SOCIALIST PARTY TD Joe Higgins said the Government’s failure to support an Irish ship attempting to join a flotilla in Gaza was “a disgusting and cowardly capitulation”.
The MV Saoirsewas delayed in a Mediterranean port waiting to join the flotilla, he said. "In an area half the size of Erris, or two-thirds the size of the Dingle peninsula, 1.6 million Palestinians have been blockaded – in reality, imprisoned – in the most horrific, inhumane and barbaric conditions that cry out for justice and for action," Mr Higgins said. The Taoiseach had refused to demand unhindered passage for the flotilla.
“Will the Taoiseach, in a supposedly sovereign Irish parliament, publicly demand that the Irish citizens, and all people attempting to assist the people of Gaza, are unhindered in bringing their humanitarian aid to the suffering people of Gaza?” he asked.
Taoiseach Enda Kenny said: “I am well aware of the difficulties and the pressure that people are under, particularly the many young people who are facing a future of unemployment.”
Mr Kenny said Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore had made it clear that while the Government had respect for the motives of the flotilla’s participants, it would strongly advise people not to travel to Gaza.
