Commemorative Events
Dail Éireann — 2026-02-25
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Jim O'Callaghan (FF), Dublin Bay South

I agree with Deputy Ó Snodaigh. The rescue by the Catalpa is a fantastic story. Irrespective of the prejudices Deputy Ó Snodaigh and I have, and that other people have, for preferring certain commemorations over others, it is objectively a fascinating story that deserves to be reported and promoted. In a way, it is a bit like the story of the Invincibles in the aftermath of the Phoenix Park killings and what happened there. Deputy Ó Snodaigh emphasised, as I did, that the State does not have to be the one driving every commemoration. For instance, as the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach, Deputy O'Connor, is well aware, last evening I attended an event in the Rotunda to start the celebrations for the centenary of Fianna Fáil. The State is not involved in this; it is not on the list of events that the State has decided to commemorate, although it could very well be but it is not.
Simply because the State has not decided to assume responsibility for it does not mean that individuals who are interested or individuals who are involved cannot seek to celebrate events that are particularly special and-or important to them. Deputy Ó Snodaigh has obviously done this in respect of the Catalpa and I commend him for it. Even just having this debate here this morning is important, as we are promoting the narrative about the remarkable rescue. I have no doubt Deputy Ó Snodaigh will continue to highlight this. I am very pleased to say that Bryan Dobson and his committee are aware of it. I am sure there are other mechanisms, aside from official State commemorations, whereby support can be provided to local groups who want to commemorate important historical events.
To close on an important point, obviously we all come to commemoration with our political biases and our political interests involved. It is also essential that we recognise we have to be inclusive about commemorating events. This country has been very inclusive, as we commemorated the Ulster Covenant, which was not an issue a lot of people in the House would have thought they would have been supportive of. It is important that we commemorate events that may not suit our political agenda. I thank Deputy Ó Snodaigh for raising this important question.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-02-25/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:41+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-02-25