you're lucky enough to get it and shop shelves remain barren with The Guardian reporting that flour is selling for more than 30 times the market value. A 64-pack of nappies costs €150, a 25kg bag of flour is going for €425 and 1kg of onions costs €27 according to BBC reporting that also tells us that the UN human rights office states more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed while trying to get food aid since June. Muhammad Zakariya Ayyoub al-Matouq, a 1.5-year-old child in Gaza City, Gaza, faces life-threatening malnutrition as the humanitarian situation worsens due to ongoing Israeli attacks and blockade, on July 21, 2025. Pic: Getty This diary I'm writing isn't a rant. This isn't a judgement call. It's not a call to arms nor is it a quasi-liberal, pearl-clutching exercise. These are the reflections of an Irish citizen who watches the news and changes channel like everyone else. These are the thoughts of a dad who is embarrassed at his reaction to harrowing images as he can (as far as he's concerned) do nothing about it so 'click' goes the remote and it all goes away. But it shouldn't. This week moved the dismal dial even further into the darkness but for whatever reason, most likely historical and inter-generationally traumatic, the images of starving children and their mothers with those plaintiff, hollowed eyes resonated in an even more meaningful way. Remember the Chocktaw Nation, that remarkable Native American tribe who, despite their own displacement and oppression, managed to cobble together $5,000 to send to the Irish people in 1847 just when we needed it most. I wonder is this week a Chocktaw moment not just for individuals like me but for peoples and nations around the world (including so many Israeli citizens) who want to do whatever they can whenever they are able to bring this catastrophe to a conclusion.
The Independent
6 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Top court says countries can sue each other for climate damage – this is what to expect
The world's top court has made it easier for governments to be held legally accountable for failing to tackle the climate crisis – in an a move that experts say will have profound implications for climate-related lawsuits. In its long-awaited legal opinion – requested by small island nations facing existential threats from sea level rise – the International Court of Justice (ICJ) said states have binding obligations to act on climate change under international law, and failing to do so could constitute a "wrongful act". In an era of climate science denial and at a time when the United States, one of the world's biggest polluters, is retreating from climate action under Donald Trump, ICJ judge Yuji Iwasawa called the climate crisis an 'urgent and existential threat' and said that greenhouse gas emissions are 'unequivocally caused by human activities which are not territorially limited.' Sir David King, chair of the Climate Crisis Advisory Group (CCAG) and former UK scientific adviser, called it a 'moral reckoning', while former UN human rights chief Mary Robinson called it a 'turning point'. But experts also note that the ICJ's opinion is not itself legally binding. So what does this actually mean in real terms? Could countries that are suffering the most from the impacts of the climate crisis now sue others – developed nations in the West – that have benefited the most from the historic burning of fossil fuels? Experts say the most immediate impact of the ICJ opinion will be seen in thousands of climate cases currently being heard across the world. Joie Chowdhury, senior attorney at the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), said the ICJ opinion provides 'a clear legal blueprint to hold major emitters accountable'. 'We will see this used as persuasive authority in domestic and regional courts, and it could also form the basis of new state-versus-state litigation,' she said. She added that courts around the world already use ICJ rulings as persuasive authority and will likely cite this latest opinion when interpreting binding law within their own jurisdictions. Yet it is also clear that one of the most significant possibilities raised by the ICJ ruling is the potential for international legal action between states. Small island nations and African countries – already suffering from the withdrawal of international aid funding – and which have contributed the least to global emissions, could now explore legal action against larger polluters. While litigation between states is complex and expensive, Chowdhury said the court's ruling has "laid the legal pathway" for such cases. "If major polluters do not adjust their conduct based on the court's very clear guidance on what is permissible and what is not, absolutely, they can be sued. This will depend on jurisdictional issues and other technical criteria, but we may well see cases at the ICJ or other forums," she said. That opens the door to legal action over exported emissions, fossil fuel subsidies, or licensing of polluting projects by one state that affects another's territory or citizens. More than 2,600 climate-related cases have already been filed globally, against governments, fossil fuel companies, or both, ranging from youth-led lawsuits in Europe to frontline communities seeking compensation for damages. Chowdhury says the outcome could 'supercharge climate litigation' with more cases coming up against governments and polluters. The court explicitly stated that climate-destructive conduct includes not just emissions but policy-making, licensing and subsidies that fuel the crisis. In other words, governments can now be held responsible if they fail to regulate or curb emissions-intensive industries. One key section of the judgment states: 'Failure of the state to take appropriate action to protect the climate system from GHG emissions including through fossil fuel production, fossil fuel consumption, the granting of fossil fuel exploration licenses, or the provision of fossil fuel subsidies may constitute an internationally wrongful act.' Chowdhury called the opinion 'one of the most consequential legal rulings of our times, just because of the scope of the issues it covers'. 'The ICJ has now drawn a legal red line: continuing harmful conduct, including licensing fossil fuel exploration or failing to cut emissions, is not just dangerous – it could be unlawful.' 'This puts the fossil fuel industry on notice,' Chowdhury said. 'It establishes that allowing these activities without proper mitigation or phaseout plans may amount to a breach of international law.' The 500 page long opinion also touched upon a crucial question central to the survival of small island states: If global sea level rise swallows their land, do they still have the right to be called a state? The ICJ said the disappearance of one element of a state, such as territory due to rising seas, does not undermine its legal statehood. This offers powerful support to low-lying countries like Tuvalu and Vanuatu who have been exploring legal remedies to protect their sovereignty and maritime rights. During the hearings, held in December last year, the court heard testimonies from almost 100 countries and 12 international organisations. Countries like Tuvalu and Zambia used their time before the court to detail the existential threats posed by sea-level rise and climate-linked drought. ' Tuvalu will not go quietly into the rising sea,' its delegation told the court. In the decade up to 2023, sea levels rose by a global average of around 4.3 centimetres (1.7 inches), with parts of the Pacific rising higher still. The world has also warmed 1.3 degrees Celsius (2.3 Fahrenheit) since preindustrial times because of the burning of fossil fuels. The ICJ ruling could also significantly influence how countries negotiate new emissions targets, finance pledges and loss and damage mechanisms at the next UN climate summit in Brazil. Andreas Sieber, associate policy director at said the ruling 'raises the stakes' for the upcoming round of negotiations. 'As we head into COP30, this ruling raises the stakes, this is not the time for vague pledges, it's time to start delivering real, legally grounded climate action. That means NDCs must collectively add up to this threshold,' he said. Chowdhury said the ruling dismantles one of the most common arguments used on climate action by powerful nations. "A major approach big players take is to say, 'The Paris Agreement is the only treaty that matters, and it doesn't require us to do very much.' But the court said unequivocally that multiple and complementary legal sources, from human rights law to the Law of the Sea, all apply, and there are binding obligations to act," she said. The ruling could also help unlock progress on climate finance and loss and damage – areas where negotiations have often stalled. Small island states, for example, have long demanded clearer legal backing for financial support and reparations from rich polluters. The ICJ said that countries must act with the 'highest possible ambition' to limit warming to 1.5C. Beyond litigation, the ruling affirms that climate justice is inseparable from human rights. It found that climate change-induced displacement, harm to health, and sea-level rise all trigger protections under existing law. 'This is about survival, dignity, and justice,' Chowdhury said. 'The ICJ has clarified what the law already requires – and now it is up to governments, courts, and communities to make that law real.'
Irish Times
7 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Times
Mary Robinson: Gaza situation is ‘unconscionable' and ceasefire is ‘an utter urgency'
Former president Mary Robinson has said what is happening in Gaza is 'unconscionable' and that there is an 'utter urgency' for a ceasefire. The former UN high commissioner for human rights told RTÉ radio's Morning Ireland there needs to be a parallel humanitarian and political approach. Yesterday, more than 100 human rights and aid organisations – including Mercy Corps, the Norwegian Refugee Council and Refugees International – warned that mass starvation was spreading across the enclave even as tons of food, clean water, medical supplies and other items sit untouched just outside Gaza as humanitarian organisations are blocked from accessing or delivering them. 'It is unconscionable what is happening and there is an utter urgency to have a ceasefire and to allow the stockpiles of food, water, medical supplies, shelter, etc, to be distributed by the UN and by the many aid agencies who are more than willing and ready to distribute.' READ MORE Mrs Robinson, former chair of The Elders – an international organisation of public figures noted as elder statespeople, peace activists and human rights advocates – called for all hostages to be released. However, she called for a 'parallel approach' saying: 'We also need the political approach and we need that to be a turning point'. She said there was potential for that at an upcoming conference in New York. 'If western countries, particularly P5 [UN security council permanent members] countries like the United Kingdom and France, recognise the state of Palestine , then we begin the political road towards that state. We restore the humanity of the Palestinians who are being dehumanised . . . The political solution is for the countries who will be involved, the foreign ministers who will present in New York, to rally together and begin to plan. 'The Elders are very in favour of an approach which has both Israeli and Palestinian support, not at the political level, but at the academic and civil society level. It's called a land for all. It's a two-state collaborative, two-states solution for the states of Palestine and Israel together. One state with two states within it. And that's a possibility. There are other possibilities, but there must be a political way forward. That's what's been absent.' Mrs Robinson said that during the second World War the Nazis had 'dehumanised the Jews so that they could exterminate them in gas chambers. And that's why we have to have the humanitarian and the political side by side'. Recently Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu telephoned Pope Leo to apologise for the injury to Fr Gabriel Romanelli when a Catholic church was bombed. However, he has not made any other apologies, Mrs Robinson said. 'Prime minister Netanyahu has not apologised for the more than 17,000 children killed in Gaza. He has not apologised for the many more children left without limbs and without family members. He has not apologised for all the children of Gaza who've been traumatised by this totally disproportionate war and are now hungry to the point of starvation because no apology is deemed to be necessary because this right-wing government has dehumanised the Palestinians.' When asked if Israel should face sanctions as had Syria and Russia, she said: 'Yes, there should be more sanctions on the leaders who are responsible, and there should be no arms supplied to continue this war which has been involved in so many war crimes.'
BreakingNews.ie
7 days ago
- Politics
- BreakingNews.ie
Mary Robinson: The situation in Gaza is 'unconscionable'
Former president Mary Robinson has said what is happening in Gaza is "unconscionable", with major aid agencies saying that mass starvation is spreading in the Palestinian enclave. The former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights was speaking ahead of a UN ministerial-level conference on Palestine in New York next week, saying there needed to be a parallel humanitarian and political approach to end the conflict and get aid to Gazans. Advertisement The World Health Organization said on Wednesday 21 children under the age of five were among those who died of malnutrition so far this year. It said it had been unable to deliver any food for nearly 80 days between March and May and that a resumption of food deliveries was still far below what is needed. In a statement on Wednesday, 111 organisations, including Mercy Corps, the Norwegian Refugee Council and Refugees International, said mass starvation was spreading even as tons of food, clean water and medical supplies sit untouched just outside Gaza, where aid groups are blocked from accessing them. Israel, which cut off all supplies to Gaza from the start of March and reopened it with new restrictions in May, says it is committed to allowing in aid but must control it to prevent it from being diverted by militants. It says it has let enough food into Gaza during the war and blames Hamas for the suffering of Gaza's 2.2 million people. Israel has also accused the UN of failing to act in a timely fashion, saying 700 truckloads of aid are idling inside Gaza. "It is time for them to pick it up and stop blaming Israel for the bottlenecks which are occurring," Israeli government spokesman David Mercer said on Wednesday. Advertisement The UN and aid groups trying to deliver food to Gaza say Israel, which controls everything that comes in and out, is choking delivery, and Israeli troops have shot hundreds of Palestinians dead close to aid collection points since May. Ms Robinson told RTÉ's Morning Ireland there was "an utter urgency" to get a ceasefire in the conflict, with all the hostages released and the stockpiles of food, water and medical supplies allowed to be distributed by the UN and aid agencies. "But we need a parallel approach. We also need the political approach and we need that to be a turning point and that's why this conference in New York is so important. Recently prime minister Netanyahu telephoned Pope Leo to apologise for the injury to Father Gabriel Romanelli when a Catholic church was bombed. "Prime minister Netanyahu has not apologised for the more than 17,000 children killed in Gaza. He has not apologised for the many more children left without limbs and without family members. He has not apologised for all the children of Gaza who've been traumatised by this totally disproportionate war and are now hungry to the point of starvation because no apology is deemed to be necessary because this right-wing government has dehumanised the Palestinians." Advertisement When asked if Israel should face sanctions as had Syria and Russia, she said: "Yes, there should be more sanctions on the leaders who are responsible, and there should be no arms supplied to continue this war which has been involved in so many war crimes." Ms Robinson said the UK and France were on the verge of recognising the state of Palestine. "If Western countries, particularly P5 countries like the United Kingdom and France, recognise the state of Israel, then we begin the political road towards that state. We restore the humanity of the Palestinians who are being dehumanised. They are being less than human in the way they are being treated at the moment." World Aid groups warn of starvation in Gaza as deadly Is... Read More She added: "I think people realise that we cannot tolerate an unfolding genocide. That's what it is. It's for the courts to determine that ultimately, especially the International Court of Justice with the South African case." Ms Robinson said she would speak with foreign ministers on the first day of the UN conference to urge them to take the necessary steps to recognise the the state of Palestine. Advertisement "That is the most urgent thing to turn the corner. That would actually have a huge impact. "And what France and the United Kingdom have been saying is we don't want to [recognise Palestine] as a symbol. We want it at the right moment. Well now is the right moment because otherwise it's all going to be too late and we're going to have a starving genocidal killing on our doorstep, on our watch."
