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Irish Examiner
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Letters to the Editor: Decisive action on habitats directives a must
The Government's announcement this week that Ireland must implement Habitats Directive assessments for the granting of derogations may be a moment of progress. It is recognition, for the first time, that there is no basis for Ireland obtaining the blanket derogation without rigorously assessing the impacts on our protected habitats and species. We have unwisely banked on maintaining the derogation status quo to fuel intensified and unsustainable agricultural production over the past decade. Whilst it can be heralded as an achievement of sorts, it is really an indication of intent that must now be followed by action. Water quality is everyone's problem, but for many, this week's announcement spells uncertainty, and a deep concern for their future. We have repeatedly raised this risk with government ministers and officials and highlighted that a sudden withdrawal of the derogation would leave farmers facing a crisis, with enormous ramifications for their businesses. We're now very close to that point. To date there has been an ongoing failure by the State and farm leadership to plan for that potential scenario, with little to no apparent discussion about how to best manage that risk and prepare farmers for this very eventuality. While there is much discussion of this new development being a 'shifting of the goal posts' for farmers, or a new requirement, it is in fact a legal obligation which dates back to 1992. The Irish Government was made aware of the requirement for these types of assessments at least as far back as 2021, by their own environmental consultants, but did nothing to communicate that risk to farmers, leading us to the current cliff edge. It's now long past time for Government to put in place a well thought through and resourced plan to transition impacted farmers away from the high stocking densities the derogation allowed. There is a need for strong leadership to support and protect the farming community, at the same time as we protect our rivers, lakes, and estuaries. The importance of protecting our collective waterways through sustainable land and water management is not something we should take different sides on. Decisive action must now follow the words. Gary Freemantle CEO, An Taisce Foster Place, Dublin 2 We must not be silent on Gaza I write with continuing shock and horror at the relentless bombings and killings in Gaza. Day after day, we witness the deaths of men, women, and children — families obliterated, homes reduced to rubble, entire communities shattered. The images are unbearable; lifeless bodies wrapped in tarpaulin, lined up in the dust, waiting to be buried, if there is even a place left to do so. I cannot remain silent on the terrible horror that keeps unfolding before our eyes. Jonathan Fowler, spokesperson for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland from neighbouring Jordan, described the situation as 'apocalyptic'. He said people were being forced 'to eat or die' and likened the horror to a Hunger Games scenario. These are not abstract warnings. They reflect the brutal, daily reality of more than two million people trapped without food, water, medical aid, or basic safety. This is not about politics. It is about humanity. Every civilian life matters. What is happening in Gaza is not just a crisis — it is a moral failure of the international community. We must not become desensitised to the images of devastation, nor should we allow the cries of the suffering to go unheard. Ireland, with its long tradition of peace-building and speaking truth to power, must continue to demand an immediate ceasefire, full humanitarian access, the protection of civilians under international law — and the immediate release of all hostages. History is watching. We cannot, and must not be silent. Martin Quinn Hon secretary, Tipperary Peace Convention Father Matthew St, Tipperary Town Aire facilities The fact Cork County Council have recognised the income that could be generated by creating additional campervan locations is great. (Cobh location in six months has brought in €31,625 this year. That is €9,145 up on the same time last year.) Motorhome owners do not always want to be 'pushed' towards a campsite, which in most cases, is no where near the centre of a town or village — and importantly closes between October 1 until the following Easter. 'Motorhome owners travel all year round.' Motorhome owners travel all year round. All we are looking for is simple Aire (service area/parking for motorhomes) facilities: Fresh water, grey waste and chemical toilet disposal points, rubbish disposal, and electric hook-ups are always a bonus. This also allows us to spend in local shops, bars, etc. Paul Simpson Newtownards, Co Down Dog walks on farms John Tierney proposes a scheme whereby farmers would be paid 'a small fee' to fence off routes across their lands so as to permit dog walkers without trespassing, believing this would provide farmers with a small additional income — 'Lead the way to peace for farmers and dog walkers' ( Irish Examiner, Letters, July 10). Mr Tierney says a grant scheme could be created for such purposes. While it sounds good in theory it must be pointed out these would not be the only considerations. First, how small a fee? It would have to be more than enough to cover the cost of dog and owner-proof fencing, especially on farms where livestock is being raised; also to cover income lost from land no longer available for tillage or livestock. It would have to avoid creating unintentional rights of way whereby farmers who generously allow their land be used recreationally don't find themselves on the receiving end of expensive and vexatious litigation by members of the public who try to assume some general right of way if allowed any access to land at all — there's always one, as they say. Dog walkers would also have to find an insurance company willing to insure them and indemnify the landowner against any liability in the event that any dog (or person) caused any damage or nuisance to property, livestock, themselves, or other members of the public. Again, far too often farmers have found themselves on the receiving end of legal action by folk who shun common sense and believe it is everyone's responsibility but their own to ensure safety. As a hillwalker, I have seen with my own eyes people who seem totally unfamiliar with the countryside other than in some loose recreational sense, bringing their dogs across mountain farmland and even letting them off the leash. Most farmers might reasonably wonder what's wrong with Mr Tierney simply using existing public parks, beaches, and much-touted greenways. Nick Folley Carrigaline, Co Cork Srebrenica and the horror of genocide I want to commend Mary Lawlor for her very poignant and touching article on the Srebrenica genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina — ' 30 years on, Srebrenica still lives under shadow of genocide' ( Irish Examiner, July 11). The Srebrenica genocide was the killing in July 1995, of more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslim boys and men by Bosnian Serb forces in Srebrenica, Bosnia, and Herzegovina. It was the worst act of mass murder in Europe since the Second World War. Bosnian Muslim men carry coffins containing the remains of seven newly identified victims of the 1995 Srebrenica genocide at the memorial centre in Potocari, Bosnia, on July 11. Picture: Darko Bandic/AP The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia held political leaders and senior leaders and senior officers in the Bosnian Serb army responsible. Among the most prominent were Radovan Karadzic leader of the Republika Srpska, and Ratko Mladic, a military commander who was likely the mastermind of the genocide. We do know that at that time, the Dutch peacekeepers in the UN-designated safe haven of Srebrenica were vastly outnumbered and outgunned by Bosnian Serb forces, and the resolution that authorised their deployment did not allow them to use force to defend the Bosnians that were ostensibly under their protection. Bosnian-Serb forces threatened to execute Dutch hostages, and the peacekeepers were forced to surrender their weapons and withdraw. It's incredulous to think that three decades on, as leaders deny what happened, remains of the thousands killed continue to be identified and buried. It's my contention that the peace of Srebrenica hides deep scars. Mary Lawlor sums up it very well: 'Time has passed, but it hasn't healed all the wounds... in Bosnia and Herzegovina... because it suits some people... to exploit the pains of the past for their own gain.' John O'Brien Clonmel, Co Tipperary
Al-Ahram Weekly
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Israel school closures in occupied east Jerusalem 'assault on children': UNRWA chief - War on Gaza
The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) on Thursday decried an "assault on children" after Israel closed all six of its schools in occupied East Jerusalem, months after an Israeli ban on its activities took effect. "Storming schools & forcing them shut is a blatant disregard of international law", UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini posted on X, describing the move as "An assault on children. An assault on education". UNRWA spokesman Jonathan Fowler told AFP that Israeli forces "closed six United Nations schools in annexed East Jerusalem on Thursday, posting closure orders on the six buildings and forcibly entering three of the six schools". An AFP photographer present at two of the schools in the Shuafat refugee camp reported that Israeli forces entered the premises and posted a closure notice stating the schools were operating without "authorisation". The children had to leave the premises, with many departing in tears. Several young pupils, some visibly moved and others shocked, hugged in front of the school before they left. UNRWA said one of its staff members was detained. An assault on children. An assault on education. A sad day in occupied East Jerusalem. This morning, heavily armed Israeli Forces entered three @UNRWA schools in Shu'fat Camp in occupied East Jerusalem, forcing 550+ girls & boys who were in classrooms out of their schools.… — Philippe Lazzarini (@UNLazzarini) May 8, 2025 "From May 8, 2025, it will be prohibited to operate educational institutions, or employ teachers, teaching staff or any other staff, and it will be forbidden to accommodate students or allow the entry of students into this institution," the closure order in Hebrew read. UNRWA's director in the West Bank, Roland Friedrich, told AFP that "heavily armed" forces surrounded the three UNRWA schools in Shuafat camp at 9:00 am. Friedrich added that 550 pupils aged six to 15 were present when the closure was enforced, calling it "a traumatising experience for young children who are at immediate risk of losing their access to education." He said police were deployed in the area around three separate schools in other parts of east Jerusalem, which has been annexed by Israel since 1967. UNRWA said that the school year for 800 children had "been ended by force". 'Violation of right to education' The Palestinian Authority condemned the move in a statement to AFP, calling it a "violation of children's right to education". In a statement, its education ministry called the closures a "crime". It urged international institutions to assume their responsibilities and defend the right of refugee children to a free and safe education. UNRWA has provided support for Palestinian refugees around the Middle East for more than 70 years, but has been consistently subjected to attacks by Tel Aviv. The Palestinian refugee agency was established in 1949 to provide aid to hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees displaced after the 1948 war. The agency provides essential and life-saving humanitarian aid and basic services to millions of Palestinians in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, and Palestinian refugees in nearby countries. In Gaza, Israel has targeted and destroyed most of the UNRWA schools and infrastructure, killing tens of its staff, since the start of its genocidal war on the strip in October 2023, thus depriving 2.3 million Palestinians of basic health and education services. At the end of January, Israeli legislation came into force banning the agency's activities. Due to the annexation, the law applies to east Jerusalem but not to the rest of the West Bank, which has been occupied by Israel since 1967. Contact between it and Israeli officials is also forbidden. Adalah, an Israeli group defending the rights of the Arab minority, reported that Israeli police were raiding six UNRWA-run schools in east Jerusalem. The organisation filed a petition with Israel's Supreme Court in mid-January, arguing the new legislation against UNRWA violated "fundamental human rights and Israel's obligations under international law". The Supreme Court rejected its request for the legislation to be suspended. In April, Adalah demanded a halt to the closure orders on UNRWA-run schools at the Supreme Court. The state responded that the Jerusalem municipality offered alternative schooling and the court rejected the NGO's motion. Adalah called the proposed alternatives "wholly inadequate". The United Nations considers the annexation of East Jerusalem illegal. *This story was edited by Ahram Online. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
Arab News
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
UN: Israel school closures in East Jerusalem ‘assault on children'
JERUSALEM: The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees on Thursday decried an 'assault on children' after Israel closed all six of its schools in annexed East Jerusalem, months after an Israeli ban on its activities took effect. 'Storming schools & forcing them shut is a blatant disregard of international law,' UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini posted on X, describing the move as 'An assault on children. An assault on education.' UNRWA spokesman Jonathan Fowler said that Israeli forces 'closed six UN schools in annexed East Jerusalem on Thursday, posting closure orders on the six buildings and forcibly entering three of the six schools.' An AFP photographer present at two of the schools in the Shuafat refugee camp reported that Israeli forces entered the premises and posted a closure notice stating the schools were operating without 'authorization.' The children had to leave the premises, with many departing in tears. Several young pupils, some visibly moved and others shocked, hugged in front of the school before they left. UNRWA said one of its staff members was detained. 'From May 8, 2025, it will be prohibited to operate educational institutions, or employ teachers, teaching staff, or any other staff, and it will be forbidden to accommodate students or allow the entry of students into this institution,' the closure order in Hebrew read. UNRWA's director in the West Bank, Roland Friedrich, said that 'heavily armed' forces surrounded the three UNRWA schools in Shuafat camp at 9 a.m. Friedrich added that 550 pupils aged six to 15 were present when the closure was enforced, calling it 'a traumatising experience for young children who are at immediate risk of losing their access to education.' Friedrich said police were deployed in the area around three separate schools in other parts of East Jerusalem, which has been annexed by Israel since 1967. UNRWA said that the school year for 800 children had 'been ended by force.' The Palestinian Authority condemned the move in a statement, calling it a 'violation of children's right to education.' In a statement, its Education Ministry called the closures a 'crime.' It urged international institutions 'to assume their responsibilities and defend the right of refugee children to a free and safe education.' UNRWA has provided support for Palestinian refugees around the Middle East for more than 70 years, but has long clashed with Israeli officials, who have repeatedly accused it of undermining the country's security. At the end of January, Israeli legislation banned the agency's activities. Due to the annexation, the law applies to East Jerusalem but not to the rest of the West Bank, which has been occupied by Israel since 1967. Contact between it and Israeli officials is also forbidden. Israel has accused UNRWA of providing cover for Hamas militants, claiming that some of the agency's employees took part in the Oct. 7, 2023, assault on Israel, which sparked the war in Gaza. A series of investigations found some 'neutrality-related issues' at UNRWA, but stressed Israel had not provided conclusive evidence for its headline allegation. Nevertheless, the UN said in August that nine staff working for UNRWA would be sacked because they may have been involved in the attacks. Adalah, an Israeli group defending the rights of the Arab minority, reported that Israeli police were raiding six UNRWA-run schools in East Jerusalem. The organization filed a petition with Israel's Supreme Court in mid-January, arguing the new legislation against UNRWA violated 'fundamental human rights and Israel's obligations under international law.'
CBC
17-04-2025
- General
- CBC
Halifax starting plan for Memorial Library site that will honour forgotten burial ground
More than a decade after the old Halifax library closed, the city has begun to explore options for the site's future that could include demolition of the municipal heritage building. The municipality recently passed $100,000 in this year's budget to hire a consultant to make a plan for the Memorial Library property. A Halifax spokesperson said that work will include public input and other research. Municipal staff have said removing the building, which would see the site become a park with "historical interpretation," is the best option for an area with a burial ground that has never been properly acknowledged. "It is just one of those classic cases, this [burial] site that illustrates how a whole part of our history can just be jettisoned and forgotten," said Jonathan Fowler, anthropology professor at Saint Mary's University. "There are many parts like that in this city, in this province, in this country. And I welcome the opportunity to engage in the work of remembering." The Spring Garden Road library opened in 1951 as a living cenotaph in honour of those who died in the First World War and the Second World War. It became a fixture of public life over the decades, with generations of Haligonians finding favourite books in the shelves, or enjoying fries from Bud the Spud food truck on the grassy area near the street. The library closed in 2014 when the Central Library opened, and has been vacant ever since. Although there was no mention of it in newspapers when it opened, or in council minutes about the location, the library was built on top of the Poor House Burying Ground. It's estimated 4,500 people from the neighbouring Poor House (located where the Doyle building is now) were buried there between the 1760s and mid-1800s. Poor House residents would have been those on the margins of society at the time, including orphans, people with disabilities, those who were homeless, or unwed mothers. People from all backgrounds were buried there, including Mi'kmaq, Black Nova Scotians, and victims of epidemics like smallpox. Records also show people new to Halifax, from around the province or the world, were buried at the site. "All of their lives have simply been forgotten. And it just doesn't seem right, does it?" said Fowler. Local historian William Breckenridge has formed Friends of the Halifax Memorial Library, and is working with the Halifax Military Heritage Preservation Society to urge the city to repurpose the building. "It leaves me very concerned, because demolition is not an option that I think will respect the burials that are underneath, and also all the other history that goes along with it," Breckenridge said. Breckenridge and Emma Lang, executive director of the Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia, said the library is architecturally important and should be turned into a museum or community space to tell the entire story of the site. "The fact that they chose to build a memorial to people who died in the wars on a cemetery, without acknowledging the people who are under here, is a really important story in itself," Lang said. "To tear it down seems to be … making it worse when you have the ability to at least talk about why this building was there, and what does that say about Halifax at the time — good and bad." After the Poor House on Spring Garden closed in the 1860s, the burial site was grassed over and trees were planted for it to become Grafton Park. The green space housed a fire station before the library was built. Although there are no reports that human remains were found during the library's construction, Fowler said it's "highly unlikely, bordering on impossible" that graves weren't disturbed. An archeological report on the 2016-17 relocation of graves from the adjacent St. David's Presbyterian Church land shows the remains of 244 people were recovered and moved to the church crypt. Three mass graves were found, including one of "likely former residents of the Poor House Cemetery on the neighbouring property." A Halifax staff report from July 2024 said Mi'kmaw ancestral remains were discovered during that excavation work ahead of the creation of the Grafton Park apartment building. Given the cultural sensitivity of the Poor House burial site, and strict protocol around land with Mi'kmaw remains, the report recommends against ground-disturbing activities on the property. Municipal staff said it would take $15 million to $20 million to renovate the library with new water and sewer lines, replace the roof, elevator, and rebuild the interior. These updates, especially new pipes, would require digging. Pam Glode-Desrochers, executive director of the Mi'kmaw Native Friendship Society, said it will be up to elders and other experts to weigh in on what the protocols should be around any changes to the site. While digging should not be a "first resort," Glode-Desrochers said it should be up to the wider Mi'kmaw community, and people of all backgrounds in Halifax, to decide together the best option. "It's almost a little emotional because these are our ancestors. These were somebody's auntie and uncles and mothers and brothers, and like they belonged to community," said Glode-Desrochers. "But it's also exciting on the possibilities of what can be done, and how do we do that together." Although the burial ground is a piece of lost local history for many Halifax residents today, Glode-Desrochers said it's "always been known" by many in the Mi'kmaw community. "There'll be some tough conversations, but I also think it's part of the healing journey and what that looks like," said Glode-Desrochers. If the city wanted to explore repurposing the building, legal changes would need to be made because of a covenant on the land. The staff report said the province granted the land to Halifax in 1882 "for the use and enjoyment of the citizens of Halifax, as a public square or gardens forever and for no other purposes whatsoever." In 1949, the province amended the covenant to allow a public library only. Various groups have considered taking the building over the years, staff said, but determined it would be "uneconomical and thus inviable." Halifax eventually asked the province to take the site back, but it officially declined to do so in 2023. The consultant's final report is expected to go before regional council summer 2026.
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Israel enforces laws banning UNRWA
Jan. 30 (UPI) -- The law that bans the United Nations agency that aids Palestinian refugees in Gaza went into effect on Thursday. The new laws, which were passed in October, prevent UNRWA from operating in Gaza, East Jerusalem and the West Bank, the organization's spokesperson Jonathan Fowler, said in a statement. Fowler said the UNRWA distributed humanitarian aid and assistance for nearly 6 million Palestinians. Because of the laws, UNRWA's international staff, originally located in East Jerusalem, has been relocated to Amman, Jordan. The ban will affect 30,000 UNRWA workers who served Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. UNRWA said Israeli courts did not turn back the laws, almost guaranteeing them to be implemented. The international community condemned the decision to ban UNRWA last October when the laws were originally passed. It was not clear what organization would step in the place of UNRWA, formally known as the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees and Near East. Yuli Edelstein, chair of Israeli Knesset foreign affairs and defense committee said the bills were needed to secure the country. Israel accused a small number of UNRWA workers of being involved in the deadly Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023 which killed 1,200 and took more than 200 hostages. UNRWA fired nine workers after finding evidence that they may have been connected with the attack.
