Freedom politics - Village Magazine

32September/October 2015

I want to work

with citizens

and com-

munities to

manoeuvre the

Government

compass to

the politics of

generativity

and equality

for everyone

“

Y decision to run as an Inde-

pendent candidate in Dublin

South West for the next General

Election aﬀords me the freedom to

think, build relationships, negotiate

and act outside of the strictures and

regulations of party politics and

whips. Independence allows a greater

creativity to bring one’s own gifts and

experience to the political agenda.

Freedom to think and act with imagi-

nation is precisely what Ireland needs

now to change its direction from aus-

terity politics to the politics of

generativity and equality for everyone.

We don’t have this kind of politics yet,

but it could be fashioned. This is what I

want to work towards in the next Dáil

on behalf of the citizens and communi-

ties of Dublin South West.

As an Independent member of

Seanad Éireann I have learned the

practice of freedom politics and wit-

nessed its impact and eﬀectiveness.

Freedom politics involves a carefully

crafted methodology that begins with

one’s own values and experience.

Having worked as an educator, human

rights advocate and progressive entre-

preneur in the communities of Dublin

South West and national civil society

organisations, my politics start with

deep and respectful listening to peo-

ple’s needs and dreams. Early in my

Oireachtas career I invited a group of

young transgender people into Lein-

ster House at a time when there was no

legislative action towards securing

legal recognition for transgender

people in Ireland. Our conversation

prompted my conversion to participate

in this civil movement. I worked with

advocates and legal experts to publish

a Bill that set high benchmarks for the

parties in power. Today Ireland has

one of the most progressive laws in

Europe on this issue.

An Independent’s political freedom

demands a critical review of the Pro-

gramme for Government put together

by the political party or parties in

power. Sometimes this means resisting

the decisions of the powerful, with

little or no resources, and calling on

the strategic creativity and persever-

ance required to bring about better

alternatives. Our current Government

put forward Seanad abolition as one of

its prime ideas to reform politics, with

little apparent credible rationale.

While the practice of politics did and

does require substantial reform to

implement policies and laws that open

opportunity for all of our people, I

judged that shutting down one of the

houses of parliament would consoli-

date power in the hands of the few

rather than share it so that all public

representatives could have more eﬀec-

tive voices. So, with a small group of

committed democrats, we built a cam-

paign over the course of two years that

resulted in the Seanad’s retention.

Subsequently, the Seanad Reform Bill

written by Democracy Matters and

published by Senator Feargal Quinn

and me, has signiﬁcantly inﬂuenced

recommendations for the reform pro-

posals put forward by an Independent

group appointed by the Taoiseach.

As an Independent, I am also free to

support Government ideas contained

in its Programme, if they resonate

with my values, experience and judg-

ment. It was a tremendous privilege to

work alongside Government and other

political parties, in strategic coopera-

tion with Yes Equality, to advocate the

successful Yes vote in the Marriage

Equality referendum. As a founding

member of the marriage equality

movement in Ireland, practising the

politics of freedom in this instance

provided a way to draw on my experi-

ence of a decade of human rights

advocacy.

Being an Independent, then, is not

simply about freedom from a party

whip, or political party discipline.

Being an Independent provides free-

dom for thinking and action that often

can be suppressed in political parties,

leading to the extinguishment of crea-

tivity and the passionate pursuit of

ideals rooted in one’s experience and

self-knowledge. I have witnessed this

happen to colleagues and it will con-

tinue to happen unless there is

imaginative reform of the practice of

politics (including within political par-

ties) and a re-balancing of power

between the Cabinet and members of

parliament.

One of the prime reasons for the rise

of the number and popularity of Inde-

pendents, I think, has to do with their

eﬀective eﬀorts to bring personal

power to bear on the direction of law,

policy and the investigation of corrupt

or unethical practices in public, politi-

cal, social and economic institutions.

This personal power is most eﬀec-

tive when it is rooted in a creative

vision inspired by the needs and

dreams of our people. It provides a

stronger base from which to negotiate

the compromises that generate signiﬁ-

cant change.

If elected as an Independent in the

next Dáil, I want to work with citizens

and communities, civil society organi-

sations and legal experts, to

manoeuvre the Government compass

closer to the politics of generativity

and equality for everyone. •

As an Independent I can use creativity and passion to get what people want on issues like

Marriage Equality. By Senator Katherine Zappone

Freedom politics

POLITICS Independent

September-October 2015 33

CMY

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