Heated scenes at Kilkenny council meeting as Gaza motion amended before vote

A member of the public swore loudly and walked out amid a furore at Monday’s meeting of Kilkenny County Council, when a notice of motion on the crisis in Gaza was amended before being put to vote.

The motion, to openly condemn the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, was brought before Kilkenny County Council by Cllr Seán Ó hArgáin.

“The majority of us here have always defended the right of Israel to exist and acknowledge the debt which the world owes to the Jewish people, arising out of the events of World War II,” said Cllr Ó hArgáin. “What we cannot accept, however, is the right of any nation to commit genocide against an impoverished people, who were themselves displaced by force and whose country is now being constantly occupied and see them being forced into a smaller and smaller area.”

“It is a deliberate and relentless genocide and in recent months, a policy of starvation by the blocking of all food and water supplies to Gaza,” continued Cllr Ó hArgáin. “We, of all people in the world, know what a famine inflicted on men, women, and particularly children, does to a nation. Its effects last a lifetime and many lifetimes beyond that.”

Cllr Ó hArgáin proposed that the council invite the Palestinian ambassador to meet with them, and that they issue a clear statement that the Israeli ambassador be neither invited nor welcomed in Kilkenny City and county until a permanent ceasefire has been declared.

Cllr Maria Dollard gave her support to the motion, having previously brought before the council a motion to call upon the EU to review their agreements with Israel. “We cannot sit on the fence on this issue,” said Cllr Dollard. “We, as councillors, have a statutory right to represent the people of Kilkenny, and we’re being called upon by the people of Kilkenny to speak our minds on this, and to take a stand, and stand on the side of peace and reconciliation, and to stop the war and end the genocide and starvation of Palestine.”

An amendment to the motion was proposed by both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael groups. Cllr Andrew McGuinness elected to read it before the council, describing it as “more diplomatic, more peaceful and more sensitive to the issue.” The proposed amendment would see the inclusion of Ukraine and Sudan and all areas experiencing wars.

“We are mindful that the eyes of the world are now focused on the Israel-Iran conflict, and it is important that we keep the plight of Gaza and the West Bank to the fore,” said Cllr McGuinness. “The immense suffering and loss of life that resulted from wars in so many parts of the world is horrific and unjustifiable. We stand in solidarity with those affected, and urge all parties to pursue dialogue, peace and resolution that safeguards human life and dignity.”

Cllr Mary Hilda Cavanagh voiced her support for the proposed amendment, and thanked Seán Ó hArgáin for putting forward the motion. “All wars need to be condemned, and the solution to all wars is dialogue,” said Cllr Cavanagh. “We all wonder how the world can stand idly by and let this happen, when civilians seem to be the cannon fodder of wars in all of those areas we’re naming out.”

The proposed amendment was voted in favour of by all but six councillors, two of whom abstained. Cllr Ó hÁrgáin reacted negatively to the amendment, branding it a ‘wholesale change’ to his original motion, which he argued was a breach of standing orders. The decision to amend the motion was met with furore from a member of the public gallery, who shouted expletives at some of the elected members.

Cllr Dollard expressed her disappointment at the council’s decision. “This is the second time that a motion pertaining to Gaza and the Israeli-Palestine conflict has been stymied or blocked by members of the council,” she said.