Human Sacrifice

national | anti-war / imperialism | opinion/analysis Saturday October 30, 2004 15:28 by Sean Crudden sean.crudden at iol dot ie Jenkinstown, Dundalk, Co Louth. 087 9739945

What is the way forward for Ireland's foreign policy?

Is the dance of the seven veils beginning to end where the attitude of The Irish government is concerned towards the present world (dis)order?

Looking at Martin Mansergh’s picture in the Irish Times one gets the impression of a slightly jolly uncle who is about to spin a rather boring fairy tale for his nieces and nephews. When one gets into the reading one finds something which is wordy and convoluted and slightly lacking in point - like something which the writer has not completely thought out beforehand and like something he is trying conclusions with as he goes along. He is a well-known spear-carrier for Fianna Fail.

Perhaps when confronting Fianna Fail policy he is like an ordinary unfortunate confronted by a thimble-rigger or three-card-trick man? Is it a question of "Find the lady?" or, "Now you see it - now you don’t?"

His article this week is headed "Sacrificing foreigners to appease the gods is nothing new" and it is a treatise on the hostage situation, terrorism, the Iraq war. He seems, this week, to be using the serious mien of Kofi Annan (who visited Ireland recently) as a touchstone. At a central point in his article he says;-

"The hopelessness of trying to impose a Pax Americana on the world has been exposed."

At a further point he continues:-

"Ireland is a friend of the US. We also know first-hand how strongly people feel about a humiliating foreign military presence."

Further he says:-

"The content of our neutrality is policy decided by government."

His slightly equivocal concluding paragraph is:-

"At all events, the US president and the international community will have to find more intelligent means of resolving conflict and to wean people away from human sacrifice, including self-sacrifice, with strong religious overtones."

My own simple-minded opinion is that the war in Iraq should be stopped. Modern Irish tradition is strongly neutral and anti-war. Let The Department of Foreign Affairs decide clearly how the Irish position should be most effectively expressed now and get on with what is obviously the most pressing diplomatic job that confronts that Department, Ireland and the world.