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The Scoping Inquiry examined clerical sex abuse in schools Sir — I have been a lifelong practising member of the Catholic church and now, in my twilight years, I find that I’m just about “hanging in there”. This is predominantly due to my faith being pummelled by the litany of incidents of sexual abuse and exploitation conducted and facilitated within the church in Ireland. The publication in recent days of the State’s Scoping Inquiry report on abuse in schools is another crater along this dark road.
In April 2021, I was dismayed at the publication of Flourish , a sex education programme for Catholic primary schools, by the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference. This was a clear indication of how utterly heedless it and the church hierarchy in general are in terms of sexual probity and justice. They have long since robbed themselves of any standing as exemplars in these matters.
The Bishops’ Conference now has an important task to accomplish. It must restore the church’s credibility so those who have been left “clinging on” may have some kind of assurance in their faith during their final years. But most importantly, it is a moral imperative for those who were abused to get restorative justice without the need for legislation and taxpayer funds.
So be it if “for sale” signs have to be staked at the gates of the church’s cathedrals. Michael Gannon, Saint Thomas Square, Kilkenny Sir — A close friend of mine, Padraig, went to primary school in Listowel. The master was Bryan MacMahon, dramatist and playwright.
The circus came to town and Bryan invited it to the school. Padraig has vivid memories of a baby elephant walking in to the classroom. Happy days.
But that was not the experience of school for many of us. For the majority in the 1950s and 1960s, our school days were brutal. I think they failed as teachers when they had to get heavy-handed with us.
John Hume, teacher and politician, stated that the first teacher in a child’s life was the most important one. Today it is good to see the media shine a light on those dark days. Although we were known as the island of saints and scholars, it co-existed with a lot of brutality.
The physical scars have healed, but we take the mental ones to the grave. I will let Bryan MacMahon have the final word: “A teacher leaves the track of his teeth on a parish for three generations.’’ Ted Cadogan, Skibbereen, Co Cork Sir — On the same day the staggering expenditure of €336,000 of public funds on a bike shelter at Leinster House made headlines, the Government announced its €1m Climate Actions Work Fund.
This is no coincidence; rather, it is government greenwashing ahead of a general election, both to appear climate-conscious and distract from the current saga. While encouraging communities to discuss climate change is a good start, it falls far short of the bold action needed to combat the climate crisis effectively. The fund, which ranges from €2,500 to €10,000 per project, is not designed for actual climate action or mitigation measures.
Instead, it focuses on communication and engagement. One must ask: What does the Government aim to achieve through this paltry fund, which is nothing more than a strategic PR stunt? It should consider spending its budget surplus on a once-in-a-lifetime green energy investment. We need to take the issue of offshore wind development on the west coast seriously and commit substantial resources to that end.
The irony is stark. The Government, through this fund, again places the burden of change on the shoulders of individuals and small communities while it stands still, overspending on meaningless projects, promising much but delivering little. Luke J Gibbons, Claremorris, Co Mayo Sir — Your Ireland Thinks poll questions on health last week clearly showed that the largest disparity between “satisfied” and “unsatisfied” is in the mental health service.
Mental health in Ireland still has something of a stigma and is treated accordingly. We have a lack of inpatient beds due to the deinstitutionalisation of the 1980s, and the current Health Minister, Stephen Donnelly, has been focusing too much on physical health issues and not on mental health issues since he took office. Shame on him.
Liam Doran, Clondalkin, Dublin 22 Sir — Not for the first time, an editorial expresses exasperation at the Government’s lethargy on the housing crisis. (‘Only an ambitious, urgent plan can fix housing crisis’, September 1). But it was difficult to know whether to laugh or cry on reading that Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien has written to local authorities, instructing them to carry out an audit to identify available land suitable for housing.
This is most probably just more empty words in an attempt to deflect responsibility for the ongoing failure of government policy. To suggest, as this latest action does, that the cause of the crisis is a lack of suitable sites is just not believable; even less so when one considers Mr O’Brien has already received just such an audit from the Land Development Agency, “Report on Relevant Public Land”. This identified many large parcels of land across the country doing nothing but growing grass.
In my immediate area, that report identified four substantial sites. Not a single blade of grass on any of these has been discommoded since. The minister needs to stop trying to play the victim in all of this, as he and other members of the Government played a significant part in creating the mess in the first place through changes they made to overall housing policy.
We would all be better served if he focused a bit more on getting his words and his actions to align. Jim O’Sullivan, Rathedmond, Sligo Sir — In relation to Eilis O’Hanlon being bored out of her mind by the Rose of Tralee coverage, I would like to say, as a parent of one of the participants, what an enjoyable experience the festival was. Like many people, my understanding of the Rose of Tralee was what I viewed on RTÉ.
I had no idea it was a five-day festival of entertainment. My wife and I arrived in Tralee on the Thursday night, and from then until our return home the following Wednesday night we had our days full between attending official Rose functions and enjoying the many public events with street entertainers, live open-air tribute bands, fireworks displays and street art. We were joined on the Sunday by a group of about 35 friends and family, and they were blown away by the atmosphere and the friendliness of the people of Tralee, who really make this a festival to remember.
As for the Rose event itself, I must pay tribute to the organisers who leave no stone unturned and are so helpful to all involved. My advice to Eilis O’Hanlon is to book in to Tralee for a few nights next year and savour the atmosphere of the festival in its entirety. Parent of the Leitrim Rose Sir — I worked for the NHS in the UK and had a permanent position as a radiographer for 10 years.
I have returned to Ireland and there are no permanent positions. I read every day about young people emigrating. Perhaps they cannot get a permanent job or get a mortgage and so cannot get on the property ladder.
I do not wish to leave again, but I might have to. I would like to bring this to the attention of Enterprise, Trade and Employment minister Peter Burke. It is sad that there are no positions for me in my own country.
Name and address with editor Sir — I refer to Wayne O’Connor’s interview with 13-year-old autism advocate Cara Darmody. Cara is a remarkable young person who advocates not only for her voiceless brothers, but for others who find themselves in similar situations. One of her brothers made progress after some early intervention.
For the other, it was too little too late. Time wasted that can never be recovered. Autism is both a disability and a difference.
There is a need to find ways of alleviating the disability while respecting and valuing the difference. The severity of the condition is what is at issue — whether an individual can achieve their life goals or whether they are experiencing distress as a result of their autism. Cara and her family are clearly experiencing distress, trying to cope with a lack of support and services to which they should be entitled.
No 13-year-old child, even one as caring and accomplished as Cara, should be put in the position of having to advocate for services that should be her family’s right. Her voice needs to be heard louder and clearer than the high-achieving neurodiversity activists whose differences do not need the same level of supports. Twenty years after Kathy Sinnott and the Epsen and Disability Acts, the lack of services is shameful.
Anne Lawlor, Tramore, Co Waterford Sir — What a very special experience recounted so eloquently by Eugene O’Brien last Sunday. The story resonated with my own experience, except my story predates his by almost a generation. Also, although I enjoyed a good and happy relationship with my late father, I’m afraid that conversations hadn’t yet matured to a level where one could talk about the birds and the bees with your parents.
The age of enlightenment had not yet arrived, and it was simply still a taboo subject for my generation. Like many other social issues, we were only liberated by people like the late Nell McCafferty and Edna O’Brien, who tore down such barriers. Pat Maher, via email Sir — Liam Collins writes about the menace of a minority of dog owners who, after cleaning up after their dogs, promptly fling the package of poo into the nearest hedgerow.
Here these multi-coloured pouches bop around like baubles on a Christmas tree. Unless there is a strong possibility of being caught and fined, this disgusting activity will continue. The sign that warns of a €150 fine is about as effective as the warning that there’s a €50 fine for putting one’s feet on a seat on the Dart.
Regulations abound, but to borrow a phrase from Sean O’Casey’s Betty Burgess, the enforcement is “null and void”. Jim O’Connell, Ashtown, Dublin 7 Sir — Liam Collins discussed the awful practice of throwing poo bags into the nearest bush. I am reminded of meeting a man walking his dog with a supply of bags sticking out of his trouser pocket.
When I complimented him on his sense of public duty, he responded: “Thank you. What a lovely park we had here before the council went and cleared back all the bushes.” Tom Gilsenan, Beaumont, Dublin 9 Sir — Declan Lynch’s diatribe about Trump and Kennedy last week may be of use for maintaining his welcome in the salons of Dublin 4, but it didn’t enlighten the reader about the policy positions of either man.
Mr Lynch is, of course, entitled to his view that the Trump-Kennedy movement is a Bad Thing, but surely it’s not too much to expect some account of what they’re saying and why their message has traction for so many voters. Some discussion of Kennedy’s speech where he aligns himself with the Trump campaign might have been helpful. Stephen Richards, Broughshane, Co Antrim Sir — Ken Foxe reported last week that members of the public in the south-east were furious over a proposed plan to end direct rail services between Wexford and Dublin.
The National Transport Authority (NTA) is suggesting that passengers travelling from Wexford could switch to the Dart at Wicklow, in order to increase services on the line. Contrast that situation with what is happening in the west and north-west of Ireland. There is no rail line operating between Sligo (the nominated growth centre for the northwest in the National Planning Framework) and Galway (the capital of Connacht).
The reopening of the railway from Sligo to Galway would be relatively humble in terms of cost, but would be hugely important in future-proofing economic growth in the west. A full reopening of the Western Rail Corridor (WRC) will allow a rail connection to Knock Airport, which would support the development of a strategic development zone around the airport. A similar zone at Shannon employs in the region of 10,000 people.
What a major boost this would be for the “lagging” west and north-west regions. So, while people on the eastern seaboard are furious about increasing services in their neck of the woods, the people on the Atlantic coast are also mad as hell at the lack of major transport infrastructure. It would also support the national economy as a whole.
So why not do it? Tom Towey, Cloonacool, Co Sligo Sir — My son recently texted to say I might bump into my granddaughter on Grafton Street as she was coming up to Dublin with her friends to do a bit of shopping. They’re all 16 years of age. I recalled the first time my mother allowed me to go into town alone to buy a dress.
I was all of 10, and not a care in the world. That was 65 years ago, and Grafton Street was a wonderland: “There’s diamonds in the lady’s eyes and gold dust in her hair — and if you don’t believe me, come and meet me there, in Dublin on a sunny summer’s morning.” My immediate reaction to my son’s text was to pray for my granddaughter and her friends that they would all be safe.
How times have changed. Terry Healy Riordan, Kill, Co Kildare Sir — If the Government really wants to show solidarity with Ukraine, a strong way to do so is to dismiss all Russian diplomats from Ireland. Then the world will know Ireland is with Ukraine against the evil aggression of Putin.
Úna Heaton, Limerick Sir — Let’s get the ball rolling here: Aslan for Croke Park. The best have played there — footballers and bands alike, from Frank Sinatra to Ed Sheeran and even Neil Diamond. Coldplay rocked Croke Park as the Oasis tickets went on sale, but after seeing Chris Martin call Aslan on to stage to perform Crazy World, I think it’s time for Aslan to top the bill.
Alan Carroll, via email Join the Irish Independent WhatsApp channel Stay up to date with all the latest news.
