The
Nice Treaty Debate…
An
Annual Event and Annual Article in the Annual
The Literary and Debating Society continued to be the
beacon for debate in the West of Ireland this year with the ever popular Nice
Treaty Guest Speaker Debate. Owing to originality, an incompetent first
referendum campaign by the government and a rerun of the same issue again, the
Lit & Deb had the pleasure to welcome back this old favourite to the Kirwan.
And it proved to be a remarkable success, with a capacity crowd filling the
Kirwan so that many had to turn away for the lack of even standing space.
The debate itself was not one for the faint
hearted, with the heavyweights of the pro side matched stone for stone by a
green, greener and greenest alliance of Sinn Féin and
the Greens, with a hint of legality thrown in for good measure. The pro side
were well represented by stalwarts of the political world in the personalities
of Michael D. Higgins TD, Seán O’Neachtain MEP, Joe McCartin MEP
and Minister Eamon Ó Cuív
TD. The opposition saw the ever-ready Niall Ó Brolcháin from the literacy giant Galway Against Everything
Alliance; Trevor Sargent TD, leader of the Green
Party; Danny Callanan from Sinn Féin; and Neil McCann from the Equal in Europe Campaign.
Eamon Ó Cuív was accused of only
voting yes because he had been made a minister. He countered this with the
rhetorical question, “Am I a minister?” Francis Fahey (2nd B. Corp) responded
with “Yes you bloody well are”. Young Francie was
quickly silenced however by his manservant Brian arriving with a cup of coffee
for him.
One of our learned and illustrious guests had already
enamoured himself to all at the pre-debate dinner for the speakers with his
excellent lesson on how to read a broadsheet newspaper while seated at a table
for ten. Another entertained us all with his insights into the political lives
of world leaders. He explained that the difference between John F. Kennedy and
Harold Wilson, was that Kennedy got a headache if he
hadn’t had sex, while
The debate was of course carried, just the same as two
days later when the actual referendum was held. It just shows that the Lit &
Deb is in tandem with the hearts of the nation. To have so many high profile
speakers on both sides was a triumph in itself, but to have more than any other
third level debating society was the marzipan to go with the icing on the cake -
a capacity Kirwan.
And finally just a short thanks to all the speakers and
of course the committee especially the Auditor Mr Hanniffy, because without that
diary the year would have been so much different. And finally my own
contribution:
Learned debate and erudite opinion
Should not be the preserve of the few, but the commodity
of the masses.
The Lit & Deb has done this state some
service,
They know’t, no more of that.
Martin Collins
(3rd
BCL)
Vice-Auditor and
Nice Treaty Debate Convenor
At the Nice Treaty Debate:
Front, L-R: Martin Collins, Joe McCartin,
Back, L-R: Neil McCann, Seán Ó
Neachtain, Éamon Ó Cuív, Stephen Nolan, Peter O’Brien, Declan
Burke.