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NORTHERN IRELAND JUSTICE Minister Naomi Long has described the placing of her political posters on loyalist bonfires as a “hate-fuelled” act.
Days ahead of the 11 July bonfires which precede the traditional day of parades on 12 July, a number of political posters, including Sinn Féin, SDLP and Alliance material, have been seen on some pyres.
Irish and EU flags have also been seen on some bonfires.
Speaking to RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Alliance Party MLA Naomi Long said she has seen her posters being placed on a number of bonfires.
“It is intimidating, it’s a chilling thing to see,” Long said. “If people are burning your image you do wonder what kind of message they’re trying to send to you as an individual.”
The Justice Minister said it’s a “very aggressive act to burn someone’s image”.
“It’s clearly hate-fuelled and I think it has a very chilling effect on those who have to go through it,” Long said.
“I think unfortunately there are those who are apologists for this who dismiss it, who make it sound like it doesn’t matter. I think it’s important that the entire community are clear that it’s not acceptable for these things to be burnt,” she said.
“It isn’t an acceptable expression of culture, it isn’t an expression of culture at all. It’s an expression of hate and aggression.”
Long said the burning of posters “does real harm to the loyalist community” because it “undermines their arguments this is about expressing culture and history”.
I get trolled a lot, falsely accused of hating loyalists and unionists. Nothing could be further from the truth.
— Naomi Long MLA (@naomi_long) July 4, 2021
I'd love to know what those people make of loyalists burning my image in an act of intimidation and blatant hatred.
Burning people's images isn't culture, folks. pic.twitter.com/6zAhrNDuPt
Apology over tweet
Yesterday, the chair of the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee apologised for “offence” caused by a tweet about loyalist bonfires.
Senior Conservative MP Simon Hoare’s tweet said: “Who knew William of Orange arrived in Ireland with hundreds of wooden pallets hence the traditional pallet burning fiesta began.”
The tweet was criticised by members of the loyalist community.
Hoare subsequently deleted the tweet and apologised for it.
“Earlier I posted a Tweet which was never intended to cause the offence it has to some in NI,” Hoare said.
“I want to say fully & unequivocally that I am sorry. I intended only to be humorous/tongue in cheek & I got it wrong,” he said.
“I hope my apology will be accepted. It is sincere & heartfelt.”
Among those to respond to the apology were Ulster Unionist Party leader Doug Beattie, who wrote “That’s fair Simon” followed by three hand-clapping emojis.
Former Labour MP Kate Hoey, who recently appeared at a loyalist rally in Newtownards, rejected the apology.
She tweeted: “Sincere and heartfelt ?? Well we will see if he can refrain from his regular snide remarks and obvious anti Unionist and loyalist views and his pandering to nationalists and the Irish Government.”
Loyalist activist Jamie Bryson, who led the condemnation of Mr Hoare’s original tweet, said resigning from the committee would be “the appropriate course of action”.
In another tweet, Hoare clarified the placing of posters on bonfires was the target of his criticism.
He said: “My point is the dangerously high pallet structures and risks they create to public health. There’s also no need to cover them with posters/images of political opponents. That’s plain divisive.”
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Almost twice the numbers dying from suicide as die on the roads. This is at national crisis level at this stage and needs to be tackled with the same amount of resources that have been put at the disposal of the road safety campaigns.
I have to agree. This is a national emergency.
Every life lost is a tragedy.
No surprise here. One other issue is that you cannot even do voluntary work because you’ll lose your social welfare if you do as “you are not available for interview or to take up full time employment”. Just goes to show the idiocy of the Political Institutions / Department Of Social Welfare. If you were doing voluntary work and living on the €188 a week, would you continue to that if offered a full time job? I know that if I was called to an interview I would tell the voluntary organisation that I cannot make it in as I have an interview and if I got the job I would take it and leave the voluntary work.
Voluntary work will help keep people sane and motivated to look for work, otherwise people will stay at home get demoralised and think what’s the point in even looking for a job. People think that there are a lot of people are on welfare because they “like it”. RUBBISH! I’d like the politicians to live on social welfare benefits for a month and to carry out all the strings that go with it and then justify how they can say it is a “comfortable lifestyle”
There is a form to complete, and if approved ie a reputable voluntary organisation is essential, you can do voluntary work – I do :).
Voluntary work is just that and if you volunteer and at the start explain if an interview comes up you are attending then that is appreciated and understood. And your skills will be much appreciated and you will keep your work skills up to date, motivate yourself and give back to the community – go for it CSEC Bio? If you want to volunteer for Sea Shepherd just let me know, happy to have you on board.
who on earth keeps thumbing comments down?. if I find out who they are they will be terminated.
Just ignore them.
Even if every banker & politician was made to read that report I wonder just how much they would really care. Peoples lives seem to matter less and less.
I personally know of 5 individuals, young men, who were in construction and were caught where they owed the supplier for materials and the developers refused to pay them anything, they were left with massive bills and lost of pressure from the suppliers. The individuals could not take legal action against the developers because of this NAMA thing ! and every one of the individuals took their own lives, leaving young families, parents, siblings, wives, girlfriends, friends, neightbours and community devestated.
And the Government has just cut spending on Suicide assistance ? WHY ?
sad the people at the top never cared never did nor never will i highllighted this last week in the lenihan article and in it lies some of their decision making bullshit for the ordinary people how much more can a race of people take without revolting something got to give
Lenihan gets a Kings funeral while those driven to suicide rarely even get a mention in the media. Its a tragedy.
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