Ógra Shinn Féin Demand End to British Army Recruitment Drive

[Ógra B]

Ógra Shinn Féin Demand End to British Army Recruitment Drive in University

A large crowd of Ógra Shinn Féin activists gathered outside Queen’s University in Belfast on Wednesday 16th November for a Demilitarisation and Anti- Collusion protest. The theme of protest was ‘End British Army/ OTC recruitment in our University’.


Andrea O’ Kane Ógra Shinn Féin organiser in Queen’s said “this demilitarisation protest organised by young republicans within the University shows the opposition and disgust felt at the British army’s recruitment drive and charm offensive within our campus. The British army are an illegal force of occupation and should not be permitted to cover our University campus with their posters and recruitment advertisements. A university should be a neutral environment free from offensive literature and posters that only serve to promote an atmosphere of exclusion and segregation.”

She continued “Considering that the policy of collusion orchestrated at the highest ranks of the British Army resulted in the murders of innocent Irish men and women including students at this university, we can not allow this PR drive and charm offensive to continue. The British army have no right to be in Ireland never mind our universities.We will continue our campaign over the next few weeks raising awreness through postering, letter writing and lobbying the university."

http://www.osfbf.pro.ie

[badinage]

is Ogra Shinn Fein putting up political posters in Queens despite calling for it to be "neutral ground"?

[badinage]

Oh and you never answered my question from this thread:

http://www.politics.ie/forum/viewtop...807&highlight=

Would you have been happy or disappointed if the PSNI hadn't "harassed" you?

[BeerBaron69]

The British Army have every right to campaign there.
Many graduates might be interested in a military career

[badinage]

I don't think he's actually complaining about recruitment to the actual British Army - he's talking about the University Officer Training Corps, which is kind like a college sports society.

http://www.army.mod.uk/uotc/about_us.htm

"UOTCs are military units but it is not about training students for war. Many UOTC members do go on to join the Armed Forces, both full and part time, but the majority have no further contact with the forces after they graduate.

The aim is to promote the image of the Army amongst undergraduates and encourage a deeper understanding of the Armed Forces amongst future employers and managers."

[Cormac Donaghey]

Oh and you never answered my question from this thread:

http://www.politics.ie/forum/viewtop...807&highlight=

Would you have been happy or disappointed if the PSNI hadn't "harassed" you?

bad,

so you think it's ok for MI5...ooops The BA cadets (Friendly military debating society) to recruit at a college campus in the six counties.

[sid]

cormac, they aren't even a 'military debating society' its just a 50/50 split of hooray henry's and women in comfortable shoes who are paid to get pissed and embarrass themselves when they visit someone else's mess.

they don't even have any reserve liability. none. at all.

personally i can't stand them, jumped up ******************************s and free-loading drunks the lot of them, but they are harmless.

[pogo]

bad,

so you think it's ok for MI5...ooops The BA cadets (Friendly military debating society) to recruit at a college campus in the six counties.

Why shouldn't the United Kingdom armed forces be able to recruit within the United Kingdom :

The 'six counties' are part of the United Kingdom according to international law, the wishes of the majority of its inhabitants and a treaty to which Sinn Fein are a party.

They therefore have far more right to be there than the IRA.

[civic_critic]

If you think it's okay for the British Army to recruit in the north while still occupying the place in opposition to almost half the population there then you cannot complain if someone starts shooting at them. That would merely be consistent after all.

Of course the British Army are also recruiting in the south as well. At the same time many irish newspapers are clearly sympathetic to british influence across the island and carry ads for recruitment to this army also. Different stories within those newspapers are also mixed together in such a way as to conflate irish and english issues, as though they refer to the same country. Tony O'Reilly is unswervingly referred to on RTE news as 'Sir Anthony O'Reilly', Fine Gael are now pushing for the dropping of Irish as a compulsory subject and even the accent used on the Luas to announce the stops along the route sounds remarkably english.

Anyone else notice any other ways we seem to be gradually merging with britain? Exactly which elements of irish nationalism and 'being irish' are now stronger than before and which weaker?

[Cormac Donaghey]

cormac, they aren't even a 'military debating society' its just a 50/50 split of hooray henry's and women in comfortable shoes who are paid to get pissed and embarrass themselves when they visit someone else's mess.

they don't even have any reserve liability. none. at all.

personally i can't stand them, jumped up ******************************s and free-loading drunks the lot of them, but they are harmless.

Point taken sid. But they are an official arm of the British Army and should remain outside the Colleges.