Speech by Frances Fitzgerald TD, Minister for Justice and Equality 4th July 2014 Citizenship Ceremony Convention Centre, Dublin

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls.
I want to begin by welcoming you – one and all – to this great day which marks a major milestone in your lives. I want to specially welcome all of those of you immediately in front of me who will shortly become Ireland’s newest citizens. For you, for your families, for your friends, it is indeed a wonderful day and a special moment in your lives which I’ve no doubt you will cherish for many years to come.

It is also a special day for me as it marks my first citizenship ceremony as Minister for Justice and Equality since I was honoured to be appointed to the post back in May. I hope this is the first of many such ceremonies that I will get to attend as Minister for Justice and Equality.

There are a number of aspects to this ceremony today – some of them are formal in the sense they are a legal requirement and without doing these formalities you cannot become a citizen; other parts of our ceremony are less formal in that they mark the celebratory nature of this happy occasion. And finally, today is also about symbolism; the things that matter to us such as standing in respect and facing the Tricolour while officials of our State play our national anthem at the completion of the ceremony.

All of these signal in their own way that this is also an important event for us as the host nation. Under our laws one of my tasks is to decide who gets citizenship; here today, in addition to discharging my lawful responsibilities at the completion of the application process, I also represent the Irish people in conveying to you what this momentous occasion means to us. Be in no doubt at all about that; this is an honour which we greatly cherish and which we today bestow upon you as the newest members of our national family of Irish citizens.

For many years Irish people the world over who travelled far from their homes benefitted from, in that wonderfully evocative phrase, “the kindness of strangers”. It is now our turn as a people and as a nation to return that kindness and to say to you and all qualifying applicants; come and be part of our nation.

On behalf of all citizens of the Irish nation as Minister for Justice and Equality it is my duty, my responsibility and my privilege to decide on their behalf who is granted citizenship in accordance with law. As you know, there is no automatic right to Irish citizenship for those who come from other lands and live in our communities; Irish citizenship is therefore earned and decided upon in accordance to what is set down in law. That is a good thing and makes it all the more special for all of us. Therefore it is no accident or quirk of nature that the Irish passport, which as you know can only be held by Irish citizens, is a highly prized possession all around the world.

I know that when you shortly complete the formalities by taking an oath of fidelity to our nation and loyalty to our State, you will do so in good faith; sincerely and conscious of the signal honour which is being bestowed on you on the authority of this great country.

This ceremony today is one of four being held here today in which over 3,860 applicants for a certificate of naturalisation will become our newest citizens. You will come in here during the day as citizens of 123 different countries with all your different customs, your great diversity, and your own traditions. Many of you have come along in your national colours and costumes, adding greatly to the joyful nature of the occasion. By this evening you will share one great common unifying bond – you will have become Irish citizens. For that you deserve a warm round of applause.

You will have the same rights, the same duties and the same responsibilities as every other Irish citizen. We ask you, as we ask all our citizens, to participate in our communities, to be good citizens, and to uphold the law. The possibilities opened up to you in Ireland today are almost limitless; perhaps one day, you or a child or grandchild of yours, could be up here as a Minister for Justice, or as Judge, or the President perhaps. One way or another, all this potential derives from you becoming a citizen of our country today. Irrespective of the direction the fork on life’s road takes you, the grant of citizenship is a powerful statement of intent by the State and by we the people of the State. There is much debate about what a national integration policy should contain; it is of course right and proper we should debate about these things. In my view the grant of citizenship goes to the core of what such a policy should be. Today’s ceremony like all those that have gone before it with its pageantry, its formality and its lighter moments are a very public expression of the very essence of our integration policies.

Over the course of the past three years or so, this Government has introduced many reforms in the Justice area; citizenship ceremonies are one of those and these ceremonies along with other reforms in the processing of applications have transformed the naturalisation process into the wonderful uplifting occasion that has its culmination at today’s ceremonies. By the end of today 93 of these ceremonies will have been held since June 2011 and the number of persons receiving citizenship will have exceeded 72,000. Waiting times in the great majority of cases have fallen from 2 and ½ years plus to 6 months or less in some cases.

These ceremonies which have set a new standard for the completion of the process have been remarked upon favourably at international fora and are seen as a major positive force in our national immigrant integration efforts. I want therefore to publicly recognise the outstanding work of my predecessor, former Minister Alan Shatter in having the commitment, vision and energy to oversee the implementation of these much needed reforms.

For my part I intend to ensure the huge improvements put in place by Alan are continued and progressed during my tenure. I am also considering some fresh initiatives in this area to further enhance the process but these are for another day.

Today’s ceremony is greatly enhanced by the presence of Bryan McMahon, a retired Judge of the High Court, who will perform the role of the Presiding Officer and administer the Declaration of Fidelity to the Irish Nation and Loyalty to the State, which is the final part of the citizenship application process and without which you cannot become an Irish citizen. We are very grateful to Bryan for being here today to fulfil this most important function.

The Army No 2 Band, conducted by Sergeant Terry Donovan, is providing the music for today’s event which I think you will agree adds immeasurably to the sense of occasion. I would like to thank all the members of the band for their wonderful performance. The participation of the Colour Party, led by Lieutenant Adam Doyle, honours our national flag and underlines in a very significant way the solemnity and dignity of the ceremony. Thank you all for your presence and your contribution to this event.

The Staff of my Department, particularly those in the Citizenship Section, have worked tirelessly in processing your applications and in making today’s event run smoothly. On behalf of all of us, I thank them also.

Ireland has changed beyond all recognition; in little over a decade we have changed from being an overwhelming mono-cultural society to being the home for an amazingly diverse range of communities. There is hardly a country on the planet which isn’t represented in our cities, towns and villages. From remote South Sea Islands to the great American continent; from the vastness of Africa to the great landmass of the East; from countries where the sun always seems to shine to where it is covered in snow for 6 months of the year – Ireland is now home to people from all these lands. It is a truly uplifting thought that our small island at the edge of the Old World of Europe and facing into the New World of the Americas is now the place called home for so many people from such diverse lands.

As you leave here today, as proud new citizens of this Republic and constitutional democracy, our history is your history and the narrative of your life is now part of our history.

In a few moments you will make your declaration of Loyalty to our Nation and Fidelity to our State. These are solemn and serious pledges and it is the duty of us all, as citizens of a proud nation which values inclusion, tolerance and diversity, to uphold them.

Following that, we will stand and face the national flag in respect and remembrance of past generations while celebrating the present generation and our National Anthem will be played. I wish to congratulate you, one and all, on becoming our newest Irish citizens and welcome you to our national family.

I now formally introduce Judge McMahon and invite him to administer the declaration in which you publicly declare your Fidelity to our National and Loyalty to our State as well as an undertaking to faithfully observe the laws of the State and respect its democratic values.

Thank you.