Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

-----despite the backdrop of harsh and disastrous social spending cuts. One is told the Cold War has ended, but the stockpiling of nuclear and chemical weapons and other weapons of mass destruction by some countries continues to pose a major and serious threat to international security and human survival. To ensure we live in a safer and more equal world, increased military expenditure certainly is not a solution. It is necessary to challenge structures that cause poverty and insecurity. Many have tried to make a false distinction between neutrality and non-neutrality. If a country is neutral, that does not mean it does nothing to help innocent civilians who are affected by war or does not try to tackle poverty, inequality and social injustice, which are the primary triggers for war. A policy of positive neutrality would ensure this State would not increase its military spending, take part in the arms trade or profit from conflicts or wars. Our focus should be on guaranteeing the economic, social, political and cultural rights of people worldwide while aiming to assist people to lift themselves out of poverty and hunger. It should be on working with countries to implement global targets on issues such as land rights, citizen participation, tax justice, government accountability and making the world a safer and more equal place.

A Red C poll commissioned by the Peace and Neutrality Alliance on 17 September 2013 showed that eight out of ten Irish people are in favour of neutrality, which is a massive and unprecedented number. In considering the record of this State, particularly with regard to Shannon Airport, it is hard to escape the conclusion that consecutive Governments have pursued policies to abandon incrementally the twin policies of neutrality and United Nations primacy in favour of a hybrid that abandons both.

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