BELFAST City Council have voted to reconsider a decision to close a planning enforcement investigation over a statue of IRA hunger striker Bobby Sands in West Belfast.
The statue – standing at over five feet in height is a depiction of the photograph of Bobby carrying a flag during a republican parade prior to his arrest in 1976 – was unveiled in May last year beside the Republican Garden on Gardenmore Road in Twinbrook. Bobby Sands, who was from Twinbrook, was elected MP for Fermanagh-South Tyrone just prior to his death on hunger-strike while in prison in Long Kesh in May 1981.
The statue was unveiled last May in Twinbrook
Following a probe by Belfast City Council last month, it concluded that no further action would be taken in respect to the statue, which council had not received a planning application for.
The DUP vowed to contest the decision and called a special full council meeting on Thursday evening.
A motion, proposed by Councillor Dean McCullough, expressed “serious concern with the decision not to pursue enforcement action, and calls for that decision to be reconsidered in line with the council’s planning responsibilities and duty to apply the law consistently and fairly across all communities".
The DUP also requested “full transparency” for the decision, including internal communication, documentation and the legal basis for the move not to take any action against the statue’s erection.
Speaking in the Chamber Councillor McCullough said: “It is common sense and respect when it suits Sinn Féin’s agenda. Only ever in one direction. Let me be clear: people have a right to remember their dead, even when others profoundly disagree, as I do in this case.
“But it must be done under the same rules. Because Bobby Sands was not a hero. He was a convicted criminal and a terrorist.”
He added that planning application rules should apply to everyone equally.
Sinn Féin councillor Ciarán Beattie accused the DUP of “soapbox politics” while claiming that there may be over 200 other sites in the city that don’t have planning permission.
“There are memorial gardens, murals, monuments, plaques. Predominately, these are in unionist areas and I know that the DUP have been at a lot of these monuments,” he argued.
"The DUP and TUV have walked in to an absolute haymaker because if they want to start removing memorials in this city, then the unionist and loyalist community is going to be impacted the most.”
Green Party councillor Áine Groogan described the issue as "distraction politics".
“People here in this chamber have failed to offer hope – they have nothing else to deal with," she stated.
"So instead of dealing with our real issues – the fact that our housing waiting lists are growing, that hospital waiting lists are growing – we are failing to deal with any of the major issues and instead what we’re in here tonight debating is this.”
The SDLP and Sinn Féin submitted their own amendments to the DUP’s motion, although both failed to pass following a vote.
Sinn Féin proposed for a review of memorials and murals across the city but it was defeated by 27 votes to 23.
An amendment from the SDLP which called for Stormont executive ministers to "recommit" to proposals made by the Commission on Flags, Identity, Culture and Tradition was also defeated.
The DUP’s initial motion passed with 27 votes for, 22 against and three no votes from the Green Party. The SDLP members did not vote.
Following the meeting, Sinn Féin councillor Ciarán Beattie said the DUP motion was as an attack on the rights of republicans to remember their dead.
“Sinn Féin proposed a balanced amendment to what was a one-sided motion from the DUP, reaffirming that planning law must be applied consistently, transparently, and without exception across Belfast.
"Everyone has the right to remember their dead with dignity and respect. The statue of Bobby Sands in Twinbrook was supported by the people of the area and does not threaten anybody.
"Memorials and sites of remembrance across Belfast hold deep emotional and historical significance. Approaches to enforcement must therefore be proportionate, sensitive and rooted in respect.
"Priority should be given to engagement, dialogue, and community-led solutions, particularly where structures serve a commemorative purpose and pose no safety risk.
"Any review of planning enforcement relating to monuments, murals, memorials or similar structures must apply equally to all installations, regardless of political or community background.
"This approach upholds planning law while recognising the need for dignity and compassion in how all communities remember the past.
"Tonight’s motion from the DUP and TUV was a one-sided attack, and it was disappointing that the SDLP, through their absence, allowed this attack to succeed.
"Sinn Féin will not accept any attempt to obstruct one community's right of remembrance.”
