Áine Ní Chonaill is an Irish anti-immigration activist who is the founder and public relations officer of the Immigration Control Platform (ICP).

Biography

Ní Chonaill was born in

Cork "Cork" or "CORK" may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Stopper (plug), or "cork", a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container *** Wine cork an item to seal or reseal wine Places Ireland * ...

and studied at

University College Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) () is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork (city), Cork. The university was founded in 1845 as one of three Queen's Universit ...

. She became a school teacher in

County Cork County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...

, before becoming the public relations officer the Immigration Control Platform (ICP). Her political background is largely unknown, but she was involved in the early days of the

Progressive Democrats The Progressive Democrats (, literally "The Democratic Party"), commonly referred to as the PDs, were a conservative liberal political party in Ireland. The party's history spanned 24 years, from its formation in 1985 to its dissolution in 20 ...

. In 1998 she described herself as a Europhobe and a

libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

, stating "I'm the kind of person who doesn't believe in interfering with people's liberties. I won't wear a seat belt and I won't pay the fines for not wearing one. It's not the law's business to stop me going through the windscreen."

Career

At the 1997 general election, Ní Chonaill stood in her native Cork South-West constituency, she received 293 votes. Ní Chonaill said she started her campaign because she was concerned about the numbers of immigrants arriving in Ireland and about asylum abuse. In 1998 she was the main founder of Immigration Control Platform, an anti-immigration organisation frequently described as

far-right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on the far end of the ...

. She stood for election again in the larger Dublin South-Central constituency at the 2002 general election, where she received 926 votes. In 2005, Ní Chonaill was accused of being a neo-nazi after being invited to UCD's Literary and Historical Society for a debate. She was later asked to not attend the UCD event, Ní Chonaill later denied the claim.

Views

Ní Chonaill has, as spokesperson, repeatedly spoken out about immigration, including opposing the

Charter of Fundamental Rights The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (CFR) enshrines certain political, social, and economic rights for European Union (EU) citizens and residents into EU law. It was drafted by the European Convention and solemnly procla ...

and asylum claims of homosexuals fleeing persecution. In a statement she said: "If the choice is between having homosexuals from these countries having to act discreetly and us being swamped with alleged homosexual claims from 80 countries around the world then they will just have to act discreetly". She has described the Irish government's response to the 1990 Fajujonu court case, as a betrayal of Irish citizens.

References

External links

*
Press report of ICP launch
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ni Chonaill, Aine 20th-century Irish people 21st-century Irish people Critics of multiculturalism Irish activists Irish eurosceptics Irish far-right politicians Irish women activists Living people Activists from County Cork Progressive Democrats politicians Year of birth missing (living people)