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A PROTEST BY members of the Ukrainian community was held outside Leinster House this afternoon calling on Irish politicians to ban the display of “Russian war symbols” in Ireland.
The campaign, which is backed by the Ukrainian Embassy here, comes after videos and images emerged last weekend of a pro-Russian protest in Dublin which used pro-war symbols.
The letter ‘Z’ has become a symbol of support for the Russian invasion since it began in late February. As well as being displayed on Russian tanks in Ukraine, it has also been displayed on billboards, clothing and apartment blocks in Russia.
Over 100 people attended today’s protest today which was organised by the Ukrainian Crisis Centre in Ireland (UCCI).
Protesters said that the pro-war symbols include the Z symbol, the V symbol and the Georgian ribbon, a reference to the 2008 Russian invasion of Georgia.
Several people spoke about the display of the symbol on Irish streets and said not only did it show support for “murder, rape and genocide” but that it is also designed to intimidate.
UCCI spokesperson Nick Kozlov compared the ‘Z’ symbol to the Nazi ‘SS’ symbol and said that any attempts by Russia to downplay the significance of it are lies.
“The ambassador of Russia Yury Filatov stood in front of Irish politicians and said there was no plan to attack. It’s the same thing with the letters. They use it to misinform and say ‘it’s only a letter’. Yes it is only a letter but it’s a letter that is worn by people killing Ukrainian children, women and civilians,” he said.
'Z is death'
— Rónán Duffy (@ronanduffy_) April 14, 2022
A Ukrainian protest outside Leinster House is calling for the Irish government to 'ban Russian war symbols'.
It comes after cars waving Russian flags and adorned with the Z symbol were driven in convoy in Dublin pic.twitter.com/Ny3tlQzPPL
Kozlov told The Journal that the display of the symbol is an affront to a democratic country like Ireland.
It’s an outrage and we are appalled that these symbols could be freely used and abused in a democratic State to represent a system of war. It is an abuse of the democratic structure of Ireland.
Kozlov said he accepts that freedom of expression is also part of a democratic state but that there are examples around the world of the banning of symbols, such as the banning of the swastika in Germany.
I believe that the Irish government could do that by law and prohibit the public display of the swastika and other war signs. I don’t want to abuse the letter Z in the Latin alphabet but when the letter becomes a war sign it’s not any more just a letter but a war crime.
Kozlov also raised particular concern about the Russian holiday of Victory Day 9 May, which commemorates the defeat of Nazi Germany. He said he is concerned that some members of the Russian community here may use the Z symbol on that day.
Protesters at the event displayed banners outlining the anger and pain they felt upon seeing the images of the letter Z being displayed in Ireland.
Ielizaveta Karamushka said that her uncle had been killed last month in the war and that the Z symbol is designed to impose hurt on Ukrainian people.
“It’s targeting the most painful point now, it makes us come back to the horror of what is happening in Ukraine. No matter if they try to declare that they are just letters but the letter ‘S’ was just a letter before ‘SS’.”
Karamushka said it would be unthinkable that the display of the letter could be allowed as world leaders are declare that war crimes and genocide is being committed by Russia in Ukraine.
“Allowing those war signs to be circulated around Ireland is not acceptable. They’re clearly failing to protect our feelings of safety here,” she said.
Labour leader Ivana Bacik was present to offer support to the members of the Ukrainian community and also spoke as part of the protest.
She described the ‘Z’ symbol as “very, very toxic” and that its use should be “reduced and suppressed”.
She said that while she is opposed to the use of the Z symbol, current garda public order powers could be used to stop such displays in the future.
“We don’t in Ireland have a history of banning symbols, unlike say in Germany where you have that legislative framework, we don’t have that framework. But what I think we can use is policing powers under Public Order legislation, where gardaí can use that legislation to stop protests that are intimidatory.”
Bacik added: “I said to the organisers that I’m happy to support them in using the mechanisms that we have in law to do that.”
The Dublin Bay South TD also said that this issue may “come to a head” on 9 May and that she will engage with gardaí on the matter, adding that they “will be well aware”.
In response to the Ukrainian Embassy’s call for the Z symbol to be banned, a Russian Embassy spokesperson told The Journal: “The Embassy does not comment on the activities of other Embassies based in Dublin.”
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What about Irish nurses, doctors and healthcare staff,
@Brian O’Grady: Ah now Brian, let’s not forget the FFG motto “sure wouldn’t they be grateful to be second class citizens in their own country”
People of Ireland should not forget at next elections
@Brian O’Grady: Irish Healthcare staff will keep emigrating as long as wages/conditions remain the same. However the biggest reason they leave home is because Ireland has not been in a position to provide them with a roof over their head and that doesn’t look like changing in the near to distant future. We will continue to try and lure African and Filipino healthcare workers who haven’t got a clue what they’re letting themselves in for as long as the housing crisis remains.
@Leo Martin: Spot on!!!!!!
@Brian O’Grady: We do nit have eniugh oif them at prescent and rely on overseas staff.
@Steve Bell: 100%
A colleague of mine with an honors degree and masters degree with 4 years experience working in a stressful hospital environment is living in a mobile home at the back of her parents house. She and her boyfriend cannot afford a mortgage. The home is cold or very hot depending on external environmen. The stove in it nearly smothered them one night. She goes Into her parents house when it’s really cold. She travels 30 minutes to work every day. Where is her story being highlighted by the MoH? Where are the breaks for young home grown people in this country?
@Ollie O’Cleirigh: and for those who ask why can’t she afford the mortgage it’s because she was paying almost 40% of her wages on rent in Dublin for 4 years. Why the he’ll aren’t we trying to keep young professionals in this country.
Recently graduated Irish nurses on the lowest pay scale and healthcare assistants should get priority if they have to travel long distances to work. We should be aiming to keep our graduates here.
@Áine G: I seem to remember decades ago ( probably shouldn’t admit to being this old) that many Irish teaching hospitals had onsite dorms for trainee nurses, as times changed these were either sold off, demolished, refurbished for office use or just allowed to fall into ruin. So now the plan is to reinvest what will possibly amount to tens, if not hundreds of millions of euros into building dorms for foreign nurses, but our native staff who are struggling to find a vacant property let alone afford the exorbitant rent prices being asked. Obviously a deposit and mortgage would be well beyond the means of a nurses salary.
If this isn’t a State sponsored recipe for creating a two tier system within nursing and deliberately causing financial friction within nursing, well I don’t know what is. It’ll lead to further unrest and demands for further, justified, pay increases.
Years ago, when nursing training was on an apprenticeship type basis, ie, training on the wards, there was always accommodation on site. It used to be called the nurses home… probably all turned into offices now.
I think that’s the problem, too many pen pushers and middle management and not enough attention paid to the people at the coalface. Progress is all very well but we seem to have lost sight of what is really important, good bedside manner, time for patients and good old fashioned cleanliness!
@Mary Walshe: St. Luke’s Old Hospital in Clonmel they closed it down as a mental health hospital it was eventually turned into plus offices instead of accommodation for the medial staff of STGH many of them have to live in Cork or Waterford and commute to work everyday and because public transport is so bad in the area they all have to run car’s. Presently the HSE are turfing our older citizens from their nursing home of St. Patricks Cashel and many of the old buildings are now offices. They were to build a new state of the art facility on the site, but the new excuse is PARKING issues stating there wouldn’t be enough space. Yet the same hospital housed 300 patients at one time and no one had problems with parking and they can’t accommodate a 60 patient unit, this is what’s happing to our people and it not a money issue as the HSE has so much money they probably couldn’t account for 80% of it.
With all due respect to the Migrants and Refugees and their plight, but this Accommodation problem has been faced by Irish Nurses for years and the Government have done nothing about it. This Government appears to trying to do everything they can to inflame Racial Tensions by discriminating against the native Irish.
@Owen G Mc Ginley: Yes, this is one of the ironies of the policy. Same with the proposed ‘hate’ legislation which will serve to enrage the locals at what they see as discrimination against them.
@Owen G Mc Ginley: 100%But the worst thing about it is they know that!
I guess donnely thinks fxck our own…make it so they emergrate just so we can import from other country’s what we’ve already trained up here amongst ourselves….and this man isn’t a traitor to the general good of the irish people?
That’s absolutely appalling, Irish citizens being totally ignored!
This should be done with companies as well. If they’re setting up here offer them a tax discount for the first couple of years if they build apartments for their staff while they’re building a factory.
Seems like every company in the world wants to locate here but if their staff can’t find a place to live they’ll have to look elsewhere. I’d say we’re very close to that point now.
@Benny Mchale: They do that already. It’s a pretty handy number for them as in you work for them, then hand back half your wages to them to rent their overpriced apartments!
We train up our nurses who then go abroad ad to replace them we recruit nurses from abroad. Anybody else feel that this might not be an ideal system?
A higher wage for Dublin based nurses would make sense too
The Twilight Zone has done it again and released Donnely upon us. This is a clear statement from this incompetent minister that Irish nurses, medical staff and the state of the healthcare are certainly not his priority or his problem. An absolute shocker of a minister and the degradation of Ireland and it’s services from all of these ministers is beyond recovery. As a nation we are letting it happen and must band together like we did for the water charges and make this change.
Would it not be cheaper to just pay your own qualified staff and you wouldn’t tobrely so heavily on migrant nurses.
Or maybe if its not cheaper just do it anyway because they are paid Pittens as it is.
Donnelly the chocolate teapot more waffle waffle
One of the main issues besides the housing issue is the fact that newly qualified nurses are not being offered decent contracts with an option to grow further in their career, that is one of the main issues they leave Ireland…and you cannot blame them
Drogheda had a Nurses home it’s now offices. It accommodated both Irish and international nurses. It’s seems strange to train our nurses for emigration while we import others. No sense in that. The accommodation could be charged at a small sum to cover all costs and therefore making it cost effective for all.
Why now ?, Why not eight years ago?. This should have been done for all nurses and doctors. Probably something to say they achieved at election time.
A person who lies over and over again has issues with their mom and dad.
have your say