Onus on us all to prevent border unrest

OF late there has been much talk on the national airwaves and in publications about the increasing level of lawlessness in border areas.

This publicity has been generated by the abduction and torture of Quinn Industrial Holdings director, Kevin Lunney, an attack on the car of a Sinn Fein TD outside of his home, the erection of posters threatening individuals and the involvement of Irish people in the human trafficking scandal.

In response to this publicity Garda Commissioner, Drew Harris has denied that the border area is in danger of becoming a law-free zone, and insisted that the border is not in danger of returning to its dark past.

Not all however are comforted by the assurances from the Garda Commissioner, or the fact that the Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar and the Minister for Justice, Charlie Flanagan supported his view.

Much of the recent publicity has been generated by the attacks and threats to the directors and staff of the Quinn companies in the Cavan-Fermanagh border area, for the nature and frequency of these attacks have had a very significant impact on the entire country with many maintaining that the attacks and provocation are a very real threat to the rule of law and our entire democratic values.

Almost as alarming as the attacks themselves was the sight of a hooded man issuing threats not just to members of the Quinn staff but also the general public in a video that was released last week.

We all felt that those days were long gone when spineless spokespersons for terrorist organisations and criminal gangs used this method of intimidation against the security forces and the general population.

Over the years following the outbreak of the so called “Troubles”, we, in this area, had to endure the consequences of the virtual breakdown of law and order along the border and undoubtedly Dundalk suffered greatly in terms of lives lost, property damaged, and economic investment stunted because of the violence.

Unfortunately those years spawned the criminal activity that is now causing so many problems along the border and is causing a great deal of damage to the reputation of the country as those involved spread their activities to Britain and mainland Europe as they seek to broaden their lucrative operations.

They thrive on the shield that the remote border areas provide, the presence of two criminal justice systems and two police forces and the legacy of intimidation that existed in the past, and which is preserved out of some patriotic allegiance to a cause.

There is no cause, no justification that can be sustained in any civilised society that can excuse those who kidnap a decent hard working family man from his home and cowardly beat him half to death in an isolated container down a lonely road, or for those who exploit vulnerable weak, poor and desperate migrants seeking a better life for themselves and their families.

However risky, however unpatriotic it may seem to some, we have to stand up and be counted for while there are those who argue that it is the job of the Gardai and the authorities to bring those responsible to justice, we all know that in the border areas in which these criminals operate it takes local knowledge to expose their activities.

If we want to prevent the border areas from returning to the chaos of the past which blighted the economic prospects and good name of our town, then we must show unconditional support to the forces of law and order.