A group of Irish-Syrian activists has written to the Labour Party asking it not to back Independent TD Catherine Connolly’s bid for the presidency.
The Galway West representative officially confirmed her candidacy on Tuesday with the backing of TDs and Senators who will provide some of the 20 Oireachtas member votes she needs to secure a place on the ballot.
She met the Labour Party, which is considering supporting her campaign, on Tuesday. But earlier this week party leader Ivana Bacik and other elected representatives were asked by the Irish-Syria Solidarity Movement not to back Ms Connolly’s campaign.
Ms Connolly’s visit to Syria alongside three other TDs, at a time when the regime of Bashar al-Assad was still in power, has been the subject of scrutiny since she became publicly linked to a presidential run.
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In an email sent to Ms Bacik and others, the group thanked the Labour leader for her previous support of Syria, which they said was “unique among Irish TDs”.
In the email, the group asked the party not to endorse Ms Connolly as it believes she is “not fitted to this role”.
The group said it would find it “shocking and deeply disappointing” if Labour backs her. And it argued that the trip “provided legitimacy to the Assad regime and its narrative”.
The group also flagged concerns that Ms Connolly launched former MEP Clare Daly’s bid for re-election to the European Parliament last year. Ms Daly, along with Mick Wallace and Maureen O’Sullivan, were the other TDs to make the trip to Syria.
On Wednesday, Ms Connolly spoke about her vision for the presidency and defended her record, including the trip she took to Syria
At the time, Assad was still in office and engaged in a civil war.
Asked about the visit, she replied that she funded the trip herself, its purpose was “fact-finding” and she “met no member of government”.
She said she visited a refugee camp outside Damascus and “saw first-hand the destruction of a whole city”, adding: “I mean, my idea, up to then, of a refugee camp wasn’t up to scratch really.”
Ms Connolly said they were shown around by Palestinians and “we stayed with them all of the time”.
They travelled to Aleppo and met the chamber of commerce and also had a meeting with Unicef, as well as visiting a convent.
“On no occasion had I anything to do with the government, nor did I ever utter one word of support for Assad,” she said.
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Labour has sent a survey to its members seeking views on how it should proceed in the presidential race and asked directly whether it should support Ms Connolly’s bid. There are varying views among Labour politicians over such a move, which may ultimately be immaterial to her nomination, but still has an impact on the campaign. Support for her candidacy could prove to be consequential for the party as it mulls involvement in the Áras race.
Several Labour TDs believe privately the choice is between supporting Ms Connolly or nobody at all. One TD said some members are voicing concerns about supporting Ms Connolly and, while not a majority, more are coming out to say they would be unhappy “with each passing day”.
