Vincent P Martin (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I commend the motion. The proposer of the motion cited Article 2 of Bunreacht na hÉireann and other contributors have referred to the symbolic nature of the motion, as well as the substantive point. Article 4 of the Constitution states "The name of the State is Éire, or, in the English language, Ireland." Article 5 of the Constitution proclaims "Ireland is a sovereign, independent, democratic state." The Constitution establishes a polity that can be safely described as republican just as France or the United States are republican. This fundamental legal position of the State can only ever change by way of referendum. In 1948, on the enactment of the Republic of Ireland Bill the State was described as a republic. The Act went further and its section 2 declared "that the description of the State shall be the Republic of Ireland". The designation, "Republic of Ireland" under statute law is not the name of the State, which is confined to the Constitution's definition, namely, Ireland, or Éire. "The Republic of Ireland" is not the name of the State; Ireland is her name. Why then the necessity to create this distinction and ascribe the State a name that is not hers?

The description, "Republic of Ireland" is not all-island inclusive. It reinforces two islands, two Irelands and a them and us, while "Ireland" is inclusive because we are all Irish. Ireland is the land of green and orange. It is our common home and our common and shared birthright. The new generations of Irish who come here from all over the world do not come here to the Republic of Ireland but come to Ireland, where they live and make their home. The year 1948 was a long time ago and a very different time in our State's young history. It was a period when our new State shifted further from the people of Northern Ireland. The outbreak of violence strengthened, solidified and defined that divide. The legislators of the 1940s hardly envisaged the recent census statistics published in Northern Ireland that show the number of Catholics exceeding the number of Protestants for the first time. Nor could those legislators have foreseen what happened in 1998, when the Good Friday Agreement was endorsed by a majority of people on the island, North and South, the people in the Republic voted to give up its territorial claim to the Six Counties and all embraced a consent principle of recognising the wishes of the majority of the people of Northern Ireland to decide its own destiny.

In the 1980s a young boxer from Clones gave us a glimpse of what normalised life could be like when people from the Falls Road and the Shankill Road came together to support Barry McGuigan. They parked their often-deadly political differences to cheer on one of their own. Recently, Kildare's popular Eric "Lilywhite Lightening" Donovan heroically won a prestigious EU boxing title in Belfast against Frenchman Khalil El Hadri. However, Donovan was introduced in Belfast as a boxer representing the Republic of Ireland. Imagine if he had been introduced and announced as representing Ireland, which, as a matter of constitutional fact, he was. The attendees in Belfast who were from Northern Ireland and the thousands more watching live on television throughout the island, especially those from both traditions in the North, would perhaps have felt an even closer affinity to the occasion and, one would hope, with each other.

For those who wish to bring deeper unity to our island, the use of the term "Republic of Ireland" should be ceased. Therefore, appropriate amending legislation ought to be seriously considered as a part of a thorough consultation process. Some might say this amounts only to playing with words or paying lip service but that is not the case. Symbols and gestures matter and can bring people closer together, just as they can drive people apart. The Queen's visit demonstrated the transformative power of gesture in the cause of reconciliation. Human life does not stand still. People either come together or they can be driven apart. Our time in Europe is a time of coming together and resisting the forces that seek to break us up, of which there are many. The peoples of Ireland have come so much closer since 1998 but nobody has the right to say this march to unity must stop at a certain point and that we have come so far together but may go no further. The unity that lies ahead is not known and may not be the one expected. Those who think unity will be a win for one side are false prophets and theirs is the way of division. "Ireland" and not "the Republic of Ireland" is the way to unity.

It is easy to require others to give up symbols. What we need are symbols that represent us all, are inclusive and that point to a future and not to the past. "Ireland" is ancient, it is living and it is cultural. "The Republic of Ireland" is political, non-inclusive and of the past. We should never underestimate the power of symbol as a force to heal and reconcile. Croke Park is both place and symbol. It is a sacred place for some and a symbol of Irishness. In 2007 the British anthem was played there as Irish rugby players from every corner of the island prepared to take on their English counterparts. The tens of thousands of people present listened in spine-tingling, respectful silence. That was a moment of catharsis, a moment when Ireland was changed forever and a new and confident dawn broke out. It was a moment of inclusion and respect taking place on hallowed turf, brought together by the sporting prowess of young men from every part of the island of Ireland. These young men, lest we forget, represented Ireland and not the Republic of Ireland.

At an appropriate time, when a once-in-a-generation Border poll is conducted the challenge is to win the hearts and minds of the majority of the people. This will involve demonstrating a generosity of substance from the get-go and an empathy for the opposing communities' concerns. In the interim and as a stepping-stone to unity, there is room to consider innovative legislation because this shows intent at the beginning of the way one wants to proceed. This motion is innovative and part of a bigger picture that shows intent and inclusivity. I commend and support it.