Ireland will review, and make amendments to, its Control of Economic Activity Bill of 2018 — known as the Occupied Territories Bill — which could see Dublin take steps to impose a trade ban on Israel.
In an exclusive interview with the Mail & Guardian, Irish ambassador to South Africa Austin Gormley reflected on Ireland’s role in South Africa as the two nations celebrate 30 years of diplomatic relations.
“[We are] continuing the official level to explore these amendments, and any measures adopted would focus solely on the occupied territories, therefore, part of a policy of differentiation between the State of Israel, on the one hand, the territories illegally occupied by Israel on the other,” said Gormley.
But he cautioned that the Bill would only be finalised after Ireland’s general elections on 29 November.
“It’ll be a decision for the next government to decide on the course of action for bringing the Bill forward,” he said.
Earlier this month, Ireland announced that it would be intervening in South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the basis of infringement of international law.
In December, South Africa filed a case before the ICJ against Israel, arguing that the war in Gaza breached the 1948 UN Genocide Convention, an accusation Israel has strongly denied.
Ireland joins several nations that have supported South Africa’s case, including Spain, Bolivia, Colombia, Mexico, Turkey, Chile and Libya.
Ireland also confirmed the appointment of a full Palestinian ambassador, rather than a representative, after the country formally recognised a Palestinian state in May.
Gormley confirmed that Ireland had written to the vice-president of the European Commission, Josep Borrell, about the need for EU member states to consider the implications of the region’s relations with Israel.
The ambassador said Ireland understood the implications of apartheid rule because of its own history.
From the early 1960s, Ireland had been vocal in opposing the apartheid regime in South Africa. To show solidarity, it awarded the Freedom of the City of Dublin to Nelson Mandela in 1988 while he was a political prisoner. Mandela collected the award upon his release in 1990.
Ireland was the only EU country that did not have full diplomatic relations with South Africa until 1993 — it opened the Irish embassy in Pretoria in 1994 after the first democratic elections.
According to Gormley, the decision by the Irish government to advance bilateral relations later than its European counterparts was a considered move.
“That was deliberate because we wanted to ensure that the transition was well advanced, and the move away from the apartheid regime was embedded, before we moved to establish relations,” he said.
Since then, Ireland has established trade and economic relations to advance its mission strategy for Southern Africa.
South Africa was the first sub-Saharan African country in which Enterprise Ireland had set up an office. Irish goods exports to South Africa rose by 25% to €448 million in 2022, while South African goods exports to Ireland doubled from €151 million to €315 million in the same period.
Irish companies have developed a significant presence in South Africa and employ more than 12 500 people with services, particularly insurance, financial and computer services, making up about 75% of total trade.
Gormley added that even though South Africa had established its first coalition government, bilateral agreements would remain the same.
“With the previous government and with this government, the fundamentals of the relationship are strong, based on our values and our shared interests,” the ambassador said.
“And again, Irish companies see South Africa as a base [for] the rest of Africa, as the new government’s vocation is to renew focus on economic reform, removing infrastructure bottlenecks and promoting conditions for economic growth … It is certainly welcomed.”
Based on statistics from the embassy, the Irish community in South Africa has been growing. There are about 40 000 Irish citizens in the country, with active diaspora networks including the Irish-South African Association and Business Ireland South Africa supported through the Government of Ireland Emigrant Support Programme.
The Irish government announced in July that South African and Botswana passport holders would require visas to enter the country.
Gormley defended the decision, saying that because Ireland is a common travel area with the UK, it influenced “free movement” between the countries.
“It had been unusual that Ireland would not have a visa regime for South African nationals, and the UK has, so part of the rationale is to align with the UK in order to protect the common travel Area,” he said.
The ambassador added that another reason for the decision was the increase in forged South African passports.
“We’ve had an engagement … between our departments of justice and home affairs over the years on this issue, and on the potential loopholes, because, as I say, some of these passport holders were the holders of passports obtained on a fraudulent basis, and unfortunately, we didn’t see progress on it in recent years.”
While Gormley said he could not speak for the Irish government, he suggested that the visa regime would not be lifted soon “unless, for instance, the UK or Schengen were to lift visa requirements or unless there was significant improvement in terms of the issue of passports”.
In recent months, Ireland has seen an increase in protests against asylum seekers and migrants, which demonstrators have labelled “state neglect”.
Gormley said although citizens had the right to protest, he believed that there was “a small group that has exploited the situation to advance their own agendas and sometimes they are far right, and sometimes with racist components”.
When asked what the anti-immigration protests meant for South Africans in Ireland, the ambassador said that Ireland was “welcome for migrants”.
Gormley said he was optimistic about South Africa and Ireland’s future relations through educational programmes such as the Irish Tech Challenge South Africa, the Kader Asmal Fellowship Programme and cultural initiatives like the Maxeke-Robinson Studies Chair and exchanges in sports, especially rugby, because it “speaks to the rich tapestry of our shared heritage and mutual respect”.
Gormley said Ireland was in “no rush” to leave the EU because of the deep cooperation between member states which has positively influenced peace and security in the region.
“It is fundamental to our interests — we have a voice at the table and we have a wider market.”