Young people in North
West Donegal were joined by families of those who have emigrated as
they gathered along the West side of Muckish mountain on Sunday
morning at a well-known historical landmark, passed by those
emigrating from the region in years gone by.
‘Droichead na nDeor’,
or as it is known in English, ‘The Bridge of Sorrows’ was used as
a parting spot for local emigrants who were bound for the Derry port
in search of a better life. Members of Sinn Féin Republican Youth
gathered at the spot as a mark of remembrance and respect, while
highlighting the high level of emigration among young people in the
county that still exists today.
“The reality is,
while Donegal is crippled with a 50% youth unemployment rate, over
ten young people are leaving this country every hour” event
organiser and local Sinn Féin activist, Simon Gillespie, told the
crowd that had gathered.
Gillespie explained
that the aim of the event was “twofold”.
“Young
people are gathered here today in solidarity with our peers who have
been forced to emigrate as a direct result of this Government’s
crushing austerity policies and their utter lack of compassion. At
the same time, we also remember those who emigrated from this spot in
the past, especially those who were never fortunate enough to
return.”
“Thousands who
emigrated in the past to America or Australia would have crossed this
bridge, and many of those left behind on one occasion, were bid
farewell at the same place a short time later.”
Gillespie continued,
“We are sending a strong message to the Fine Gael and Labour
Government, as well as to those who went before them, that the young
people of Ireland are determined that we are not going to be educated
for export.”
“Minister Perry and
his cabinet colleagues may try to fool themselves by implying that
the 87,000 young people leaving this state every year are going to
‘enjoy themselves’, well, I put this to the Minister; while Fine
Gael and Labour may be engaged in empty rhetoric in advocating that
Ireland is the ‘best small country in which to raise a family’, I
invite any Government representative to come and visit rural Donegal
and sit down with any family who have watched their son or daughter
emigrate, and tell them that this is ‘the best small country’.
“Come and visit the
mother who Skyped her children in Australia on Christmas Day, or the
Grandfather who has to watch his Grandchildren grow up through
Facebook photographs. Come and visit the younger siblings of those
who have been forced to leave, and watch, as they too trudge through
the education system, all the time knowing the inevitable that lies
ahead. Towns have been left lifeless, communities destroyed and
families ripped apart.”
Gillespie concluded by
asking the Government to introduce a job stimulus package, aimed at
youth employment, as a means of getting young people back to work,
and back home to live.
“Young people are
willing and ready to work, but this Government seem to prefer to see
them emigrate as a means of claiming that the live register figures
and dole queues have decreased. They have not decreased. The people
have emigrated.”
“Finally, we have a
message for those who have emigrated. Our friends, our schoolmates
and our siblings. We have not forgotten you. Sinn Féin will continue
to fight to secure voting rights for all Irish citizens, home and
abroad. We will continue to fight on your behalf to put an end to
austerity, and most of all, we will continue to campaign for an
adequate job creation stimulus package to get you back home.”
“The young people of
Ireland are this country’s best asset. We must put a stop to them
becoming our best export too.”
