In light of the cancellation of the proposed RIC/DMP commemoration which was due to take place in the surrounds of Dublin Castle on January 17, local Minister of State, Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran, re-affirmed his stance that he would have boycotted the event should it have proceeded.
Welcoming formal confirmation of the cancellation late on Tuesday evening, Minister Moran noted that decision taken reflected the serious sensitivities and concerns that people have some one hundred years after the country’s struggle for independence.
Prior to the cancellation, the OPW Minister of State had made his feelings on this issue public.
“We are at a very sensitive period in our historic one hundred year anniversaries and the planned commemoration of members who served in the RIC and the Dublin Metropolitan Police (DMP ) prior to independence, while being led by good intentions, has failed to recognise the deep-seated feelings surrounding the force,” Deputy Moran emphasised.
The OPW Minister vehemently stated that the feelings of the general public must be taken into the utmost consideration pertaining to the proposed RIC/DMP acknowledgement.
“We must respect the sincerely held feelings of people on the matter and note the historical record of how policing was carried out in the State from when the RIC was formed in 1836 and which ultimately led to the declaration in April 1919 by Dáil Éireann to boycott the police service.
“I believe it would be wrong to ignore the firmly held convictions by the general public with regard to this difficult period of Irish history which we are about to commemorate and which led to our independence,” Deputy Moran noted.
