Defend Irish Neutrality and the Triple Lock

By World BEYOND War, November 26, 2024

Irish neutrality is not simply a matter of government policy. Neutrality, like sovereignty, emanates from the people. It is part of our identity stretching back over a century and is rooted in anti-imperialist struggle. It is a rejection of the notion that Irish people would be sent to fight on foreign soil and return scarred from the horrors of war, with life-altering wounds, or in body bags. At its core, neutrality is a deeply held belief that we, the people of Ireland, oppose war and cherish peace. And our neutrality, which encompasses the Triple Lock mechanism, provides us with a pathway to realise those aspirations.

Our Bunreacht (Constitution) establishes that sovereignty is vested in the people. It also affirms Ireland’s ‘devotion to the ideal of peace’ and ‘adherence to the principle of the pacific settlement of international disputes’. All public representatives elected to the Oireachtas must uphold these obligations and must reverse the trend of eroding Irish neutrality by enacting the necessary democratic and legislative processes to give it constitutional protection.

Representatives of peace groups from across Ireland, including John Maguire (StoP/Afri), Niamh Ní Bhriain (TNI), Eamon Rafter (StoP/WBW), and Clare O’Connor (Mothers against Genocide), provided invaluable perspectives on the significance of Saving the Triple Lock for everyone in Ireland and called on all political parties and election candidates to commit publicly to upholding Ireland’s constitutional commitment to peace, to strengthening Irish neutrality, and to protecting the Triple Lock. Voters in the forthcoming election are urged to vote for peace, neutrality, and to save the Triple Lock.

Watch the full press conference here StoP – Triple Lock Press Conference