Canadians Support Calls for Irish Unity Referendum
CHARLIE ANGUS M.P. & HASSAN YUSSUFF,
PRESIDENT OF CANADIAN LABOUR CONGRESS,
SUPPORT ST. PATRICK'S DAY CALL
TORONTO, March 15, 2019 /CNW/ - As the Irish Canadian community prepares to celebrate St. Patrick's Day this weekend amidst the chaos of Brexit, prominent Canadians have announced their support for referenda on Irish reunification. The announcement states:
A St. Patrick's Day Call
The Brexit deadline looms on March 29, 2019. The north of Ireland voted to stay in Europe. However, the English government is intent on dragging the north of Ireland out of Europe. In the process, the northern Irish economy will be devastated, the Good Friday Agreement undermined, human rights protections weakened, and a hard border imposed on Ireland.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has spoken of the fundamental importance of protecting the Good Friday Agreement for the peace process, and recalled Canada's role in achieving the Agreement.
Irish public opinion polls show increased support for a united Ireland within Europe. The Good Friday Agreement provides for referenda on Irish unity. The solution to the Brexit threat to the Irish economy, the peace process and a looming hard border rests in the hands of the Irish people.
On this St. Patrick's Day 2019, we the undersigned support calls in Ireland for a referenda north and south on Irish unity in accordance with the Good Friday Agreement.
Charlie Angus M.P., New Democratic Party
Carolyn Egan, President of Toronto Area Steelworkers Union
Conseil Central Du Montreal Metropolitain - Confédération des Syndicats Nationaux
Sean Harte, President, Canadian Gaelic Athletic Association (personal capacity only)
Paul Hickey, LIUNA Ontario Provincial District Council
Mayor Mike Hurley, Burnaby, B.C.
Sid Ryan, past President Ontario Federation of Labour; past Grand Marshall Toronto St. Patrick's Day Parade
Mayor Brad West, Port Coquitlam, B.C.
Hassan Yussuff, President of Canadian Labour Congress
Friends of Sinn Féin (Canada) President Alan McConnell welcomed the announcement, saying:
"The Irish Canadian community has long supported the Irish peace process and the reunification of Ireland. The threat presented to the Good Friday Agreement and the Irish economy by Brexit has placed the issue of Irish reunification back onto the international agenda. Support for unity referenda will only grow. We are confident that more and more Canadians will add their voices to those in Ireland calling for referenda on Irish unity".
SOURCE Friends of Sinn Fein (Canada) Inc.
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