Row over Bobby Sands statue in Belfast after council vote to ‘reconsider’
A political row has broken out in Belfast after councilors voted to reconsider a decision regarding a statue of IRA hunger striker Bobby Sands erected without planning permission.
The Bobby Sands Trust accused unionists of “hypocrisy” following Thursday night’s vote.
The memorial was unveiled at the Republic Memorial Garden in Twinbrook, west Belfast, last year to mark the 44th anniversary of Sands’ death. It was later revealed that the statue did not have official planning approval, although Belfast City Council had not previously taken enforcement action regarding its existence.
At the council meeting, the proposal of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) to “re-evaluate” the issue was accepted. But Sinn Fein’s amendment, which sought a wider review of “the current status of practice of all these structures” in the council area, was not accepted.
Sands died aged 27 during a hunger strike in 1981, less than a month after he was elected MP for Fermanagh and South Tyrone.
Danny Morrison, secretary of the Bobby Sands Trust and former director of publicity for Sinn Fein, issued a statement criticizing the SDLP for abstaining during the vote.
The statement included the following: “This statue, whose unveiling was supported by thousands of local people, has no cost to Belfast taxpayers.
“We know that the real reason for this debate has nothing to do with a universal principle that should apply to everyone, but rather unionists resenting the history of Belfast and the fact that they can no longer control the narrative that there are no second-class citizens in this city.
“The hypocrisy is staggering.
“Unionists had no problem with illegal monuments, plaques, murals and memorial gardens in largely working-class loyalist areas.”
DUP councilor Dean McCullough said the motion tabled in the council was worrying about “equality”.
He said: “The public wants to know that the same rules apply to everyone.”
Sinn Fein Councilor Ciaran Beattie said the motion was “an attack on the right of republicans to commemorate their dead”.
He said: “The monuments and sites of remembrance in Belfast have deep emotional and historical significance.
“Therefore, approaches to sanctions must be proportionate, sensitive and based on respect.
“Particularly where structures serve a commemorative purpose and do not pose any security risks, priority should be given to participation, dialogue and community-led solutions.”
Seven IRA prisoners and three prisoners from the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA) died during the 1981 Maze Prison hunger strike.
First Minister Michelle O’Neill and former Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams were among those who attended the statue’s unveiling last year.
