A Century of Peace Building
The core theme for this year’s St Patrick’s video is Ireland’s commitment to peacebuilding from the very inception of our State
Ireland's commitment
The core theme for this year’s St Patrick’s video is Ireland’s commitment to peacebuilding from the very inception of our State, through active multilateralism and unswerving adherence to democratic values.
Starting with the League of Nations, which we joined just weeks after gaining our independence, the video traces our work in peace-making and peacekeeping through our membership of the United Nations.
It picks our key moments of our 20th century history; in 1973 joining the then EEC, itself established to prevent future wars in Europe; in 1974 the beginnings of Irish Aid, providing development assistance and in troubled parts of the world; and the Good Friday Agreement that brought peace to our island after 30 years of violence.
'Oh Danny Boy'
A contemplative, acapella rendering ‘Oh Danny Boy’ accompanies the visuals and on-screen script from beginning to end.
Interwoven into the story of peacebuilding is a theme of human solidarity and connection. At the beginning of the video, we see a young woman intently watching a theatre film-reel of episodes in our history.
The melody and intensity of the song, Oh Danny Boy, rise and fall in tandem with the story of peace. We see images of Ukraine. As we come to the end, we discover that the singer is in fact the young African-Irish woman we saw at the beginning, Tolü Makay, who brings an original and moving interpretation to one of our most iconic songs, signifying the power of cultural creativity to erase difference and connect us to each other.