Occupied Territories Bill

Sir, – In his timely and impressive homage to Ireland’s term on the UN Security Council, Concern Worldwide director of strategy Connell Foley makes an important omission: how the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade employed the cause of Palestinian human rights to edge ahead of its competitors to win a seat, and the question of whether it subsequently lived up to its implicit promises (Letters, December 27th).

When Ireland secured its seat, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Simon Coveney proclaimed that “a lot of small countries in particular around the world feel that we can be a voice for them”, and explained that Ireland’s support for the Palestinian cause had been instrumental in winning the support of “virtually every Arab state”.

But around the same time, and perhaps acting as a domestic counterpart to the “problematic veto by permanent Security Council members” which thwarts so many worthy initiatives at UN level, Mr Coveney insisted point-blank that his Coalition partners drop the Occupied Territories Bill from the 2020 Programme for Government.

The Bill is a modest but concrete measure to support the human rights of oppressed people in occupied territories throughout the world. It has reached committee stage in Dáil Éireann, with the support of all major political parties barring Fine Gael, the endorsement of numerous Irish civil society organisations, and the strong backing of former attorney general Michael McDowell.