Irish Language Crisis - Calls For Resignation of Gaeltacht Minister Dinny McGinley - Accused of Betraying Gaelic Speakers

In the continuing aftermath of the resignation of Irish Language Commissioner Seán Ó Cuirreáin and subsequent appointment of the new Commissioner, 38 year old Irish speaker, Rónán Ó Domhnaill, there are now calls for the resignation of a second Government Official. 

Dinny McGinley, Irish Government’s Minister for the Gaeltach, is being accused of betraying his responsibility to the Irish language in joining forces with an Irish government which has been condemned as hostile to the Gaelic language.  This development has been reported in the Donegal Democrat under the headline “Minister McGinley’s ‘Complete Failure’ To Defend The Irish Language Prompts Resignation Call – Minister of State For The Gealtacht, Dinny McGinley, has Been Blasted For ‘Complete Failure’ To Defend The Language And The Gaeltacht Areas”.

Independent Candidate for Donegal County Council, Micheál Cholm Mac Giolla Easbuig, is quoted by the Donegal Democrat describing the performance of Minister McGinley as follows: “ Nothing more than a token appointment from a government which has treated the Irish language with contempt and I am now calling on him to resign. I am extremely angry at the indifference of this government towards our Gaeltacht communities. Our language and our unique culture are under severe threat. Minister McGinley has a direct responsibility for the Gaeltacht in government but has done nothing to address the problems we face.”

The Gaeltacht of Ireland (Irish Speaking Area) is defined as follows: "The Gaeltacht covers extensive parts of counties Donegal, Mayo, Galway and Kerry which are all along the western seaboard, and also parts of counties Cork, Meath and Waterford. There are also six populated off shore islands. The total population of the Gaeltacht according to the 2011 census is 101,000.  Around 16,000 Irish speakers reside within the expanding suburbs of Galway City". (Udaras na Gaeltachta)

Sadly, the struggle to save the ancient tongue of Ireland from the effects of the wanton disregard of the current government for the survival of the Irish language has become political. The emerging theme in recent reporting on the Language Crisis is the undeniable hostility towards Gaelic demonstrated by  the political parties that form the ruling coalition, Fine Gael and Labour. The Irish Times in an article on the final appearance before the Irish parliament by former Irish Language Commissioner Seán Ó Cuirreáin, highlights the political dimension of the language Crisis:  "No TD or Senator from either of the Government parties, Fine Gael or Labour, attended the meeting attended only by Parliamentarians from Fianna Fail and Sinn Fein, as well as independent Senator Ronan Mullen.  Sinn Fein Senator Trevor O' Clochhartaigh said the absence of even a single member of a Coalition party was telling of Government indifference to the plight of the language.”

The hostility of the ruling coalition political parties to the Irish tongue was echoed in the statements made by Donegal Council candidate  Micheál Cholm Mac Giolla Easbuig: “Even when the Language Commissioner, Seán Ó Cuirreáin, whose responsibility it was to monitor the state’s implementation of Irish language policy, raised concerns about the willingness of various state departments to co-operate with him, nothing was done. None of his concerns were addressed, forcing him to resign. When he appeared before a Dáil Committee to explain why he felt he had no choice but to resign, not one representative from the Government parties attended. At the very least, Dinny McGinley should have attended that Committee meeting to explain why the government was refusing to implement its own policies.”

Ironically, Minister McGinley is from the Donegal Gaeltacht town of Gweedore (Gaoth DobHair) where he still resides.  It is hard, therefore, not to view his performance as Minister for The Gaeltacht as a betrayal of past generations that have suffered for their right to speak Irish:  

“Unless we act now we will see irreversible damage to the fabric of the Gaeltacht areas which will threaten their very existence in future years. Minister McGinley will soon be off to Pittsburgh and Philadelphia as part of the annual St. Patrick’s Day exodus of government ministers at taxpayers’ expense. It is not good enough for public representatives to occupy comfortable positions while ignoring the very real damage being done to our communities.” – Michael Cholm Mac Giolla Easbuig

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