1798 to be remembered
A Chairde,
I read with interest articles concerning the bi-centenary of 1798
in the Irish Times and the Sunday Tribune which spoke of a
memorial to be erected ``as an apology and a gesture of
reconciliation from the people of Wexford'' for an incident at
Scullabogue the day following the massacre at Ross. I wonder were
the ``Irish diaspora'' requested to donate towards this memorial?
The native Irish people are still waiting for an apology for the
Penal Laws, Cromwell, the holocaust of 150 years ago or Bloody
Sunday 1972.
It would appear from the articles that the Dublin `98 committee
has no plans for the Croppies' Acre or Luke Cullen's grave. No
doubt we will have many French visitors and it will be
interesting to hear their views when they visit the burial ground
of two Officers of the French army, Matthew Tone and Bart.
Teeling, now a soccer pitch for the military in Dublin. Some
serving soldiers erected a small memorial some years ago near the
railings, not at the graves. As of today there is a pair of
football boots on top of the memorial. How appropriate.
There is a rumour that the graves of the United Irishmen at the
Croppies' Acre is to be turned into a car park for the
convenience of visitors. Perhaps one of your readers could
confirm or deny this.
M. Ni Céarnaig (Rúnaí),
National Graves' Association
Change strategy
A Chairde,
In the name of open and comradely discussion I agree with `No
Other Law' (Mála Poist 23 January), a significant re-evaluation
of the peace strategy must be undertaken.
A partnership with conservative Nationalists and their parties
will only produce too-often repeated soundbites. The problem is
that the same interests that led to partition are still in play;
business interests who are unaffected by the inequality and
injustices of the Six Counties They allowed partition to be born,
nursed it and maintained it in its historical illegitimacy. There
is no pressure on them to move forward on this.
By appealing to the leadership of these parties, the Republican
strategy takes a back seat.
The secrecy further empowers the conservative nationalists by
playing their game. The core strength of republicanism is that it
is a movement for and by the people themselves - not any sort of
elite. It is the nationalists of the 26 Counties that must be
courted. The movement should be brought back to the people north
and south.
The strategy allows the fears of persecution and repression of
religious and personal freedom to be fuelled by the looming
spectre of Catholic triumph and retribution.
This fear is contrary to the concept of the republic that is
being fought for. It must be clarified that its nature will be
anti-imperialist and anti-colonial not anti-Protestant. It is not
a desire to strip them of their `Britishness' but to empower all
of its citizens with freedom and equality in a state that is
blind to see green, orange, black or blue, but sees only a person
with inalienable rights.
Prosperity can be one of the greatest unifying forces, provided
it is shared with all. The British and the business class have
extracted enough from Ireland, we have seen how sectarianism has
been utilised to maximise profit only to be spirited away - not
re-invested in these communities.
Are we to reject the prospects for an economic rejuvenation? Is
it not possible to manage foreign investment to be both
beneficial to both community and investor?
Riddle of the sands
English roots
A Chairde,
I am English, a Protestant and middle class and as far as I know,
I have no Irish family connections. But I support Sinn Féin and
call for an orderly British withdrawal from the north east of
Ireland.
Some people, especially my Irish work colleagues, ask in total
astonishment about my Sinn Féin support. When the discussion
becomes a little heated, as it does from time to time, I tell
them that nothing is black and white.
I remind them, if they didn't already know, about those people of
English descent who fought and died for the cause of Irish
freedom. It may come as a surprise to some that the great
Theobald Wolfe Tone's English ancestors did not arrive in Ireland
from Surrey, England until the 17th Century. Another great
person, Robert Emmet's family were English settlers in Ireland,
Erskine Childer, Thomas Ashe, Countess Markievicz, Skeffington,
Mellows and Pearse all had roots in the English Home Counties.
The Home Rule giant, Charles Stewart Parnell's family left my
neck of the woods, Cheshire, in the 17th century, I am proud to
say.
One could even look at the leadership of Irish Republicanism
today. Adams is a well known English name, common in Ireland
since the Cromwell times. Joe Austin owns another well known
English surname. The English ancestors of the courageous Bobby
Sands (RIP) arrived in Ireland during the plantation of Ulster. I
believe the name Sands is rooted in Sussex.
As I say, nothing is black and white. I like to think the
above-mentioned, and myself in a small way, have tried and are
still trying to put right the terrible wrong done to the Irish
throughout the centuries by our shared English ancestry, a blood
line that should not be denied.
We should not all be tarred with the same brush. This struggle is
not about race but justice. As Bobby Sands said, ``Everybody has a
part to play.'' I, for one, will carry on supporting the Irish
struggle for freedom.
James Smith,
Cheshire.
Economic plain speaking
A Chairde,
Having read Sinn Féin's new discussion document `Putting People
First', which sets out a major role for the community in economic
development and after attending the Monaghan conference on the
document, I would like to make the following points:
• While the language in is a bit academic, the document offers a
good analysis and points the way forward for economic development
in marginalised communities.
• We need to spell out in plain language what we mean by terms
such as social economy, extensive workplace participation,
economic democracy etc.
• When the document has been altered and accepted by the party as
part of our economic policy, we should publish a shorter version
in leaflet form for wider distribution.
• We have sound policies on most issues and these are set out in
our policy documents but what we have failed to a large extent to
do is pull the main points out of these and inform the public
about them. We tend to internalise our policy documents.
Finally, while Sinn Féin cumainn and activists need to be
invovled in economic development in their communities, we must
continue to protest and demand social justice for our
marginalised urban and rural communities.
Brian Stanley,
Portlaoise.
Design for Féile
A Chairde,
Féile an Phobail is celebrating our 10th anniversary this year.
We are looking for artists and young people to design this year's
Féile programme cover and T-shirts. The winning design will
feature on 45,000 programme covers and 5,000 T-shirts. A first
prize of £150 and a free pass to all Féile events will be
presented to the winning designer. Closing date is 28 February
1997. This competition is open to everyone.
We are recommending that the applicants keep the design simple
and that it should reflect the 10th anniversary. All artwork will
be returned to applicants.
We look forward to receiving your entries.
Caitriona Ruane,
Director.
Peadar O'Donnell biography
A Chairde,
Mercier Press has commissioned my co-writer, Anton McCabe, and me
to write the first biography of Peadar O'Donnell (1893-1986). We
would be anxious to hear from anyone who knew, met or
corresponded with O'Donnell during his long and eventful life.
My contact address is 60A Waterloo Road, Dublin 4 (01 667 4158).
Peter Hegarty
The missing bus
A Chairde,
Can I bring to your attention another callous act of barbarism by
the jack-booted RUC thugs that maraud our land with apparent
impunity?
The IRA called off its ceasefire over a year ago, yet we have
still not heard one word from the RUC or their bloodthirsty
cohorts in the British Army about the ``busload of primary school
children'' in County Fermanagh.
For more than 25 years this bus has roamed the backroads of
Fermanagh like the Marie Celeste, turning up just seconds after
each IRA attack on the British. From the UTV News to The Irish
Independent we heard the RUC explain - at times almost ruefully -
that if the bomb had exploded a bit earlier, or a bit later, the
bus and the toddlers would have been smithereens.
Now, despite the fact that the war is back on, there's no sign of
the tiny tots.
What terrible fate has been visited upon them? Are they being
kept in a holding cell in Castlereagh Torture Centre? Is the bus
jammed into a narrow laneway where it can't turn, the only way
out blocked by those squat little security bollards that the
British seem to love?
My darkest fear is that the British have decided that the little
ones are now surplus to requirements, and have simply `killed
them off'. Or worse, the bus driver has been ordered to drive
round and round that ugly roundabout outside Larne, knowing that
the IRA's North Antrim Brigade doesn't consider the structure's
red-white-and-blue trimming to be a prestige target.
This disgraceful lapse in RUC propaganda must be opposed.
Reinstate the `busload' now!
Marshal Law