Irish anti-immigration group invites Fortress Europe to meeting

Anti-immigration group, Identity Ireland has invited representatives from the right wing Fortress Europe grouping to attend a conference on migration planned for Ireland later this year.

Identity Ireland said that two of its founder members, Peter O'Loughlin and Alan Tighe had represented the party at a Fortress Europe conference in the Czech Republic last week.

"Representatives from 16 nationalist organisations from across 14 European countries were in attendance at the conference at the Czech Parliament in Prague," said Identity Ireland on Tuesday.

The conference also looked at “the irreparable damage associated with the mass immigration of unassimilable people and cultures into Europe,” said Identity Ireland.

“Arrangements have been made for distinguished members of the Fortress Europe grouping to attend a future conference in Ireland which will be hosted by Identity Ireland.”

Last week’s conference in Prague is the second organised by Fortress Europe or Festunga Europa in the Czech capital and follows a similar such conference there in January.

That meeting on January 23rd was organised by members of Pegida which translates from German as Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West.

At the meeting, German representatives of Pegida met organisations from nine other countries to sign a joint declaration opposing political Islam and the Islamisation of Europe.

Earlier this year, an attempt by members of Identity Ireland to establish an Irish branch of Pegida ended in mayhem when the group were attacked by anti-racism campaigners.

According to Identity Ireland: “As usual, extreme thugs went to great length to ensure that we and Pegida Ireland were not allowed our constitutional right to peaceful demonstration.

“What was new in this context was the savage levels of thuggery and violence which swept our capital city,” said Identity Ireland of the incident in which Mr O’Loughlin was assaulted.

Then Minister for Health, Leo Varadkar condemned the attack on Pegida Ireland but expressed concern at the establishment of an Irish branch of Pegida and the rise of right wing extremism.

“We have extremism coming in on the Left already and we’ve seen what that means in terms of extreme policies and violence directed towards politicians and others,” he said at the time.

“I also believe in free speech and I think we need to allow people to say things that maybe we don’t like to hear - that’s important in a democracy and I don’t think that violence is the answer to people whom you don’t agree with,” he said.