SINN FÉIN LEADER Mary Lou McDonald has denied her party is attempting to “stranglehold democracy” and has defended the decision of members to sue the media.

The Sinn Féin leader has strongly rejected any claim that her party is trying to silence the media by mounting legal actions, stating that everyone has a right to defend their reputation.

It comes after Sinn Féin TD Chris Andrews initiated legal action against both The Irish Times and its Political Correspondent Harry McGee personally over an article published last month.

A number of Sinn Féin members have taken defamation cases in recent years.

Earlier in the week, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said politicians suing newspapers and journalists is designed to make journalists afraid. 

The Sinn Féin leader told The Journal at the party’s Ard Fheis in Athlone today that individual politicians have the right to pursue complaints against the press in a way that they deem appropriate.

She said: “All of you [reporters] do a very, very important job in a functioning democracy and you will write your copy, broadcast your material and there’ll be the necessary attention and to-ing and fro-ing in all of that.

“There’s never an intention to make this about any individual. This is simply a situation where you have your job to do, we have ours to do, as and when a line is crossed, as when something is said or published that crosses a particular line, people have the right to use the mechanisms available to them to vindicate their name.”

She said this was not an issue unique to Sinn Fein.

McDonald denied that the legal suits filed by party members was an attempt to stranglehold democracy, stating “far from it”. 

Press Ombudsman Susan McKay has said politicians should question whether suing rather than making a complaint through the ombudsman’s office is in the public interest.

“People have the right to use the mechanisms available to them to vindicate their name,” McDonald said this morning.

It was put to her by The Journal that Sinn Féin politicians have not used the Press Council mechanisms in recent years, which is designed to use conciliation to avoid the legal route, to which she replied: “Yeah, well, that’s up to each individual to make their own call.”

When asked if there is an active policy within her party to pursue to the Press Council mechanism before going down the legal route, McDonald said there is no such policy.

The Journal asked if she would support such a policy within her party to encourage politicians in Sinn Féin to use the Press Council mechanism, McDonald said:

“People will be aware when they have a complaint or an issue of all of the options of available to them. People generally take advice on it.”

Generally speaking, McDonald said where issues arise there is an interaction with the publication or the broadcaster in question, stating that in her view, the best and “wise” outcome is where matters can be resolved in that way.

However, she added every individual has the right and the freedom to pursue matters in the way they deem appropriate.

McDonald said she has never considered her party being above scrutiny.

“Scrutiny, critique, analysis, criticism is all part of the cut and thrust of this democratic process and we support and welcome that… I reserve personally the right to defend my reputation… I think you all have that right too,” she said. 

McDonald said that her party is in favour of libel law reform, stating that any foot-dragging to date has been by successive governments.

In a statement issued today, the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) said the case taken against Harry McGee  represents a “sinister development”. 

NUJ Secretary Séamus Dooley said:

“The decision of Deputy Chris Andrews to issue legal proceedings this week against The Irish Times and to our member Harry McGee, personally, is a sinister development.

“I would encourage public figures to use the alternative dispute resolution mechanism of the Press Ombudsman rather than the heavy hand of the libel laws, not least at a time when there is a political consensus that our libel laws are not fit for purpose.

He said that the use SLAPPS (strategic lawsuits against public participation) is “bad for journalism, bad for citizens and poisonous for democracy.”