Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Writing in a newspaper a couple of weeks ago, Maíria herself described the trauma she has experienced in recent weeks. Addressing Sinn Féin directly, she wrote the following, which I am sure Sinn Féin members have read: "And you, by denying my experiences, invalidate me as a human being, and by default, every other victim of abuse out there. And that’s a very dangerous message to send to perpetrators".

I was struck by the similarities between Maíria’s words and those of the American poet Maya Angelou - to whom other speakers referred; a writer Deputy Gerry Adams is fond of quoting on Twitter. The point about Maya Angelou is her determination to overcome the abuse she suffered. She wrote the following which I want to say to Maíria:

You may write me down in history

With your bitter, twisted lies,

You may tread me in the very dirt

But still, like dust, I’ll rise.

Until Sinn Féin stands with the victim and not the perpetrator, until the culture of denial and attack becomes one of honesty and support and until the same behaviour is demanded of it as applies to all other parties, we will continue to ask questions of Sinn Féin's culture, motives, and commitment to democracy.

The reported comments by Deputy Adams at last week’s fund-raiser in New York about an old story of going to smash up printing presses is a barely concealed threat to the modern media of the consequences of interfering with powerful men. In recent years, Irish journalists such as Veronica Guerin and Martin O’Hagan have been murdered, and we continue to see, on our screens and devices, the savagery meted out to members of the media currently reporting international conflicts. A free press is the cornerstone of our democracy, along with representation and a free Judiciary. It always was and always will be. I call on Deputy Adams to withdraw and apologise for these remarks and to remove the veiled threat that has been made to the free press in Ireland.

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