Latest news with #Moygashel
Irish Times
14-07-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
Keir Starmer was quick to condemn Kneecap, but strangely silent on Moygashel
It's hard to avoid images and scenes that provoke disgust these days, but the burning of effigies of people in a boat atop a bonfire in Moygashel in Co Tyrone last week is an especially grotesque brand of racism. Stormont's First Minister Michelle O'Neill referred to 'openly racist displays that are sickening and deplorable' and called for political leadership. Where is that leadership? And how can it effectively tackle these annual expressions of unhinged hate? Where is the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Hilary Benn , on this? Keir Starmer found the time to speak about an Irish band playing Glastonbury , making interventions that exerted huge political pressure on the festival. Why did he not have anything to say about the premeditated, explicit and threatening racism on display in Moygashel last week? In June Starmer condemned the racist violence in Ballymena . In May Starmer made his Enoch Powell-esque 'island of strangers' speech. Note the singular 'island'. Starmer is especially well-placed to speak on the North given that he was a human rights adviser to the Northern Ireland Policing Board, yet he said nothing. READ MORE Yvette Cooper declared Palestine Action a 'proscribed' group, turning a bunch of people protesting against genocide into 'terrorists' in the eyes of the law (and rhetoric) overnight. Expressing support for Palestine Action is now illegal in the UK – a ludicrous, dangerous situation that frames those desiring peace and an end to war crimes and mass murder as the enemy. There was not a peep from her on Moygashel either. Kemi Badenoch accused the BBC of 'rewarding extremism' by broadcasting Kneecap's Glastonbury set. On Moygashel's spectacle of actual extremism, however, she has been silent. Those who have called it out for what it is deserve credit. They include John McDowell, the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland. He described it as 'racist, threatening and offensive. It certainly has nothing whatsoever to do with Christianity or with Protestant culture and is in fact inhuman and deeply sub-Christian'. Sinn Féin's Colm Gildernew labelled it a 'clear incitement to hatred'. UUP leader Mike Nesbitt described it as 'sickening, deplorable and entirely out of step with what is supposed to be a cultural celebration'. Amnesty International's Patrick Corrigan called it a 'vile, dehumanising act that fuels hatred and racism'. Claire Hanna, the leader of the SDLP, called it 'disgusting' and 'a deeply dehumanising provocation'. On Friday, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he 'was dismayed' by the display. 'Archbishop McDowell made a strong comment on it and he's right – it's racist, threatening, and offensive and it's unChristian and lacking in any appreciation of human dignity.' [ 'Clear incitement to hatred': Calls for removal of migrant effigies in boat placed on loyalist bonfire Opens in new window ] The PSNI eventually said they were investigating the 'material placed upon a bonfire' as a 'hate incident'. The PSNI did not dismantle another bonfire in Belfast when a city council committee voted that such action should be taken, and asked the PSNI to assist contractors in doing so. The request to have it removed was rooted in concerns that the electricity supply to Belfast City Hospital and Royal Victoria Hospital was at risk due to the proximity of that bonfire to a substation, and because there is asbestos at the bonfire site. The decision to let it burn regardless was driven by the potential for violence. The decision is understandable in operational terms – had the PSNI set about dismantling it, riots were inevitable, and everyone knows that threat of violence ultimately emanates from the UDA and the UVF. Northern Ireland's Environment Minister and Alliance Party MLA Andrew Muir also told the BBC that 'the removal of asbestos is very complex and delicate. It requires the site to be completely vacated.' He asked people 'not to light this bonfire if they could.' Year in, year out, the burning of effigies, hate slogans and flags is accepted. Were it not, effective action would be taken to end it. The reluctance to interfere – by politicians and police – is unacceptable when there are lives at risk, both from direct racist violence and the incitement of it. This is a tired cycle, the playing out of a pathetic desire for negative attention. Perhaps there is even a subconscious – or a tacit – understanding that the Britain those making such effigies are loyal to barely thinks about them. This reality may be so painful that it produces a desire to burn something. Anything. Anyone. Boats, mannequins, effigies, flags. I take no issue with bonfires as spectacle and community events celebrating culture. In a pluralist society, expressions of identity, community, and the rituals and traditions that accompany them are important. But there is something rotten about leveraging what is supposed to be an expression of long-standing culture and tradition for contemporary expressions of racist hate, with phraseology borrowed from the likes of Nigel Farage (a man who once got paid a few quid to say 'up the Ra' during his pathetic hustle selling personalised video clip messages via Cameo). It's a pity the imagery of this bonfire did not make the front pages the world over. Maybe then, the blind eye could open to confront a spectacle of festering racism and red hot hate.
New York Times
11-07-2025
- New York Times
Police Investigate Burning of Migrant-Boat Effigy in Northern Ireland as a Hate Crime
The police are investigating the burning of an effigy depicting Black migrants on a boat as a 'hate incident' after it was set alight as part of annual loyalist celebrations in Northern Ireland. A boat containing life-size mannequins wearing life jackets was set on top of a tower of wooden pallets in Moygashel, County Tyrone, above banners reading 'stop the boats' and 'veterans before refugees.' The bonfire was set alight in front of a large crowd on Thursday night as part of wider events marking the start of Twelfth of July, which commemorates the 1690 victory by a Protestant king, William III, over a Catholic king, James II. For more than a century, members of the Protestant community have taken part in annual marches and parades around July 12. During the Troubles, the sectarian conflict between Catholic and Protestant communities, 'marching season' was a source of tension and, at times, violence. While the marches have become less fraught in recent years, the bonfires remain a source of concern to police, some of whom fear they can stoke lawlessness. A statement from the Police Service of Northern Ireland said they had received several calls about the fire and the 'material that has been placed upon it,' which was being investigated as a 'hate incident.' The force said that officers were working to 'help those who are or who feel vulnerable, to keep people safe,' but cautioned that they can 'only do so within the legislative framework that exists.' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
The Guardian
11-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
PSNI investigating loyalist bonfire refugee effigies as hate incident
Police in Northern Ireland are investigating a loyalist bonfire that featured effigies of refugees sitting in a boat as a hate incident. Crowds in the County Tyrone village of Moygashel cheered on Thursday night when the towering pyre was lit and flames engulfed the vessel and a dozen dark-skinned, lifesize mannequins with lifejackets. Placards beneath the boat stated 'stop the boats' and 'veterans before refugees'. An Ireland flag also burned in the bonfire, which was part of wider loyalist commemorations. In a statement hours before the pyre was lit, the Police Service of Northern Ireland said it was investigating it as a hate incident. Earlier in the week politicians condemned the stunt as hateful and racist and called for the effigies to be removed or the entire bonfire to be dismantled. A separate bonfire in Belfast, which is to be lit on Friday night – one of an estimated 300 bonfires across Northern Ireland – has caused controversy because it is on a site that contains asbestos and is close to an electricity substation that powers two hospitals. Northern Ireland's environment minister, Andrew Muir, urged people not to attend the bonfire out of safety concerns. Images of the flaming pyre at Moygashel fuelled fresh condemnation of the refugee boat effigies, following anti-immigrant riots in Ballymena last month and renewed political focus in Britain on small boats crossing the Channel. Patrick Corrigan, Amnesty International's Northern Ireland programme director, said: 'It is shameful that the authorities allowed this despicable display of hate to go ahead. What a shocking message to send to local migrant families. It is just weeks since migrant families were forced to flee for their lives when their homes were attacked and set on fire – a chilling pattern of escalating hostility.' The Sinn Féin assembly member Colm Gildernew said the effigies were abhorrent and an attempt to dehumanise people. 'I welcome that police are treating this as a hate incident. It's vital those responsible are held accountable for their disgusting actions.' Mike Nesbitt, the Ulster Unionist party leader and health minister, said the refugee effigies should have been removed. 'This image is sickening, deplorable and entirely out of step with what is supposed to be a cultural celebration,' he wrote on X. Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Earlier in the week Jamie Bryson, a prominent loyalist activist, defended the pyre, saying: 'Every year Moygashel bonfire combines artistic protest with their cultural celebration. Their yearly art has itself become a tradition. This year the focus is on the scandal of mass illegal immigration.' Bonfires form part of the annual celebration of the victory of King William III's Protestant forces over Catholics at the battle of the Boyne in 1690. Parades are to be held across Northern Ireland on Saturday. A Belfast city council committee voted on Wednesday to send contractors to dismantle the contentious pyre on Meridi Street off Donegall Road, but it is still due to be ignited late on Friday. Police refused a request to help, saying letting the bonfire go ahead was less risky than trying to stop it. Paramilitary groups had warned of 'widespread disorder' if the pyre was removed, while Sinn Féin said letting the bonfire proceed would be giving in to mob rule.
The Independent
11-07-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
‘Shameful' that bonfire with migrant effigies was allowed to go ahead
It is 'shameful' that a bonfire topped with effigies of migrants in a boat was allowed to go ahead, Amnesty International has said. There has been widespread condemnation from politicians and church leaders to the display on the bonfire in Moygashel, Co Tyrone, which was set alight on Thursday night. The boat on top of the pyre contained more than a dozen life-sized mannequins wearing life jackets, while below it were placards saying 'stop the boats' and 'veterans before refugees'. International's Northern Ireland director Patrick Corrigan said: 'It is shameful that the authorities allowed this despicable display of hate to go ahead. 'What a shocking message to send to local migrant families. 'It is just weeks since migrant families were forced to flee for their lives when their homes were attacked and set on fire – a chilling pattern of escalating hostility. 'The authorities must treat this as a hate crime, conduct a full investigation and ensure those responsible are held to account.' Mr Corrigan added: 'Racism, xenophobia, and hate have no place here – and that must be made unmistakably clear.' Police said on Thursday they had received a number of reports regarding the bonfire in Moygashel and the material on it. A spokesperson said: 'Police are investigating this hate incident. 'Police are here to help those who are or who feel vulnerable, to keep people safe. 'We do this by working with local communities, partners, elected representatives and other stakeholders to deliver local solutions to local problems, building confidence in policing and supporting a safe environment for people to live, work, visit and invest in Northern Ireland, but we can only do so within the legislative framework that exists.' Sinn Fein MLA Colm Gildernew said the bonfire 'was clearly intended to dehumanise people who come to our island seeking a better life'. He added: 'The effigies and displays were abhorrent, driven by vile, far-right and racist attitudes. 'I welcome that police are treating this as a hate incident. It's vital those responsible are held accountable for their disgusting actions. 'Diversity, inclusion and equality must always triumph over xenophobia and hate.' The Moygashel bonfire has become well known in recent years for contentious displays. Last year, a mock police car was burnt on the top of the bonfire and in 2023 a boat designed to represent the post-Brexit Irish Sea economic border was torched. Earlier this week, prominent loyalist activist Jamie Bryson said the bonfire was a form of 'artistic protest'. 'Every year Moygashel bonfire combines artistic protest with their cultural celebration,' he posted on X. 'Their yearly art has itself become a tradition. 'This year the focus is on the scandal of mass illegal immigration.'
BreakingNews.ie
11-07-2025
- Politics
- BreakingNews.ie
‘Shameful' that bonfire with migrant effigies was allowed to go ahead
It is 'shameful' that a bonfire topped with effigies of migrants in a boat was allowed to go ahead, Amnesty International has said. There has been widespread condemnation from politicians and church leaders to the display on the bonfire in Moygashel, Co Tyrone, which was set alight on Thursday night. Advertisement The boat on top of the pyre contained more than a dozen life-sized mannequins wearing life jackets, while below it were placards saying 'stop the boats' and 'veterans before refugees'. Crowds gathered as the bonfire was set alight on Thursday night (Niall Carson/PA) International's Northern Ireland director Patrick Corrigan said: 'It is shameful that the authorities allowed this despicable display of hate to go ahead. 'What a shocking message to send to local migrant families. 'It is just weeks since migrant families were forced to flee for their lives when their homes were attacked and set on fire – a chilling pattern of escalating hostility. Advertisement 'The authorities must treat this as a hate crime, conduct a full investigation and ensure those responsible are held to account.' Mr Corrigan added: 'Racism, xenophobia, and hate have no place here – and that must be made unmistakably clear.' Amnesty International Northern Ireland director Patrick Corrigan (Brian Lawless/PA) Police said on Thursday they had received a number of reports regarding the bonfire in Moygashel and the material on it. A spokesperson said: 'Police are investigating this hate incident. Advertisement 'Police are here to help those who are or who feel vulnerable, to keep people safe. 'We do this by working with local communities, partners, elected representatives and other stakeholders to deliver local solutions to local problems, building confidence in policing and supporting a safe environment for people to live, work, visit and invest in Northern Ireland, but we can only do so within the legislative framework that exists.' The display on top of the fire was widely criticised (Niall Carson/PA) Sinn Féin MLA Colm Gildernew said the bonfire 'was clearly intended to dehumanise people who come to our island seeking a better life'. He added: 'The effigies and displays were abhorrent, driven by vile, far-right and racist attitudes. Advertisement 'I welcome that police are treating this as a hate incident. It's vital those responsible are held accountable for their disgusting actions. 'Diversity, inclusion and equality must always triumph over xenophobia and hate.' The Moygashel bonfire last year was topped with a mock police car (PA) The Moygashel bonfire has become well known in recent years for contentious displays. Last year, a mock police car was burnt on the top of the bonfire and in 2023 a boat designed to represent the post-Brexit Irish Sea economic border was torched. Advertisement Earlier this week, prominent loyalist activist Jamie Bryson said the bonfire was a form of 'artistic protest'. 'Every year Moygashel bonfire combines artistic protest with their cultural celebration,' he posted on X. 'Their yearly art has itself become a tradition. 'This year the focus is on the scandal of mass illegal immigration.'
