Posted by Jim on May 28, 2015
As you already know, I received a call from the Governor’s office on May 21 informing me that Governor Scott regrettably signed Senate Bill 7084 into law, which removed the protection of the Mac Bride Principles from Florida investments in Northern Ireland. Senate Bill 7024 will now permit Florida businesses to invest in the 6 Counties without the statutory restrictions first enacted by the Florida Legislature in 1988.
The FSBA’s (Florida State Board of Administration) three trustees were behind the introduction of this bill to eliminate the investment restrictions imposed by the Mac Bride Principles. According to a report by Barry B. Burr and comments made by John Kuczwanski (communications manager of the FSBA) in a follow-up e-mail, the FSBA sought a review of the restrictions after they prevented FSBA from investing last year “in an attractive real estate credit portfolio consisting of distressed mortgage loans by several banks operating in Northern Ireland”.
In addition, the end of violence and unrest related to the implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, helped to alleviated FSBA concerns about seeking an end to the Mac Bride investment restrictions.
Unfortunately, the FSBA’s trustees kept this bill buried in committee until it was released for Senate and House approval at the end of Florida’s legislative session. By doing so, they kept it out of the public eye, preventing an organized Irish-American response from taking place. The members of the Florida legislature had literally no time to review this bill and was forced to accept committee recommendations that given the current climate in Northern Ireland, these restrictions were no longer needed. By the time this bill made it to the Governor’s office and became available to the public, our response time to convince the Governor not to sign this Bill was greatly limited.
Despite these limitations, the Governor’s office was inundated with phone calls objecting to this Bill. Because of the efforts put forth by our Brothers, Sisters and friends, the Governor came very close to vetoing Senate Bill 7024. However, due to the fact that this Bill was tied into the State Budget and Florida Laws mandates that a Budget be passed and signed into law by the end of the legislative session, the Governor felt that he had no other choice but to do so.
To address the injustice that has occurred with the signing of Senate Bill 7024, Florida’s FFAI Committee is in the process of undertaking steps that are necessary in an attempt to reinstate the Mac Bride Principles in Florida during our next legislative session which begins in December.
In Friendship, Unity, & Christian Charity
Greg Seán Canning
Gríoghár Seán Ó Canannáin
AOH National Director
AOH National FFAI Co-Chairman
Florida State President of the Ancient Order of Hibernians
Posted by Jim on
THE LAST OBSCENITY?
Maghaberry is an injustice that undermines the very fabric of our society, no man or woman should be subject to what goes on in this hideous place. It should be an international outrage but instead is for the most part ignored by those with the power to effect change, those who have bought into the new establishment in Ireland.
Whether for good or bad, whether for right or wrong, they’ve bought into it all. And the ‘all’ in question does not just equate to power-sharing, the equality agenda or any other positive relating to the ‘new dispensation’, it also involves internment, secret evidence, political policing and the torturing of Irish political prisoners – prisoners such as Gavin Coyle, who has recently entered his fourth year in solitary confinement. By any definition that amounts to torture.
As such there is a responsibility on those who participate in this system, and legitimise it by their presence at the heart of its institutions, to ensure the brutality ongoing at Maghaberry is given no place or quarter in this society, the beatings, the abuse, the horror has to stop. It has no place in our country today – it never had.
If what goes on behind those gates were carried out in some dictatorship no doubt we’d hear the great and the good speak out, it would be condemned vociferously and rightly so. But not here, not in our own country, not when it is done to and on our own. Why do we never hear this alluded to by our politicians, why is this brushed under the carpet, why do they not want us to know what is being done in our name?
The time for action is long past, those in positions of authority, who have achieved high office on the back of a mandate given them by the Irish people, can no longer sit back as though this were not happening. They can no longer watch on through covered eyes in the hope this will just go away. And they have to start taking some responsibility for the situation, why else have they been elected if not to do so?
Whether we agree or not with the politics of those held in this gaol there is a basic onus, common to us all, as right-thinking men and women, that abuse of human rights not be tolerated. Human rights are sacrosanct. Toleration equates to association and facilitation. Who would honestly want to facilitate and be associated with this?
Posted by Jim on
May 26, 2015
Letters Editor
IRISH TIMES
Irish Times Bldg
Box 74
24-28 Tara St
Dublin 2 Ireland
Dear Editor:
Ms. Frances Fitzgerald, Minister for Justice and Equality has vowed to quickly submit legislation to amend the Constitution pursuant to the results of the recent referendum on legalization of same sex marriage. This seems prudent in light of the all-party support and 60% vote in favor of the amendment.
It is a pity, however, that another referendum, the May, 1998 vote on accepting the amendments to the constitution and supporting the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement has not inspired the same attention by the Minister. As a bi-lateral and international treaty with the British government with nearly the same voter support (56%) as that of the recent referendum, Ms. Fitzgerald is duty bound to enforce provisions of the amended Agreement requiring a public and independent inquiry into the British admitted murder of attorney Patrick Finucane and, more importantly, to use the European Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty to compel British production of documents regarding the Dublin Monaghan bombings. She has done neither.
The rights of anyone in Ireland…gay or otherwise…will mean little if Britain can support the extra-legal murder of Irish citizens and be confident the Minister of Justice and Equality will not have the guts to hold them accountable.
Sincerely,
Michael J. Cummings
Albany, NY
Posted by Jim on
Dear Brothers, Sisters and Friends,
Dr. Martin Luther King once said “Injustice anywhere, is a threat to justice everywhere”.As Irish-Americans those words should resonate with us all.
On May 21st, the government of the State of Florida participated in a shameful revocation of the fundamental protections of the Irish Catholic Community in Northern Ireland. By rescinding Florida Statute 121.153, our State government has essentially stripped the Catholic Community of the civil rights protections that they have been afforded since 1988 under the Mac Bride Principles.
While May 21st must be seen as a dark and shameful day for our State government, it will be remembered as the day that countless Irish-Americans from all walks of life flooded the Governors phone lines demanding he halt this shameful act.
The courage and organizational prowess of the AOH, IRISH NATIONAL CAUCUS, and Irish Americans from all walks of life almost convinced the Governor to reconsider. While we did not succeed, we did let the governor and our legislature know we were disgusted by the actions they had taken. Actions that have nothing in common with the values of the American people.
On May 21st, we sent a clear message to our State government, though the battle may have been lost we will never end our struggle to hold government accountable for its actions. We will never abandon the struggle for equality, justice and freedom for the Catholic Community of Northern Ireland.
Again, I would like to thank all of are Brothers and Sisters who took part in this struggle. I would like to personally thank Father Sean Mc Manus of the Irish National Caucus who personally provided me with the actionable intelligence to respond to this veiled legislative action. I would like to thank Greg Sean Canning for having courage to fight a battle based on Principle.
There are those that believe you should never fight a battle unless your certain of victory. If we choose to follow such a philosophy we have lost much more than a battle, we will have lost our moral compass. We must never be willing to turn our back on our suffering Brothers and Sisters in Northern Ireland in pursuit of political expediency.
In closing I ask you to remember the words of Robert Kennedy ” Each time a person stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, these ripples build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance”
My Sincere Appreciation to you all,
Shawn Sidway
State Chair- Freedom For All Ireland Committee
Posted by Jim on May 26, 2015
by Friends of Sinn Fein
Sinn Féin MLA Martin McGuinness has Sinn Féin will continue to stand up for public services and the most vulnerable in opposing Tory cuts.
Mr McGuinness said;
“The crisis we are facing is not of the making of the parties in the Executive.
“It has been created by the austerity cuts agenda of a Tory administration in London, which is attempting to decimate our public services and punish the most vulnerable people in society.
“They have already taken £1.5 billion from the Executive’s block grant. And Cameron’s cabinet of Tory millionaires have announced plans for further cuts of £25 billion to our public services and to welfare protections for people with disabilities, the long-term sick and large families.
“We made it very clear in our election manifesto that the Executive needs a viable budget for frontline public services and welfare protections for the most vulnerable.
“Sinn Féin will not support a welfare bill, which does not contain those protections and we will not be part of any agenda, which punishes the poor and dismantles public services.
“It has always been my view that the outstanding issues in the welfare bill can be resolved, but this requires political will from all parties in the assembly, to protect the most vulnerable.
“This is a time when the Executive parties need to stand together to defend our public services particularly in health, education and welfare. We need to stand up for the people who elect us, rather than acting in the interests of a Tory elite.
“We need an immediate negotiation with the British government for a budget, which protects our public services and for fiscal powers that give us control over our economy.
“If a choice has to be made to stand side by side with the Tories or stand up for the people here for our economy and public services? I know what side Sinn Féin will be on.”