GAA urged to condemn singing of IRA anthem after Limerick’s all-Ireland hurling victory

Limerick became all-Ireland champions for the third year in a row last Sunday and next day back in their home county held a victory party at a local gaelic sports stadium.

During the celebrations members of the team were filmed on stage singing the IRA anthem “Sean South” which venerates his involvement on the raid against Brookeborough RUC station on New Year’s Day in 1957.

South was killed alongside fellow IRA member Fergal O’Hanlon.

South became a martyr-figure for republicans even after the defeat of the IRA border campaign which petered out by 1962.

As well as being a hard-line republican, South belonged to a right-wing Catholic group known as ‘Maria Duce’ and also espoused anti-Semitic views including a letter to a local newspaper claiming the American film industry was controlled by a “Judeo-Masonic” cabal.

DUP MLA Jonathan Buckley challenged civic and political nationalism to speak out against the glorification of IRA members at GAA grounds and events.

Mr Buckley said: “The GAA claims to be anti-sectarian, anti-violence, and anti-racist.

“In Limerick however we have a GAA team singing a song about a member of an organisation which engaged in sectarian violence against its neighbours, and an individual who was not just a terrorist but a well-known anti-Semite.”

The singing of ‘Sean South’ was first highlighted on Twitter by veteran RTE broadcaster Cathal MacCoille who retweeted a video clip of the hurlers on stage.

Mr MacCoille, who describes himself as a hurling fan, on Twitter wrote: “Glorification of the IRA’s past is to be expected from Sinn Fein. The GAA should be better than this.”

The original tweet was sent by Sinn Fein Limerick TD Maurice Quinlivan.

The DUP MLA said: “Thankfully there are voices in the Republic, including former RTE broadcaster Cathal MacCoille who believe the ‘GAA should be better than this’.

“The question remains however whether the GAA wants to be better than this and where are the voices in Northern Ireland asking them to be better.”

He continued: “Where are all the voices who moan that unionists won’t join them to discuss some mythical ‘new Ireland’?

“Are they prepared to have a discussion with themselves and with the GAA about his reflects today’s Ireland?

“Will there be any leadership shown from the GAA and from civic and political nationalism about repeated incidents which are laced with sectarianism and which send out a message that the GAA is somehow intertwined with the IRA?”

Mr Buckley added: “There has been strong and clear leadership on display from across the unionist community in recent months in response to incidents such as this and the countless others that have preceded it.”

A spokesperson for the GAA at gaelic sports’ headquarters in Dublin declined to respond to questions about the incident in Limerick last Monday.