Taoiseach: ‘Reconciliation set back by RIC debacle
The cause of Irish unity has been set back by the Government’s mishandling of the axed RIC commemoration event, the Taoiseach has said.
Regina Doherty, the employment minister, said Charlie Flanagan, the justice minister, did not mean to “make such a mess” of the event but said things should have been handled better.
Their comments come as several ministers confirmed the event was never brought before Cabinet for approval.
Mr Varadkar said the backlash against the Government’s plan to commemorate the RIC marks a setback on the road towards a united Ireland. He said the decision to postpone the event was the right one.
“It is my deep regret that this week, embracing that shared history, moving towards a united Ireland seems to me to be a little bit further away than it was before,” he said. “I regret that this is a setback for unity and a setback for reconciliation.”
Ms Doherty said: “I don’t think Charlie’s intention was ever to make a mess. Maybe there wasn’t as much consultation with regard to this commemoration as there should have been or could have been.”
Former senator Maurice Manning said he would prefer to see an academic conference as the means to commemorate the role of the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) and Dublin Metropolitan Police (DMP).
Mr Manning, a member of the expert advisory group on centenary commemoration appointed by the Government, said the group had recommended a simple ceremony in Dublin Castle, but “somebody lost the run of themselves and called it a State event”.
He rejected a suggestion the Government’s decision to defer plans for commemorative events was an indication that “tolerance has gone out the window”.
Speaking on Newstalk Breakfast, the chancellor of the National University of Ireland said Mr Flanagan, as minister with responsibility for the event, had “behaved with great integrity”.
Mr Flanagan acknowledged that the execution of the plan was wrong, and said calling off the planned event was “the right thing to do”.
“There was a particularly hostile atmosphere, there was a lot of division — and, of course, the purpose of the event was to bring people together. This is about reconciliation, this is about our shared history,” he told Newstalk.
“Of course it’s difficult, of course it’s controversial — but this was going to be too divisive.
I acknowledge that some mistakes were made, but I believe it’s important that we continue with what was a really important decade of commemoration.
"Who were the RIC? The RIC were Irish people like you and I, and it’s important that we remember them, it’s important that we acknowledge them — warts and all.”
Asked how he would distinguish between those in the RIC who may have been associated with the Black and Tans, Mr Flanagan said: “That is the great complexity.”
