Galway Advertiser 1992/1992_09_03/GA_03091992_E1_012.pdf 

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MAIRE GEOGHEGAN QUINN -- T H E BEST PERSON FOR THE JOB
HERE are many reasons for advocating Maire Geoghegan Quinn for the important post of EC Commissioner that will soon fall vacant, but perhaps the simplest is that she is a person of outstanding abilities who would bring a sharp intelligence to the job. No one who knows Mrs. Geoghegan Quinn can be in any doubt as to her competence | and suitability for such an important position. Not only is she a serving T.D. with almost twenty-five years experience, she has the distinction of being the first woman deputy to have reached the status of Cabinet Minister since the foundation of the State. In her years in the Dail she has held a variety of posts, including frontbench spokesperson on Woman's Affairs, Minister of State at the Department of Education, Minister for the Gaeltacht, and Minister of State | at the Department of Commerce and Energy. But what perhaps stands most to her credit for this particular job is her wide experience of Europe. As a former Minister for European Affairs, she won the respect of her colleagues both here and in the EC during her fre quent stints deputising for the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister for Finance at EC meetings. She made a personal contact with Prime Minister John Major when he was British Chancellor of the Exchequer. And her per formance, mastery of detail, and confidence made a strong impression at the European Parliament. There is another reason for wishing to see Mrs. Geoghegan Quinn as the next Irish Commissioner and this is that she is from Galway. In the current jargon of Europe, Ireland is one of the "peripheral" regions, and Galway itself is, so to speak, on the "periphery" of the "periphery". The recent Treaty ratification campaign revealed the depth of concern that exists in Galway with regard to our distance, both physical and bureaucratic, from the decision making centres of the European Community. By giving the post of EC Com missioner to Mrs. Geoghegan Quinn, the Taoiseach would be signaling to the West that he recognises these concerns. And we could expect that Mrs. Geoghegan Quinn would bring to whatever portfolio she would be given by the EC Commission President her appreciation of all these things. We intend no disparagement to the other people in the running for the job when we say that, in our view, the most suitable person to replace Mr. MacSherry is undoubtedly Maire Geoghegan Quinn.

HARE-COURSING DEBATE A Grateful John Scully
Sir, A s t h e hunting and shooting season shortly commences and my time will be otherwise taken up I would like to thank the Galway Advertiser for its fair coverage of the " H a r e Coursing" debate. I feel grateful for having been showed to enlighten people on the vital role field sports play in our tourist in dustry and the necessity of preserving hare coursing both for h e r i t a g e nad greyhound industry pur poses. Many people have written to thank me and as it has not been possible to reply individually perhaps you will all accept my general gratefulness. Prevention of Cruelty to Animals). Marion, it mat ters not in the least to me whether you are English or indeed a martian but neither would change the fact that hare coursing was in Ireland before 'The English Army'. Secondly to A. Herbert (Animal Rights Organisa tion). I don't think that the thousands of Irish as you put it " a s guests in the land of Na Sassanach" need feel embarrassed or under obligation to try and get work in a country whose ancestors came to our island uninvited, had to be forced to leave and during their stay, terrorised, plundered and pilaged. Does Britain not owe us something for past actions as well as the Sadly in view of some many other countries it personal attacks made upon invaded? my character by four ladies Thirdly to Fiona Mohr in last weeks column I feel (Ami Hare Coursing Lob I need to reply to their com byist). If you need to see ug ments to do myself justice. ly bigotry Fiona just look in Firstly to M r s . Webb, your mirror as your com (Galway Society for the ments about me and Mr. Domhnaill are certainly un founded and unworthy of a reply. Fourthly to Ciara Flynn, (Irish Council Against Blood Sports). Mahatna Gandhi was a Hindu. Cows to the Hindus are more sacred than humans. If this is "their way to greatness" then Ireland has a lot to thank Larry Goodman for. Hare Cours ing, incidendy, Ciara is very popular in Pakistan. Finally, some readers may have heard an interview between 5 p . m . - 6 p.m. on RTE Radio One on Thurs day 20th in which a lady (English I am informed) spoke of her organisation which intends to abolish angling in Ireland for cruel ty reasons. Perhaps so meone out there who is not a prejudiced, ugly, bigoted, narrow minded nationalist might like to drop a line. Tally-Ho and Good Hunting John Scully, Claddagh, Galway. BACK T O SCHOOL SPECIAL L E A N E S T M I N C E 89p per only at
LETTER BOX

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CHURCH AND STATE
The operation of t h e poor law system since t h e e s t a b l i s h m e n t of union workhouses before the great famine was under the control of Poor Law Commissioners. Under them, at local level, were Boards of Guardians. The Commissioners took a lively interest in the operations of each poor law union. It supervised all aspects of administration and employed a number of inspectors to assist in this work. Perhaps one of the most sensitive areas in which they were involved was that of the appointment of chaplains to the workhouses. There were difficulties in many workhouses in Ireland in this matter and Galway was no exception. Throughout 1859 there was a direct confrontation between the commissioners and the Bishop of Galway Dr. MacEvilly, relating to Father Peter Daly's position as workhouse chaplain. In fact at the beginning of the year Father Daly had been dismissed by the commissioners. The commissioners offered the chaplaincy to each Catholic priest in the parish in which the workhouse stood but each, in turn, refused it. They would not take it as it was an office held by their parish priests. The bishop refused to intervene. He wrote: "The very Rev. Mr. Daly is pastor, enjoying ordinary faculties within the parish. The appointment of any other to exercise jurisdiction in his stead in the workhouse would be virtually superseding him in ministering to the most cherished portion of the flock confided to his care. Such a course, everyone must see, would, without some justifying cause, be an invasion of his pastoral right and an interference with his most sacred duties." The bishop was adamant that no cause had been shown against Father Daly and that he was not going to let a state body dictate to him regarding the deployment of the clergy of the dioscese of Galway. The action of the Poor Law Commissioners brought a strong reaction from Dr. MacEvily just as General Maxwell's letter about priests in Limerick did from bishop O'Dwyer in 1916. In a letter written in this week in 1859 Dr. MacEvilly accused the commissioners of lack of knowledge of Catholic church discipline, doctrine and laws. He was still defending Father Daly though that priest was to later be a thorn in his side. Thomas P. O'Neill

BETTER
Sir, I endorse the view of last week's writer who stated that too much of this col umn's valuable space is given to irrevelant issues like dogs chasing hares and foxes. At present thousands of our fellow human beings are dying of starvation in Bosnia/Croatia and Somalia, yet, to date, this column has seen fit to ignore these crisis. Are the sports of dogs, foxes, and hares more important to us? I would hazard a guess that about 98 % of people in this coun try care little or not about their sports and it is unfair on us to keep printing this constant tirade of letters for and against hare coursing. I respect the right of the hunting, shooting and fishing communities to carry on as they have done and also the right of anybody to oppose this within reason, hit I request that the rights of the 9 8 % of us who are completely disinterested in the above are given some consideration. A letter last week express ed hope that we are not to go down the same road as the British media who give animal rights issues more paper space than human in justices and I whole heartedly agree with this. Please Mr. Editor, lets get back to using this column

THINGS
for letters which might help to improve things for our fellow man. Yours Faithfully Karen Kinneavey, Galway.

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SHATTERED YUGOSLAVIA - T H E FAILURE O F NEUTRALITY

SEAN LOUGHNANE'S 58 Dominica: Street and Forster Court. Tel. 64437

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B S HOLIDAY O M LIFE ET F Y
Dear Editor, I am after having the Best Holiday of my life! Where, you may ask, well right here in Galway would be my rep ly. Where did you stay might be another question, well, and please don't laugh, in THE WARWICK, would be my reply. Without telling me I know what T h e W a r w i c k is famous for, but if you have never stayed there you may never know it for it's finer qualities. It has, without a doubt, two of the nicest young girls working in t h e Dining Room, each with s m i l i n g faces, a l w a y s laughing and in fine fettle. They had a hard weekend (3-6) looking after us ould ladies about 2 weeks ago but I can safetly say that if I had gone to America or Spain or even France I would not have enjoyed myself as much. Getting up at 8 o'clock each morning was a p l e a s u r e as y o u w e r e assured of a laugh to start the day off right. When I asked them, they said they had only been working there a couple of months, but to see the way these girls get on with each other, with staff outside the Dining R o o m , and with their customers, they seen to have been part of the Warwick family for years. Their youth, good looks and true friendly faces brings this Hotel to life, 1 am sure their employers are proud of them, and have made them honourary members without any questions asked, all you have to do now is keep them and realise what an asset they are to your business. The girls seemed sad that they could not bring us out for a drink but I explained that we did not drink but we would join them some night for a Coke, sadly there was no time, but we may be around Race Week. With sincere thanks to Clare and Irene. Yours Faithfully The ladies from Co. Westmeath.

HE arrival on Wednesday morning of two hundred refugees from war torn Bosnia brings what is happening in what was once Yugoslavia to our doorsteps. And what is happening in that unhappy country is as we have repeatedly said, intolerable and unacceptable on any terms Earlier this week the newly appointed human rights investigator, former Polish prime minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki, who was dispatched by the UN Human Rights Commission, made a strong call for the abandonment of the traditional policy of neutrality on the part of UN troops now stationed in the different regions of the country. Evidence has accumulated showing that grave violations of human rights, including the execution of prisoners and the torture of priests and nuns, are taking place with frightening regularity. Mr. Mazowiecki is not calling for military intervention. He is simply argu ing that it is absurd for UN troops to stand by, helplessly, as Serbian irregulars carry out what he described as crimes against humanity. He has urged that UN forces be mandated to prevent these things taking place, using force if necessary to stop atrocities. He has also recommended that the UN Protec tkm Force, which at present consists of only 1500 soliders and officials, be expanded to cover all of Bosnia, and that staff should be asked to collect in formation and hear complaints on human rights abuses. Finally, he has demanded that the International Committee of the Red Cross should have ac cess to all detention camps and refugee centres and not simply those the Serbs open as "showcases". It is becoming all too clear that Serbia has adopted a frankly contemptuous attitude to the long-winded deliberations currently being conducted in London. The reluctant Secretary General, Mr. Boutros Ghali. must be urged to act on the recommendations of the UN Human Rights investigator before yet more atrocities are committed on the suffering people of Bosnia and Croatia, and Ireland, as host to some of these desperate refugees, ought to have no hesitation in lending its voice to these ufgings.