It was only last week that I took a little pleasure in publishing (on Facebook) “that” photograph of A n tUachtarán Michael D Higgins standing, waiting his turn at a ATM (bank cash machine) in Dublin.
It is one of the things that makes us “different”. An elected Head of State (Higgins from the Labour Party) who is above politics. The First Citizen. Little Security ever in evidence.
I am disappointed that he was subject to such abuse by fellow citizens on Friday of last week. The Presidents duties are effectively, three-fold….ceremonial (leading the Nation at events such as Easter Commemoration), governmental (signing legislation) and symbolic (tea parties for the elderly or community groups and visiting towns and villages across the country).
His visit to a school in Finglas, north Dublin was very much a symbolic occasion. Ireland is small enough for everyone to see our President, several times in a lifetime. But a big moment for the children at the Finglas school.
And unusual for the President to be greeting by a demonstration and verbal abuse as he arrived at and left the event. The footage is depressing, unedifying and brings little credit on those who demonstrated and shouted abuse including “midget parasite” at Michael D. I should also add that the Garda (police) looked shocked and they also need some scrutiny.
In the Republic of Ireland, there is currently a controversy around Water Charges…legislation to instal meters in every home and business and charge people for water used. The Coalition Government has struggled against public and Opposition opinion. It is one of those occasions when the junior partner in the Coalition (Labour) will get little credit from their own voters.
Public Opposition has been led by Sinn Féin and assorted left-leaning TDs. There has also been a lot of orchestrated street protest. But inevitably people are registering for the meters despite a year of “cant pay, wont pay” rhetoric.
President Higgins….as his duties demand…signed the legislation. It was never likely that he would refer it to the Supreme Court to rule that it was constitutional. And seemingly this is the reason/excuse for the Finglas protest.
As the footage goes viral on YouTube, it has shocked many. Hard-core opponents of water charges deplore the personal abuse but stop short of condemning the protest itself.
It does not seem that some leftists care, judging that the President is just another trapping of a distant “Establishment”. Yet for Sinn Féin, the Presidency is a cornerstone of the Republic. And for the general population a unifying feature in Irish life.
“Soft” opponents of Water Charges…those who have not yet registered but now looking for a way to comply will legitimately use the insults to the President as a way out. The protestors went too far. And their cause will be damaged.
Others might well say that President Higgins might well be in a non-political role now but he was for much of his career a Labour Party politician, who despite his bookish and artistic demeanour could happily dish out the vitriol himself.
He cuts an unlikely figure as a Commander in Chief. Elderly and walking with a limp.
Most people would be polite and say he is “diminutive”. The protestors say he is a “midget parasite”.
Those of us who are vertically challenged would feel some sympathy. Is being diminutive the last taboo of political acceptability?
In USA there is a black President. We have female Heads of State. We have gay politicians (male and female) working their way thru politics.A black President of USA? It has happened. A woman President of USA? It will happen.
A diminutive President of USA? I doubt it. It is the wrong message. The average citizen of USA does not want to see a Commander in Chief, who is 5ft 3inches tall get off Air Force One in Moscow, Paris and London. Which means that James Madison would never get into the White House in the 21st Century.
If you saw the 2010 British Election Debates, you will have noticed that the three leaders…Cameron, Clegg and Brown were all around the same height…close to 6ft. I daresay the 2015 line up will not feature a man of below average height.
The Glass Ceiling? Women break it. The Class Ceiling? The Working Class break it.
But for some of us…..the Ceiling is very high.
Keeping An Eye On the Czar of Russia 
I completely agree that the personal attacks on the president were wrong, and quite possibly counter-productive to the overall anti-water tax campaign. Certainly the news media have jumped all over the incident, though in this case with a fair degree of justification. However I certainly can’t remember a president receiving such rough treatment in recent memory, excluding visits to majority Unionist-areas in the north-east of the country. Which indicates the levels of opposition to the imposition of Troika-dictated taxes and the very real antipathy to any and all manifestations of the political “establishment”. The most recent polls may indicate a slight fall in the popularity of the broad Left (SF, PBP-SWP, SP, Independents, etc.) but there has been no great rise in the support for either of the Fine Oibre coalition parties.
Just watch Joan Burton’s performance against Gerry Adams the other night on RTÉ to see the sort of political arrogance and sense of self-entitlement that is fuelling public anger. The Labour leader is so far out of touch with Seán and Síle Citizen she is virtually in orbit.
In my original post I was going to mention Paddy Donegan and the “thundering disgrace” incident but I wasnt sure if it was strictly relevant.
I think there is a broad support for the Presidency and one of our better and more successful institutions.
But I also think that within the Left, there is republican respect for the Office and a slightly nihilistic anarchist attitude, which Paul Murphy seemed to be advocating on the RTE News. The disarray in Labour has allowed this feeling to arise and possibly the President is seen as a Labour man.
But we all got agitated when the English Rugby captain (Johnson) disrespected the President…as it was seen as disrespecting us all.
I am inclined to see the Finglas incident in the same way.
And you are right about Joan Burtons arrogance. But really SF need to make a statement that distances the Party from Finglas. AFter all Martin McGuinness would have had a hard time in some areas down south…as well as north.
I believe M McG has condemned the incident outright in fairness Mr Fitz.
Burtons mistake is forgetting that the President is elected and by considerably more votes than she or the labour party got at the most recent elections. How to win voters and influence people? I think not
I would take issue on one point, the Presidents primary function is to safeguard the Constitution on behalf the people.
Who is the shortest in the Assembly?
Does it matter?
But Seán Neeson, former Leader of Alliance Party was vertically challenged.
The DUP used to heckle him with such gems as “Does Snow White know youre out?”
And “Tell the other six I said hello”.
Classy.