Ugly scenes.
Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe was subject to an angry encounter with anti-vaccination protestors on the streets of Dublin.
In a video shared on social media and viewed by JOE, Donohoe is verbally accosted by a small group of individuals shouting things like “mass genocide” and “God is watching”.
One member of the group tells Donohoe that his sister is in hospital following a second vaccination dose and accuses the Minister of being “part of” a genocide plot.
“There’s no need to raise your voice,” Donohoe said in response as he calmly walked away.
The minute-long video also finds the group confronting Donohoe stating that the public has been “hoodwinked” and “lied to” by the Government.
Fine Gael Senator John McGahon was among those highlighting the abuse on Twitter.
“It’s highly likely that the people in this video were radicalised online,” McGahon posited.
The video has prompted questions surrounding the safety of Irish politicians and whether or not additional protective measures should be put in place.
In recent months, anti-vaccination protestors held separate demonstrations outside the homes of Tánaiste Leo Varadkar and Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan.
Two weeks ago, UK Conservative MP David Amess was stabbed to death while holding a constituency surgery at the Belfairs Methodist Church in Leigh-on-Sea in Essex.
Amess’ murder sparked fresh debate regarding the welfare of politicians and their access to the general public.
Speaking in Brussels last week, Taoiseach Micheál Martin noted that he has been “roared and screamed at” while walking down the street and called for a Garda review of overall security.
“We depend in Ireland – well, not depend, but it’s part of our ecosystem in politics to have clinics to have that interaction with people on the ground, which is a very positive feature of Irish politics and we have to protect that,” he said.
Featured Image via Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie
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