(Seo alt ónár bhfoireann Gaeltachta. Is féidir an bunleagan as Gaeilge a léamh anseo)

A SENIOR SINN Féin member in Galway West has strongly criticised the party leadership’s decision to discipline a member who condemned the choice of a candidate without Irish to stand in the Galway West byelection in May.

The party recently initiated disciplinary action against Máirín Mhic Lochlainn, who criticised the decision not to select an Irish-speaking candidate to contest the seat left vacant by Catherine Connolly when the former Galway West TD was elected President last year.

Fellow party member Kevin O’Hara – whose own name had been in contention as a candidate for the byelection in which Mark Lohan was selected to stand for the party – has said he feels there is “neither rhyme nor reason” to the disciplinary action.

During the campaign, Mhic Lochlainn – a woman who had previously stood for Sinn Féin in local elections – had said that party members in Connemara were tired of Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald, and that her branch, Cumann Mháirtín Uí Chadhain, had no confidence in the leader.

O’Hara, who is the Galway West Comhairle Ceantair secretary, said he understood entirely “Máirín’s frustration when Sinn Féin selected somebody with no Irish and no understanding of Connemara as the candidate for the by-election”.

Furthermore, he said, stressing that he was speaking in a personal capacity: “Sinn Féin as a party spends an awful lot of time talking about the importance of the language and the Gaeltacht but the public and members expect action as well as words.”

His statement came amid considerable focus on the party’s policy regarding its approach to the Irish language following a video on social media featuring SF MEP Lynn Boylan attracting more than seven million views and widespread criticism.

Boylan had criticised the EU for not providing interpretation at a meeting and said she would not be able to speak in Irish as a result. The chair of the meeting said interpretation from Irish was available, whereupon the MEP said her speech was not prepared in Irish and continued her remarks in English.

O’Hara also criticised the party’s decision not to come to Galway West to speak with local members as part of a review of the byelection results – which he described as the party’s worst outcome in the constituency since 2007.

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He laid the blame on the party leadership and on Mairéad Farrell for ensuring “there was no proper discussion of the importance of the Gaeltacht and of Irish”.

The Journal sought a statement from Sinn Féin on O’Hara’s remarks. A party spokesperson said Sinn Féin does not comment on ongoing internal party procedures.

The Journal’s Gaeltacht initiative is supported by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.

This article was originally written in the reporter’s native Irish and has been translated to English here. AI was used as part of the translation process before final edits.