ICND: Annual commemoration of Hiroshima, Dublin, 6th August
Irish CND/Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament will mark the 79th anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing, which took place on 6th August 1945, holding the customary annual commemoration in Merrion Square in Dublin.
The ceremony will take place at the memorial cherry tree in Merrion Square Park, at 1.10 p.m. on Tuesday 6th August. There will be short speeches by Deputy Lord Mayor Donna Cooney, Japanese ambassador Mr Norio Maruyama, and Irish CND vice-president Adi Roche (CEO of Chernobyl Children International). There will also be contributions of music and poetry, and a wreath of flowers will be laid at the tree at the close of the commemoration.
An estimated 80,000 people were directly killed by the bomb dropped on Hiroshima, with casualties reaching 140,000 within a year. Approximately 14,000 nuclear weapons remain in the world today, more than enough to destroy life on earth as we know it many times over.
Irish CND goes on to say: “Sadly, the dark shadow of the possibility of nuclear war looms more grimly than perhaps ever before. Russian nuclear weapons are now stationed in Belarus. Plans to resume the stationing of US nuclear weapons in the UK have been widely reported. Spending on nuclear weapons reached more than $90 billion last year, a shocking new high. Nuclear weapons states are all engaged in modernising their arsenals and delivery systems. We’ve heard bellicose rhetoric about the potential use of nuclear weapons from government representatives in Israel and Russia, and from Republican lawmakers in the United States. It would only take a moment of madness to plunge the world into an irreversible nuclear war.
“We must meet darkness with positive hope and determination. Wherever you are, even if you are not in a position to join us in person this year, please do join us in spirit to stand in solidarity with the victims of these horrific weapons of mass destruction, and to affirm our determination to work for their elimination, the only way to ensure that the ghastly events of Hiroshima and Nagasaki will not be repeated.”
Hiroshima commemoration, Galway, 3rd August
The annual Hiroshima event organised by GAAW/Galway Alliance Against War will be on Saturday 3rd August at 2pm at Spanish Arch, Galway; the speaker will be Jeremy Corbyn MP. GAAW continues to be active in a variety of areas including Shannon antiwar solidarity, work to get trade unions to oppose US military use of Shannon, working to defend the Triple Lock, and demanding the freedom of the city be removed from Hilary Clinton for her opposition to a ceasefire in Gaza. You can get put on their mailing list to be kept up to date: galwayallianceagainstwar@gmail.com and https://www.facebook.com/groups/312442090965
At 6pm, also on 3rd August, there will be a book launch of “Poetry for the many: An Anthology” with Jeremy Corbyn and Len McCloskey in Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop, Middle Street, Galway.
And PANA pinpoints part of the problem
A press release from PANA/Peace And Neutrality Alliance includes the following – “According to Roger Cole of PANA, “the NATO military alliance will not accept an emerging multipolar world, our foreign policy is based on hypocritical “double standards” on international law and on global conflicts, that has become the main driving force for a New Cold War Arms Race.”
The United States announced plans to install long-range Cruise missiles in Germany following an agreement reached at the recent NATO summit in Washington. Russian President Putin responded: “If the US implements such plans, we will consider ourselves free from the previously imposed unilateral moratorium on the deployment of intermediate and shorter-range strike weapons.”
The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) latest report “Surge: Global Nuclear Weapons Spending 2023” exposes the massive increase in global nuclear weapons spending. In 2023, nine nuclear armed countries spent $91.4 billion on nuclear weapons.
In 2023, military spending by NATO EU countries amounted to €215 billion, so you might expect that our Irish government representatives are out there trying to calm conflicts around the world, advocating peace, diplomacy and an end to this arms race. According to Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, newly promoted Fine Gael Minister of State with responsibility for EU Affairs and Defence. ‘We spend about €1.2bn (or 0.23pc of GDP) on defence. NATO members have a target of spending 2pc of GDP, or almost 10 times as much…I believe €3bn is a target we now need to be working steadily toward.’
PANA asks you to support those regular protests organised by Shannonwatch/IPSC at Shannon Airport for the month of August and the Annual Irish CND Hiroshima Commemoration that will be held next Tuesday 6th August in Merrion Square, Dublin.” https://www.pana.ie/
Shannon Warport vigils continue, big demo 8th September
Anti-war vigils are taking place all day every weekend (Saturday and Sunday) in July and August at Shannon Airport with the theme “US military out of Shannon – No complicity with war crimes”. kinvarasolidarity@gmail.com and https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61554239395818 but for seeing the timetable and slots to volunteer contact Barry Sweeney barrysweeney11@gmail.com Meanwhile IPSC/Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign is organising a major national protest at Shannon on Sunday 8th September to coincide with the regular monthly Shannonwatch peace vigil which normally takes place at 2pm. See also http://www.shannonwatch.org/
Action Against War, Cork, and Collins Aerospace protest
A new campaign group has been established in Cork, initially under the auspices of the Cork Neutrality League. Action Against War (AAW) will campaign against Ireland’s and the EU’s increasing militarism and in defence of neutrality. The group is opposed to colonialism and imperialism, and supports liberation struggles in Palestine, Myanmar, the Sahrawi Republic (Western Sahara) and others.
The groups says: “We will campaign to keep Ireland neutral – a neutrality rooted in anti-colonialism. We defend a neutrality where Ireland sides with anti-colonial struggles – for instance, with the struggle in Palestine – and against colonisers and imperialists. That’s how neutrality was defined more than a hundred years ago when the Irish Neutrality League was set up by James Connolly and fellow revolutionaries. That’s what neutrality means to us today.”
AAW aims to to build a united front against militarism and war involving campaign groups (including Palestine-solidarity groups, anti-racism groups, tenants’ groups), trade unions, left political parties, student groups and other progressive associations and individuals.
Campaign activity in Cork will include protests at Collins Aerospace (a Cork subsidiary of RTX Corporation – formerly Raytheon), at the Tyndall National Institute (a “deep-tech research centre”), and at other military-oriented (including dual-use exporters) companies and institutions. Shannon Airport and government parties will also be a focus for protests. AAW will support the national protest at Shannon Airport on 8th September.
On Wednesday 7th August from 3 – 5pm, AAW and the Cork Palestine Solidarity Campaign will hold a joint protest at Collins Aerospace, Lower Glanmire Road, Cork.
Contact: Dominic Carroll corkneutralityleague@gmail.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/action.against.war_/
War planes in Irish skies
The Irish state has failed to block at the High Court an action by independent Senator Gerard Craughwell concerning a secret deal allowing the British Royal Air Force/RAF to intercept aircraft inside Irish airspace. Senator Craughwell has claimed any such deal is illegal and unconstitutional. See https://www.thejournal.ie/state-loses-high-court-action-to-block-senator-gerard-craughwell-case-over-secret-raf-air-policing-deal-6430367-Jul2024/
A Borda border poll, Belfast
Having proposed various constitutional arrangements, participants, for the first time ever, will cast their decision-making preferences in a multi-option border poll; they will vote at www.debordavote.com on their mobile phones on a (short) list of about six of these options, and, a few nanoseconds later, the result will emerge. 11-12 o’clock, Saturday 3rd August as an event in Féile an Phobail, at St Mary’s University College, Falls Road, Belfast. Chair – Eilish Rooney; Notes – Tommy Sands; Words – Peter Emerson. https://feilebelfast.com/events/should-majority-voting-a-cause-of-the-troubles-be-part-of-the-solution/?occurrence=2024-08-03 and see also http://www.deborda.org/
Good Relations Week deadline
Good Relations Week in Northern Ireland runs from Monday 16th to Sunday 22nd September with the opportunity to showcase work done and learn about others’ approaches; the theme is ‘OpportUNiTY’. The deadline for the inclusion of events is Friday 6th September. See https://goodrelationsweek.com/
Síolta Chroí: Introduction to ecosystem restoration
An introduction to ecosystem restoration course takes place at Síolta Chroí ecosystem restoration demonstration site in Carrickmacross, Monaghan, on Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th of August (10:00am – 4:00 pm). The course is subsidised by a European project funded by Leargas and so it is only €50 for the two days. Participants will explore how they and their community can begin to be part of the movement of people that are working to restore local and global ecosystems. https://sioltachroi.ie/product/an-introduction-ecosystem-restoration-for-community-groups/