Congress Condemns Sectarian Murder of Kevin McDaid

29 May 2009

STATEMENT FROM PATRICIA McKEOWN, PRESIDENT ICTU

Today in Derry trade unionists will take a public stand to express their revulsion at the sectarian murder of Kevin McDaid. Their stance is fully supported by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU).

The Anti Sectarianism Rally is organised by Derry Trades Council and takes place in Waterloo Place at 1pm. It will be addressed by Mark Langhammer, who is representing the Northern Ireland Committee of Congress.

 

Patricia Mckeown, Congress President said:

"A few short weeks ago in public demonstrations organised by the trade union movement in response to the murders of two soldiers (Sappers Mark Quinsey and Patrick Azimkar) and PSNI Constable Stephen Carroll the Irish Congress of Trade Unions stated that there could be no going back.

"Equally while this society continues to be riven by sectarian hatred there can be no moving forward.

"Kevin McDaid was murdered because he was a catholic. His colleague was seriously injured because he was a catholic and his wife was badly beaten because she was a protestant married to a catholic. This is sectarian hate crime of the worse sort. It cannot be dismissed as the work of hoodlums. The police and the judiciary must see it for what it is. We need the rule of law enforced.

"We also need a very clear response from the NI Executive and NI Assembly. Words of condemnation must be matched in actions and resources particularly at community level to challenge sectarian divisions if our society is to move forward."

 

 

Contact: Patricia McKeown, President of Congress, 04477802 539096

 

For further information contact:

Peter Bunting (ICTU) on 0447740 180869

 

John O'Farrell

Communications Officer, NIC-ICTU

Tel: 00447808 582546

Email: john.ofarrell@ictuni.org

 

NOTES TO THE EDITOR

  1. Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) is the single umbrella organisation for trade unions on the island of Ireland. Congress is the largest civil society organisation on the island. It is the apex body representing 832,000 workers affiliated through 64 trade unions in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The organisation is required, through its mission statement, to strive to achieve economic development, social cohesion and justice by upholding the values of solidarity, fairness and equality.
  2. The Northern Ireland Committee (NIC) of the ICTU is the representative body for 36 trade unions with 250,948 members across Northern Ireland. In membership terms, it is the largest civil society organisation in Northern Ireland. Information on the NIC is available on www.ictuni.org

 

 

Irish Congress of Trade Unions,

32 Parnell Square, Dublin 1.

Tel: (01) 889 7799; m 087 9174171