A Dungannon councillor who wrongly claimed a Gaelic soccer match was linked to an IRA starvation striker has stated he'll “not be apologising to the GAA”.
Clement Cuthbertson was talking at a gathering at Mid-Ulster District Council, and was subsequently minimize off by the council’s chair, Sinn Fein councillor Cora Corry.
On the council’s month-to-month assembly this week, Mr Cuthbertson was invited to apologise for remarks he made on social media in August claiming “the GAA nonetheless idolises convicted terrorists”.
His feedback have been made in relation to the Francie Hughes Memorial Match for younger kids. The match is known as after the highly-regarded former chairman of Coalisland Na Fianna who shares his identify with a 1981 IRA starvation striker.
Talking on the assembly, Torrent councillors Dan Kerr and Malachy Quinn conveyed what they stated was the harm and anger the feedback had precipitated in Coalisland and known as on the DUP councillor to apologise.
UUP councillor Mark Glasgow additionally issued an announcement criticising the match however has already withdrawn his remarks and apologised.
Mr Kerr stated: “On August 9, two unionist councillors made outlandish and embarrassing remarks about my native GAA membership.
“Plainly Councillor Cuthbertson’s obsession with attacking something remotely Irish has led to him making a idiot of himself whereas one other unionist councillor, with out reality checking, launched statements to attempt to be seen outdoing him. Cllr Cuthbertson clearly spends his days scrolling social media searching for one thing to be offended about.
“This obsession with demonising our tradition has led to Cllr Cuthbertson attacking Coalisland a number of instances now and I name upon him to to clarify how this embarrassing episode was allowed to occur and ask him to apologise to Coalisland Na Fianna and the Hughes household and cease attacking my tradition.”
SDLP group chief Malachy Quinn stated the feedback and lack of an apology had precipitated a number of anger in Coalisland and stated the remarks “introduced the council into disrepute”.
“There was a number of anger in relation to those feedback and extra for the actual fact he has but to apologise for them,” Mr Quinn stated.
“He attacked those who have been attending the occasion and the groups that have been participating, it was not only one remoted occasion and I obtained a number of calls expressing anger that day.
“For my part, it introduced the council into disrepute as this can be a councillor attacking a neighborhood GAA occasion. Easy analysis would have proven it was not what he was claiming and I feel it will be acceptable for the councillor to apologise for these remarks.”
However Mr Cuthbertson stated he wouldn't be apologising and referenced footage from two years in the past, shared on social media, which appeared to indicate individuals in Dungannon Thomas Clarkes GAA tops flouting social distancing tips in place on the time and allegedly utilizing sectarian language.
“I can't be apologising to the GAA. The GAA frequently idolise terrorists, ought to that be in recent times, or 100 years in the past,” stated Mr Cuthbertson.
“Simply after we are speaking about social media, my feed got here up with a reminiscence from two years in the past as we speak the place Thomas Clarkes followers, and members of the general public carrying Thomas Clarkes shirts, have been on video singing a sectarian, misogynistic music. There has nonetheless be no apology for this.”
At this level Ms Corry advised Mr Cuthbertson that “we aren't right here to bash organisations” and requested him to deal with the matter at hand.
He advised her he was responding as requested and went on to say the GAA has “many tournaments named after the IRA” telling the chamber “the checklist is continuous”.
The chair then advised Mr Cuthbertson these points had been raised beforehand so she could be turning off his microphone to which he requested if the chamber doesn’t “need to hear in regards to the previous and the way the GAA idolises terrorists”.
Council chief government Adrian McCreesh interjected at this level, reminding members “the ruling of the chair is closing”.
Bringing the dialogue to a swift finish, Ms Corry advised Mr Cuthbertson he had been invited to deal with the difficulty at hand. “You're clearly not going to take action, so I'm going to maneuver on,” she added.