For the past 7 months, the state of Israel has brought death and unimaginable destruction upon the civilian population of Gaza in a stark escalation of 75 years of colonial violence. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, more than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed, 14,500 of them children and 9,560 women. More than 79,000 people have been injured. 1.7 million people have been forcibly displaced, many of them multiple times. Famine is imminent - half of Gaza’s population is facing food insecurity due to the intense bombardment of the Gaza strip and the severe limitations being placed on humanitarian access by Israel. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) in February,1 in 6 children under the age of 2 was acutely malnourished. An interim damage assessment by the World Bank, EU, and the UN, has estimated the total cost of damages in the Gaza strip at 18.5 billion US dollars and has found that 60% of homes in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed. The WHO conducted a preliminary assessment of the extent of destruction wrought on Al-Shifa hospital during an Israeli siege on the facility. The WHO have described the hospital as “an empty shell” - most of the buildings are destroyed, the medical equipment is unusable and no patients remain. Israel’s latest bombardments over the last 7 months have further intensified the occupational deprivation and injustice experienced by Palestinians by denying them access to the safety and opportunity to engage in even the most basic of essential occupations. Despite ongoing advocacy by Occupational Therapists worldwide, (Arab Occupational Regional Group, Occupational Therapists and Scientists against Occupation, Palestinian Justice is Occupational Justice) the World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT) have remained silent on these violations of human rights and international law, and have failed to call for a ceasefire. WFOT issued a tweet on November 6th 2023, stating that their “fundamental beliefs mean that [they] are unable to take positions on political agendas of any nation” (WFOT 2023). This stance is inconsistent with the federation’s own commitment that “WFOT, its Member Organisations, occupational therapists, assistants, and students are obligated to support occupational justice and human rights. WFOT affirms its commitment to challenge and address systemic racism and continue to advocate for people, communities, and societies.”  The inadequacy of WFOT’s stance on Gaza however goes beyond its failure to call for a ceasefire, and extends to its stance on the fraught international status of the Occupational Therapy degree program currently being taught in Ariel University, in the settlement of Ariel in the Occupied West Bank. The consensus of the international community is that Israeli settlements in the West Bank are illegal under international law. This view has been upheld in the International Court of Justice and by repeated resolutions of the United Nations Security Council. Ariel University therefore must be regarded as having been illegally constructed on stolen Palestinian land. The university is currently subject to an academic boycott by the Boycott Divestment Sanctions (BDS) movement. Despite this international legal consensus, the World Federation only last year took the decision to accredit the degree programme at Ariel University. WFOT has incorrectly listed this programme on its website as located in “Israel”, a designation that further normalises illegal settlement. This is unacceptable from a professional organisation that ostensibly takes an anti-racist, human rights based approach.  As Occupational Therapists, we have an ethical duty to fight for occupational justice for all people and to do what we can to ensure that all people have equal access and opportunity to engage in occupations of necessity, obligation, and choice. 

What greater act of solidarity would it be than for Cork to twin with Gaza City? Gaza was a beautiful and vibrant city before the repeated, violent Israeli attacks. Both Cork City and Gaza City have suffered from acts of vengeance. “The people of Cork have been on the streets ever since October. The solidarity has been heartwarming for me as someone who was born in Gaza and who has many friends and family still there suffering unimaginable hardship. It would be the greatest honor for them if our two great cities were to be connected by ‘twinning’. ” Nasser Al Swirki. A son of Gaza living in Cork UCC links: Gaza is a University City. All of Gaza’s universities now lie in ruins. The Gaza City university has developed partnerships with 142 higher education institutions around the world. Let’s make UCC one of those partners! CUH links? Al-Shifa Hospital was the largest medical complex and central hospital in the Gaza. We will need medical partners. Environmental Links? Now destroyed. Wadi Gaza: In 2023 the Gaza Strip’s only wetland was slowly coming back to life.

Breast cancer survivor Réaltán Ní Leannáin has said she was forced to remove her breast prosthesis in public view when going through security at Dublin Airport. This is a horrific violation of her dignity and it must never be allowed to happen ever again. We demand that Dublin Airport Authority put clear policies in place so cancer survivors know exactly what to expect when going through airport security. These policies should be available on the Dublin Airport website and should be based on dignity and respect for anyone who has undergone cancer treatment.

We don't have enough pools in our area so when a new pool is planned it needs to be a modern and flexible design to accommodate as many groups as possible.

Norma Foley's assistance is crucial because she is responsible for education in Ireland. Here's why her help is important: 1. Promised Improvement: The school has been promised a new building for 17 years. As the current Minister of Education, Ms Foley can fulfill this promise, ensuring that the school finally gets the improvements it desperately needs. 2. Safety and Health: The current conditions pose safety and health hazards to students and staff. Minister Foley can allocate resources to address these issues, ensuring that the school environment is safe and conducive to learning. She can issue the letter the school needs for the new building to start. 3. Financial Support: Ms Foley can provide financial support to address the costly heating bills associated with the poorly insulated buildings. By investing in energy-efficient upgrades, she can help reduce expenses for both the school and the community. 4. Educational Environment: A safe and healthy environment is essential for effective learning. Minister Foley's assistance in upgrading the school facilities will create a better educational environment for students, enabling them to thrive academically and socially. 5. Community Well-being: Improving the school facilities will benefit the entire community. Foley's support will demonstrate a commitment to the well-being of disadvantaged communities and provide them with access to quality education resources. Overall, Norma Foley's help is vital in ensuring that the school receives the necessary support and resources to address its longstanding issues and provide a better future for its pupils and the community.

Having a large mural of US president Joe Biden in Ballina reflects very badly on the people of Ballina, Mayo and Ireland who hold very different views to Joe regarding the ongoing genocide in Gaza.

It is not natural to put children into uniforms for all of their childhood. Be in no doubt that they sap some of the light and levity out of the child and out of the school. They introduce fear and conflict because they involve enforcement, punishments, reprimands, and alienation. Schools become that bit more hostile to many children. Teachers waste enormous amounts of time enforcing and harassing and haranguing students about the clothes they are wearing and very stupid things like the colour of their shoelaces. They are expensive, restrictive, uncomfortable, oppressive and outdated. They reflect a right-wing conservative need for ultra-conformity to control children. In France it is Le Pen's neo-Nazi's who want to introduce uniforms. They are counter to modern educational philosophy which values plurality, problem-solving, creativity and self-expression. Ireland and Malta are the only two EU countries with this widespread practice, both with a British colonial past and a widespread smothering conservative, Catholic control of schools. It is a myth that uniforms protect children from bullying. In the wider European continent, out of 40 countries, uniforms are the norm in eight, and all eight of those report above average levels of bullying (Statista 2018). Rather than trying to make everyone look the same (impossible anyhow) by enforcing ridiculous dress and appearance rules, better for school to focus on developing children's ability to be resilient, accept themselves and other people for who they are in all their wonderful human diversity.

Let's make Mullingar accessible to everyone, bring the bus!

It's a change for the people of Ireland who understand the health benefits of consuming a natural product than an unnatural one and about the people having a say about there own experience and how it's positively affects them in there personal life

On the back of the Citizens' Assembly, urgent change to cannabis policy is needed.

APCP believes it is unfair and unjust to APCP members who have worked hard to meet rigorous professional requirements, for the HSE to continue with these exclusionary hiring practices. APCP promotes the belief that all clients should be treated fairly, equally, with respect and autonomy and yet, the opposite has been presented to members of APCP when it comes to recognition for posts within the HSE. We, as a representative body, who are very proud of our members achievements, high ethical practice, standards and commitment to best practice request that due consideration and fairness be extended to our members.

Aside from being unfair to NAPCP members who have worked hard to meet rigorous professional requirements, for the HSE to continue with these exclusionary hiring practices would be gravely irresponsible and potentially damaging to members of the public - many of whom are not currently receiving the care that they need.