Ukraine in Arabic | Ireland to recognize Palestine
KYIV/Ukraine in Arabic/ The Irish Senate has called on the government to recognize the State of Palestine.
Just weeks after British lawmakers also voted to recognize Palestine, Ireland’s upper house of parliament passed the motion without a vote.
However, as in the UK, the motion is non-binding and symbolic.
The motion said: "Seanad Éireann calls on the Government to formally recognize the State of Palestine and do everything it can at the international level to help secure a viable two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."
It had cross-party support and passed without a vote.
Tabling the motion, opposition senator Averil Power said Ireland should “make it clear that statehood is a right of the Palestinian people and not a bargaining chip for the Israelis to play in further sham negotiations.
“In doing so, we will help increase pressure on Israel to pursue a genuine peace process that has a real prospect of delivering peace and justice for both Israelis and Palestinians alike.”
The Irish government is not bound to follow the motion, as it was initiated by an opposition lawmaker in the upper house, which has little real power.
Power told that Irish Foreign Minister Charlie Flanagan would visit the senate in November to discuss the issue.
“It was great that we didn’t have to have a vote as we had cross-party support, which sends out a strong message,” she said.
Ahead of the vote, the Israeli ambassador to Ireland Boaz Modai said he had contacted all senators to urge them to vote against the measure.
“Stunt gestures such as recognizing ‘Palestine’ unilaterally are counter-productive because they only give excuses to those on the Palestinian side who hope to achieve their goals without talking directly to Israel,” the embassy said in a statement.
But the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign called the move an important expression of support for Palestinian statehood that would “increase diplomatic pressure on Israel to end the occupation”.
The debate follows the collapse of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority and this year’s conflict in Gaza in which more than 2,000 Palestinians and dozens of Israelis were killed.
According to an AFP count, at least 112 countries around the world have recognised a Palestinian state. A Palestinian count puts the number at 134.
Israel tweets back
The Israeli Embassy also tweeted a series of messages on Thursday saying, "Today, a Palestinian man murdered a 3 month old Jewish baby in Jerusalem. And yesterday the Irish Seanad has passed a motion... calling on the Government to recognise the state of Palestine without direct peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians... Just imagine if any country would have recognized one of the sides in Northern Ireland... before the peace process started in Belfast and equal esteem had been agreed upon..."
Freda Hughes, spokesperson for the Irish solidarity campaign with Palestine, commented: "We welcome this move on behalf of Seanad Eireann which follows on from recent votes in the British and Swedish parliaments. This is an important expression of support for Palestinian statehood and peace in the region in a highly symbolic, yet extremely effective, manner."
"While symbolic actions such as this recognition are important and welcome, they are not a substitute for concrete and meaningful action," Hughes added.
The solidarity campaign continues to urge the Irish government to impose political and economic sanctions on Israel until it ends its occupation of Palestine and abides fully by its obligations under international law.
Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said on October 3 that his country would be the first in Europe to recognize the State of Palestine.
