21 August 2026
Letter from Staff of Maynooth University to Minister James Lawless on the Issue of Visas for Students from Palestine

Dear Minister Lawless,

We are writing to you as local constituents and as workers in the sector for which you have ministerial responsibility. Maynooth University, like many other institutions of higher education across the state, has had the honour of hosting students from Palestine who have fled the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the sustained campaign of violence and intimidation in the West Bank. These students have enriched the life of our university immeasurably.

It is with great consternation and frustration that we have heard from incoming students themselves and read in the press about the difficulties they are encountering in securing a visa to take up scholarships in Ireland. It is extremely disappointing to hear of this disjuncture between the state’s rhetoric of support for Palestinians and an immigration policy that seems to disregard both the undeniable threat posed by the extreme violence of the Israeli state to Palestinians and the significant contribution Palestinian students have made to our university communities. We object in the strongest terms to the impossible visa requirements being enforced by the Department of Justice on applicants who experienced scholasticide at home in Palestine where the ongoing conditions of life in conflict mean they have no access to regular educational and financial documentation.

We call on you as our TD and the Minister for Higher Education to intervene with your ministerial colleagues in the Department of Justice, both Minister O’Callaghan and Minister Brophy, on behalf of these students to ensure that they are given the visas they need. It would be a grave moral and historical error to deny these students the opportunity to travel to Ireland to study in safety. It also carries a high risk of reputational damage to our university sector, which is internationally recognised for its commitment to justice and human rights.

We trust that you, as our local TD and the Minister in our sector, share our concerns and look forward to hearing about the concrete steps you will take to ensure these students are not abandoned to their fate in the context of an ongoing genocide.

Signed:

Update 04 September 2026

Letter has been sent to the Minister and Local Press

Good afternoon,

Just a quick update to let you all now that this letter has been sent to James Lawless' constituency and ministerial addresses and to the local press. I will let you know if and when we get a response. I would encourage you to also contact him as individual constituents to hammer home the message of support for these Palestinian students.

Go raibh míle agaibh uilig,

Dónal

170
signatures
155 verified
  1. Dónal Hassett, Professor of History, Maynooth University
  2. Raul Carstocea, Professor of History, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  3. Linda Connolly, Professor, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  4. Elizabeth Boyle, Lecturer in Early Irish, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  5. Conall Ó Fátharta, PhD, Maynooth University
  6. Karl O'Hanlon, Lecturer, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  7. Catherine Gander, Associate Professor of Literature, Maynooth University
  8. Fionntán de Brún, Ollamh, Ollscoil Mhá Nuad, Maigh Nuad
  9. John O Brennan, Professor, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  10. Rory Finegan, Lecturer, Centre for Military History & Strategic Studies, Maynooth
  11. Dr Ide Corley, Assistant Professor, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  12. Filipe Ribeiro de Meneses, Professor of History, Maynooth University
  13. Hilary Lennon, Tutor, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  14. Colin Coulter, Professor of Sociology, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  15. Donal Coffey, Assistant Professor, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  16. Mary Gilmartin, Professor, Maynooth University, Kildare
  17. Susan Giblin, PhD, Maynooth University
  18. Dr. Anindita Bhattacharya, Postdoctoral Researcher, Maynooth University, Dublin
  19. Niall Ó Cuileagáin, Postdoctoral Researcher, Maynooth University
  20. Fiadh Tubridy, Maynooth University
...
115 more
verified signatures
  1. Jennifer Redmond, Associate Professor, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  2. Szymon Urbaś, assistant professor, Matnooth University, Maynooth
  3. Lorraine Crean, Lecturer, Lorraine Crean, Maynooth University
  4. Ana Moreno Ayala, Executive Assistant, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  5. Bernie Traynor, SEA, Maynooth University, GRA
  6. Esther Ryan, Senior Executive Assistant, Maynooth University
  7. Dylan Bailey, PhD Researcher, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  8. Stephanie Mcellland, Maynooth University
  9. Bríd Ní Ghráinne, School of Law and Criminology, Maynooth University
  10. Rebecca Owens, Assistant Professor, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  11. Barbara Woods, Maynooth University, Meath
  12. Gillian O'Meara, Senior Technical Officer, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  13. Gemma Lynch, STO, Maynooth University, Kilcock
  14. Ronan Bergin, Assistant Professor, Maynooth University, Leixlip
  15. John Devaney, Assistant Professor, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  16. Niamh Lynam-Lennon, Assistant Professor, Maynooth University, Dublin
  17. Jackie Nugent, Lecturer, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  18. Deirdre Daly, Senior Technical Officer, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  19. John Murray, Lecturer, Maynooth University, Maynooth
  20. Sam Blanckensee, Equality Officer, Maynooth University, Maynooth
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