Ronan Costello
Editor
Tomorrow’s Sunday papers are expected to publish a letter written by Presidential hopeful David Norris pleading for clemency on behalf of his ex-partner Ezra Tizhak Nawi, who faced charges of having underage sex with an underage Palestinian teen in 1992. It is alleged that Senator Norris wrote the letter on headed Seanad paper.
The Trinity Senator who was hoping to secure a nomination in the Presidential race has seen his campaign team fall apart in light of these allegations. Director of Communications Jane Cregan and Director of Elections Derek Murphy have resigned from the campaign. Former Trinity students, Orlaith Foley and Declan Harmon, have also distanced themselves from the campaign. Foley was a youth organiser for the campaign and is a former Welfare Officer of TCDSU. Foley tweeted the following this morning: “As of this morning,I have resigned from the Norris for President campaign team and no longer hold the role of Youth Coordinator.”
The news of this letter broke in the mainstream media this morning when Trinity Professor Elaine Byrne went on The Saturday View and said that she expected The Irish Mail on Sunday to publish details about the letter tomorrow. The newspaper said that it would not comment on what it would or would not be publishing and dismissed Professor Byrne’s claims as untrue.
RTÉ reports that Senators Marie-Louise O’Donnell and John Crown, who have both backed Norris, have called on the senator to explain how the Israeli case relates to his campaign.
It has been reported that campaign staff felt misled by Senator Norris who had briefed them on Mr Nawi’s conviction but had failed to inform them of the letter he sent Mr Nawi’s behalf. It is also reported that Senator Norris may have alluded to his position as a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the letter.
The University Times has learned that staff were becoming increasingly agitated by Senator Norris’s inability to be managed or to take advice from his team of professional operatives. At the time of publication, it was understood that no official communication would be coming from the Norris campaign in relation to these claims.
