Thousands marched towards Leinster House during a pro-Palestine demonstration Saturday afternoon, condemning the one year anniversary of the war in Gaza.
The march, organised by the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC) – an independent, volunteer-run organisation whose goal is to campaign for justice for the Palestinian people, started outside the Garden of Remembrance at 1 pm with the gathering of various organisations and institutions, including Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU).
“We’re here to show support just like we have been all year” remarked TCDSU president Jenny Maguire in a statement to The University Times, “a year of genocide, seventy-six years of occupation. We are here to demand better, to demand the government enact the Occupied Territories bill, and demand that our university continues its academic divestment from Israel.”
The Occupied Territories bill, a piece of legislation first proposed in 2018, would ban trade with territories deemed to be under occupation by international law, and was frequently invoked throughout the protest, along with chants of “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”, and “From the sea to the river Palestine will live forever.”
Further grievances towards the Irish government were expressed during the speeches that concluded the march. One speaker referenced the blocking of the Occupied Territories bill, along with the U.S. military flights headed to Israel that have stopped through Shannon Airport.
“The will of the people is clear, and we will not be fucked off with empty words. Because as much as we are grieving, we are also angry that one year on, our demands are the same because they refuse to listen to us. We are angry that our government has to be reminded that we have legal and moral obligations to prevent genocide. The ICJ and the Genocide Convention demand it, and we demand it.”
Many speakers further remarked on the integral link between Irish identity and sympathy with victims of oppression. Zak Hania, a survivor of the assault on Gaza, thanked the crowd for marching. “You came today in big numbers to show your solidarity and your humanity, and your true Irishness” he remarked passionately. “You are in our hearts. Ireland is a twin sister of Palestine.”
