Letter: MLAs would be better focusing on Northern Ireland instead of wasting energy on international affairs

1. Was in Stormont buildings when the 1998 Belfast Agreement was signed,

And

2. Resided in Jerusalem and spent my time working in Gaza and the West Bank in 2004/5,

I find it utterly incredible that the assembly is tearing itself apart over conflict in the Middle East.

As a Progressive Unionist Party member 1996-2011 I remember negotiations that focused on our situation in Northern Ireland, most especially in connection to local governance, relationships with the rest of the UK, and associations with the Republic of Ireland. Thus when the deal was signed it was clear to all that MLAs were only tasked with home-grown governance and the building of connections within the UK and Ireland.

At the time anyone who took a while to study the cable walls in Belfast would have known that Ulster folk were more inclined to Israel, and the Irish identified with the Palestinians. But what did that matter when our deal was not meant to solve the problems of the Middle East, and our local assembly was not to be a place for international affairs?

Later when I moved to Jerusalem in June 2004, I was lucky enough to land some work with a Washington DC based NGO called the Democratic Institute for International Affairs and that meant peace process-related workshops with members of the Palestinian Authority, organising Presidential election observation in Gaza for 9th January 2005, and accompanying occasional VIPs for their trips into both the West Bank and Gaza. And the thing I learned the most was that I was not qualified to deliver judgement on the Middle East, and thus I never have.

So the hard cold truth is that Paul Givan has done nothing more than any number of politicians from many different countries have done over the years, and that is accept an Israeli invitation to see the world through their eyes. I do not think the experience will have challenged much of what he believed in advance and the fact that he took the opportunity to visit an integrated education facility should be praised. And whilst the assembly motions against him are perhaps well intentioned, they are meaningless and they will have zero impact in the Middle East.

Thus in my opinion our MLAs would do better focusing on what the Belfast Agreement and the local electorate put them there for, and that is to administer NI. There is:

1. A cost of living crisis that challenges family cohesion

2. An infrastructure calamity that rattles every car’s suspension

3. An immigration debate that desperately needs to happen

But instead we are getting lots of wasted energy on international affairs that were never part of an MLA’s job description. If an individual wants to administer international affairs they should run for higher office in Westminster or the Dail. Alternatively they might take a day off and join the protests or counter-protests in both London and Dublin. But our MLAs should spend their working hours on local needs, because in the end the only power they have is that which could improve the lives of all our people in Northern Ireland.

David Rose, Bangor