Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Yes.

Ní bheadh aon díospóireacht nó aitheantas ann don ábhar seo gan an tairiscint Comhaltaí Príobháideacha agus an obair a rinne an Teachta Dála Joe Higgins uirthi.

It is important that we acknowledge, discuss and commemorate those defining moments in our history such as the strike and Lock-out. On 31 August there will be a community-organised re-enactment of Larkin's speech on O'Connell Street and the baton charge by the police.

I am struck by a number of ironies. The first - I am glad the Minister of State at the Department of Education and Science, Deputy Sherlock, is present - is that we are coming into a decade of commemoration of these defining moments in our history. If the Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Quinn, and the Department get their way, history will be downgraded with their plans for the reform of the junior certificate. It will end up being a blip on the curriculum. President Michael D. Higgins stated last night that without good history teaching there is no shared idea of a public past. He was stressing the importance of learning from history. My point is how can we learn from history if we do not know what happened in history? We will end up with generations who have never heard of Larkin and Connolly and who will have no understanding of those defining moments.

I am also struck by the irony of 1913 and the casualisation of labour. I acknowledge the work of the Dublin Dockworkers' Preservation Society. It has amassed an amazing amount of photographs and memorabilia of that time. What one sees and what we knows is the casual labour aspect, with people lining up on the docks on the quays for work for a day, two or, maybe three, all at the whim of a foreman. One hundred years later, there is a return to that ethos of contract work, with little security for the workers.

There is also irony in the appalling conditions in the tenements, with the overcrowding, the lack of sanitation and the serious health issues. A few weeks ago, the intensified inspection scheme from Dublin City Council found that 90% of private rented accommodation in certain parts of the inner city were unfit for human habitation. The slum landlords of the 1900s have been replaced by the slum landlords of the 21st century.

This event began with the lock-out by employers of workers, with employers trying to deny workers their right to a fair wage and decent working conditions. Much work has been done down through that 100 years on better working conditions, pay, pensions, etc., through the unions, the Labour Court, the Labour Relations Commissions, the Ombudsman and the Employment Appeals Tribunal, but there are still employers who refuse to recognise, or work with, unions. If we broaden the spectrum to those international trade agreements with the resource-rich developing countries of the global south, we see that labour rights are not an integral or compulsory part of those agreements and there are workers who must work in appalling conditions. We are aware of what happened in Bangladesh recently and in the mines in South Africa where workers have little or no protection while the multinationals make obscene profits. The Dublin of 1913 was one of gross social and economic divisions and disparities with a most unequal distribution of wealth. We must look at our world today and see how much progress we have made. There is still a gross imbalance, not only in Ireland but globally.

Looking at William Martin Murphy, one could perhaps say he headed our first multinational corporation when we think of what he controlled. He controlled the media through all the papers he owned and transport through the tramway company. He also controlled retail and hotels. I visited the Centre for Cross-Border Studies in Liberty Hall on Friday last where Ms Frances O'Grady, General Secretary of the TUC, made an interesting comparison. She thought he was a mixture of Mr. Michael O'Leary and Mr. Rubert Murdoch, but made the comment that he had probably less ego and a little more charm - I do not know.

The union movement of 1913 was intrinsically linked with the Irish struggle for independence. The Irish Citizen Army was with the volunteers in the Easter Rising and the Starry Plough flew alongside the Tricolour at the GPO. I make another play to the Minister, for a proper renovation and restoration of the battlefield site, from the GPO to Moore Street. The Minister, with the local authority, the relatives and others, could work together to bring this about.

There is also the irony that Dublin was the recipient of foreign aid, with a ship that came in from Britain from the trade unions there. Some several million pounds worth of food was sent over. There will also be a re-enactment of that on the docks in Dublin in next October.

I want to acknowledge the women of 1913, such as Ms Helena Moloney and Ms Dora Montefiore. Typical women, they were into direct action and a practical solidarity. The strike was initially a failure and one can imagine the humiliation for the workers having to go back to work, but victory came eventually. It came from them because of their solidarity, their unity and their belief in change, and the way in which they stood up.

We know where Larkin and Connolly would be today. They would be with those who are suffering the cuts and those who are suffering the austerity disproportionately. They would be with the community groups, the youth groups and with the disabled.

See this speech in context