Neutrality motion causes war in Waterford Council chamber
The Triple Lock first came into being in 2001 in order to temper fears of Ireland becoming more militarised
Waterford City and County Council passed a motion 16-12 condemning the Irish Government’s moves to disband the ‘Triple Lock’- the mechanism Ireland uses to send its defence forces abroad.
The motion brought forward by Sinn Féin’s seven elected councillors on behalf of the Waterford Council of Trade Unions and the Irish Palestine Solidarity Campaign sparked a fiery debate across the plenary council meeting.
The motion declared that Government’s planned reforms of the Triple Lock “signifies a breach of trust with the Irish electorate and a serious diminution of Irish neutrality”.
The Triple Lock, effective since 2001, requires Ireland gain approval from the Government, Dáil and the UN to send 12 or more troops to battle zones.
Proponents of the Triple Lock argue that it’s a key tenet of Irish neutrality, and that efforts to amend the mechanism could see Ireland become more militarised.
Critics of the Triple Lock believe the requirement of UN approval scuppers Irish sovereignty.
The five permanent members of the UN Security Council- China, France, Russia, the UK and the US- can effectively veto any Irish troop deployment.
Ireland’s long-standing peacekeeping presence in Lebanon with the UN is set to conclude due to opposition from the US and Israel.
Government have proposed changes that would remove the requirement for UN approval while also increasing the number of troops that can be deployed without a Dáil vote from 12 to 50.
A small group of protestors gathered outside of City Hall before the plenary meeting began.
Tensions arose as Fianna Fáil councillor Eamon Quinlan questioned the legality of the motion, arguing that the motion was contradictory in its structure and asking the Sinn Féin councillors to redraft the motion for a future meeting.
Sinn Féin councillor Joeanne Bailey committed to advancing the motion. She noted that the motion had been passed in councils across Ireland; Cavan, Donegal, Louth, Mayo and Dublin South had all passed similar motions.
Mayor of Waterford City and County Council, Cllr Seamus Ryan greenlit the proposal as it had gone through the council’s Corporate Policy Group (CPG) without issue.
“Sinn Féin will oppose any attempts by Government to undermine Ireland's neutrality,” said Cllr. Bailey.
“Ireland's neutrality and having an independent foreign policy is a strength. It is valued and supported by the Irish people on the international stage, neutrality has underpinned our Constitution.
“The reality is that with the Triple Lock removed, Irish troops can be deployed anywhere, in any circumstances, provided that the government of the day has a Dáil majority.
“The Triple Lock is the last protection our Defence Forces personnel, our loved ones, our children have in not being involved in wars that don’t concern us.”
Arguments broke out across the chamber with Mayor Ryan slamming his gavel and calling for order.
Sinn Féin’s, Cllr Pat Fitzgerald accused Cllr. Quinlan of using his legal objections to the bill as “a smokescreen” to stifle the motion’s progress.
Fianna Fáil’s, Cllr Jason Murphy said the motion was “factually incorrect” and that “Irish neutrality had nothing to do with the Triple Lock.”
He said Ireland had stayed neutral through military conflict before the Triple Lock was introduced and that Ireland’s military policy should not be dictated by members of the UN Security Council.
“The only people, in my view, that should decide where Irish troops are deployed are the Irish people and their representatives in Government,” Cllr. Murphy said.
Fine Gael’s, Cllr Jim D’Arcy reiterated Cllr. Murphy’s argument, saying that a double lock (without UN approval) would allow Ireland to express its sovereignty more effectively.
“I've contacted a lot of the councils that passed this,” said Sinn Féin’s Pat Fitzgerlad.
“What they unanimously said to me, and what we need to take cognisance of here today, is that we might talk about something that probably won't affect us too much in the near future, but it could affect our kids or our grandkids.
“We haven’t looked after them in regards to what we done with the bank, we have an opportunity to give [this motion] a serious bit of thought.”
Fianna Fáil’s, Cllr Adam Wyse expressed regret at the way the debate had played out across the chamber and called on Sinn Féin to withdraw their motion and to focus on a bipartisan redraft.
The motion eventually passed, largely along party lines, with Sinn Féin, Labour and left-of-centre Independents backing the motion and Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil opposing it.
