Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)

I am pleased to speak on this motion and it is gratifying to hear the leaders of the 1916 Rising lauded in this Chamber. Their bravery, vision and unquenchable desire for freedom should be fully acknowledged by all present. They took the fight to the imperial master. They had a vision for a republic set out in the Proclamation read at the GPO in Easter week. They fought for a free, united and pluralist republic and undoubtedly, the events of Easter week 1916 were seminal in Irish history. The Republic was proclaimed but sadly, the Republic has yet to be realised. However, it is worth stating during this debate that the vision of the women and men of 1916 lives on and, to coin a phrase, "They haven't gone away, you know".

There appears to be some misunderstanding on the Government Benches in respect of this motion. There appears to be an assumption that a party, presumably Sinn Féin, seeks to claim ownership of this episode in our history and of the vision for the Republic. That clearly is not the case. Had the Government Members read our motion correctly, they would have seen this motion is supported not just by Sinn Féin but also by Fianna Fáil and a host of Independent Deputies.

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