Geldof ’s ‘Freedom’ protest takes real chutzpah!
BOB Geldof decided to hand back his Freedom of the City of Dublin this week. He did it as a self-confessed publicity stunt in a bid to shame Aung San Suu Kyi, the Myanmar leader who was also conferred with the same honour.
Miss Suu Kyi has been condemned by international leaders and human rights groups over her reluctance to acknowledge the military violence, which the UN has called a ‘textbook example of ethnic cleansing’. There have also been calls for her to be stripped of the Nobel Peace Prize she won in 1991.
Geldof is not the only member of the music community to turn his back on the now tarnished Myanmar leader. Fellow Irish musicians U2 also criticised Miss Suu Kyi, urging her last Saturday to take a stronger stance against the reported violence by security forces. In a statement on the band’s website, they said her failure to address the crisis was ‘starting to look a lot like assent’.
‘So we say to you now what we would have said to her: the violence and terror being visited on the Rohingya people are appalling atrocities and must stop.’
Geldof managed to create a stir by marching into City Hall in front of the nation’s media and handing back the parchment. Whether he will lose out on valuable grazing rights for his flock of sheep remains to be seen, but his gesture seems to have drawn fire from the Lord Mayor of Dublin.
MICHEAL Mac Donncha said it was ‘ironic’ that Geldof was keeping his honorary knighthood despite Britain’s ‘shameful record’ of imperialism.
I should mention that the Lord Mayor is a Sinn Fein councillor. ‘Bob Geldof is entitled to return his award if he wishes to do so,’ he continued. ‘It should be pointed out that as ardmhéara [Lord Mayor], I have condemned the persecution of the Rohingya people and their expulsion from their homes by the military in Myanmar and the failure of Aung San Suu Kyi to even acknowledge, let alone condemn, what the UN has described as ethnic cleansing.’
Mr Mac Donncha said he had met Rohingya representatives in Ireland and had pledged to assist them. ‘Regarding Mr Geldof, I find it ironic he makes this gesture while proudly retaining his title as Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire, given the shameful record of British imperialism across the globe,’ he added.
I would be the first to admit that Bob Geldof is no stranger to a public hissy fit. He can be grumpy and unpleasant to deal with and at times his music is, well, not up my street. But someone needs to tell the Lord Mayor his comments are unwelcome and ill-conceived.
It’s not as if he bestowed the honour on Geldof, nor was the singer making any personal attack on the concept of the award.
In fact he publicly stated that he was very proud to have the Freedom of Dublin, but his conscience would not allow him be part of something that Aung San Suu Kyi was also a part of. You only have to read some of the anecdotal atrocities that are being reported from the Myanmar border to get where Geldof is coming from.
And while the Dublin Mayor may have reached out to the Rohingya people, his support means nothing in comparison to the international weight that comes with Geldof, whose charity work is unparalleled. Petty jibes from a politician eager to score points with the public will only run off his back like the proverbial duck.
Many of the world’s leaders, including Bono and Geldof, backed the wrong horse. Suu Kyi was often part of U2’s major touring shows, while Geldof was one of her biggest public supporters. It took major chutzpah for him to come out publicly and admit he was wrong.
And while nobody will remember in a month that the Lord Mayor of Dublin condemned Geldof’s noble actions, the 724,000 news articles written about his support of the Rohingya people will live online.
It’s easy to slam those who dare put their heads above the parapet. But perhaps Dublin councillors should think more about the bigger picture than trying to grab 15 minutes in the limelight.