Irish Jews speak up for Palestinians

(An edited version of this was published in An tUltach, March 2015)

Tá Giúdaigh in Éirinn ag seasamh amach in éadán na leatroma ar Phailistínígh. Labhair mé le beirt Gaeilgeoir ina measc i gcaifé i lár Bhéil Feirste – Sue Pentel agus iníon s’aici, Aisling Nic Eoin, atá ar bhunaitheoirí Jewish Voice for a Just Peace.

Bhí an bheirt ar a mbealach chuig cruinniú den Palestine Solidarity Campaign. Rinneamar ár mbealach trí babhla ológa

Mhínigh Sue go bhfuil clár simplí ag an eagraíocht, gur “Giúdaigh in Éirinn sinn a sheasann leis an phobal Pailistíneach, atá ag iarraidh tacaíocht a thabhairt do choimhlint na bPailistíneach ar son cearta daonna, agus nach n-aontaíonn le polásaí an rialtais in Iosrael. Mothaimid gur gá dúinn seasamh a ghlacadh, agus gan glacadh leis an leatrom atá déanta ar na Pailistínígh le tamall fada. Caithfidh mé a rá gur thug na h-eachtraí, agus na h-eachtraí tragóideacha, a tharla thar an samhradh, gur thug siad cic dom. Spreag siad muid le rud éigean a dhéanamh, agus gan bheith ag labhairt faoi.”

Diúltaíonn Sue agus Aisling don bharúil go labhrann Benjamin Netanyahu ar son an phobail Giúdaigh. “Ar an chéad dul síos, tá formhór na nGiúdach ina gcónaí taobh amuigh d’Iosrael,” arsa Sue. Diúltaíonn sí don Síónachas. “Ní thiocfadh liom glacadh leis, mar Giúdach, mar Giúdach ó chúlra cráifeach, leis na rudaí atá Netanyahu ag déanamh. Ní thiocfadh liom bheith den bharúil go dtig liomsa bheith saor má leagaim mo chos ar an phobal Pailistíneach, go bhfuil cead agam na Pailistínígh a chur amach as talamh s’acusan, as tithe s’acusan.”

Tá Aisling chomh tréan céanna. “Mar Giúdach, mothaím go bhfuil dualgas orm seasamh suas don daonlathas agus do chearta daonna – agus chomh maith, as an traidisiún eile inar tógadh mé, sa phobal Gaeilge,” ar sise. “Mothaím gur dualgas atá ann mar go bhfuil na rudaí seo ag tarlú i m’ainm, in anim mo mháthar, in ainm mo chlainne.”

Togadh Sue féin i bpobal Giúdach i Londain. “Nuair a bhí mise óg, d’fhoghlaim mé faoin Uileloscadh,” ar sise. “Caithfidh mé a rá, ag pointe áirithe, go raibh mé ró-dhírithe ar sin.” Thug sí léi ceacht faoi cearta daonna as sin.

“Níor ghlac mé leis ó bhí mé óg gur ghlac duine ar bith na Giúdaigh thar daoine ar bith eile,” ar sise. “Níl mé compórdach le sin. Tá frith-Giúdachas ann, tá ciníochas ann, so feicim mar a dúirt Aisling go bhfuil dualgas orainn seasamh in éadán gach rud a bhaineann dínít agus cearta daonna ó duine ar bith. Is cuma cén dath atá orthu, nó cá h-as a dtagann siad.”

Feiceann sí cosúlachtaí le h-Éirinn, sa dóigh gur scuabadh sean-logainmneacha Pailistíneacha chun siúil in Iosrael. “Mar duine atá anseo le níos mó ná 30 bliain, agus go bhfuil suim agam sa chultúr Gaelach, feicim gur tharla an rud céanna anseo nuair a ghlac na Sasanaigh – cé gur Sasanach mé – seilbh ar an tír seo, agus go ndearna siad suirbhé ar na h-ainmneacha Gaeilge, rinne siad ath-baisteadh orthu,” ar sise.

Mar Giúdach “is féidir liom bheith i mo shaoránach d’Iosrael, is féidir liom cónaí ann, cionn is gur Giúdach mé, ach más Pailistíneach mé, ní féidir liom, agus más Pailistíneach thú, is féidir liom tú a chur amach as do theach.”

Tá olc uirthi go bhfuil rialtas Iosraeil ag glacadh seilbhe ar níos mó talún. Dar leis an rialtas gur ar son sábháilteachta an phobail Giúdaigh. “A mhalairt atá ann,” ar sise. “Sin an áit is lú sábháilteachta do Ghiúdaigh.”

Tá bród uirthi as na daoine a tháinig amach as an Uileloscadh, agus a thugann tacaíocht do na Pailistínígh, mar go dtuigeann siad nach bhfuil an locht ar an phobal Pailistíneach as an Uileloscadh.

Tá geiteonna sa dúchas ag Sue, nó tháinig a sinsear ó geiteo in oirthear na hEorpa. Anois, in ainm s’acu, tá Gaza ar an gheiteo is mó ar domhain.

Tá Sue níos gníomhaí ar cheist na bPailistíneach le tamall. “Nuair a tháinig mé anseo i dtús báire, bhí mé gníomhach ar son cearta daoinna in Éirinn,” ar sise.  “I ndiaidh tamaill, chonacthas dom go raibh obair le déanamh anseo, agus shocraigh mé bheith I mo bhall den Irish Palestine Solidarity Campaign. Bhí mé ag éirí grúpa Giúdach a bhunú, ach níl an pobal Giúdach in Éirinn iontach mór.” Bhuail sí le Jo Bird as Doire, agus bhunaigh siad an grúpa.

Tá Aisling chomh tógtha céanna faoin leatrom. Is cuimhin léise bheith ag foghlaim faoin Dara Cogadh Mor agus an t-Uileloscadh ar scoil. “Bhí sin iomlán difriúil ó na ranganna eile,” arsa Aisling. “Cionn is go raibh an ceangal sin ann. Is cuimhin liom nuair a bhí mé ag amharc ar Al Jazeera agus na rudaí ar fad a bhí ag tarlú i rith an t-samhraidh, agus bhí na mothúcháin céanna ann.”  Níos measa aici “tá sé ag tarlú in ár n-ainm.”

Agus sin téama a théann fríd an comhrá. Tá daoine muinteartha le Sue in Iosrael. Ainneoin gan iad bheith ar aon intinn faoin Phailistín, réitíonn siad lena gcéile - ach níl sí chun cuairt a chur orthu. “Ní raibh mé riamh in Iosrael, agus ní bheidh,” ar sise. “Rachaidh mé go Pailistín.”

Tá imní uirthi faoin phobal Giúdach, nó feiceann sí an saghas bunúsachas atá ag teacht chun cinn sa phobal Ioslamach sa phobal Giúdach chomh maith, ina measc cuid dá lucht aitheantais i Londain. Clúdaíonn mná a gcinn, caitheann siad éadaí traidisiúnta. Níl cead ag bean dul amach gan a ceann bheith clúdaithe. Caithfidh lámha agus cosa bheith clúdaithe. Tá fir agus na mná scartha. In éineacht le sin, creideann siad gur thug Dia Iosrael dóibh. “Ní creidim i nDia,” arsa Sue, agus í ag gáire.

B’aistear a thug chun na Gaeilge í. “Tá mé iontach bródúil as mo chúlra, as bheith i mo Ghiúdach,” ar sise. Ghlac glúin a tuismitheoirí i Londain leis gur ceart “a gcinn a chur síos agus obair go crua. Ní raibh mise iontach compórdach le sin, bhí mé ag iarraidh na scéalta. Spreag sin mo shuim san Uileloisceadh.” Bhí suim aici, chomh maith, i stair an teaghlaigh.

Agus í ina déagóir, chuaigh sí ar ranganna Eabhraise – go dtí lá mar a raibh mórshiúil in éadán cogaidh Vítnam ar an lá céanna “agus chuaigh mé ar an mhórshiúil.” Chuaigh sí leis an pholaitíocht réabhlóideach, gur léigh Marx. Chuaigh sí go hOllscoil Kent, mar a raibh pobal mór ón dTuaisceart - agus grúpa tréan sóisialach ann. “Bhuail mé le fear, agus sin é,” ar sise. “Tháinig mé anseo i mile naoi gcéad seachtó’s a sé. Bhí clann s’aige iontach foscailte dom.”

Bhí cónaí orthu in Iarthar Bhéil Feirste, rugadh páistí, agus bhí scolaíocht le tabhairt dóibh – agus gur scoileanna Caitliceacha uilig a bhí sa cheantar. “D’amharc muid ar an ghluaiseacht idircreidmheach, agus ní raibh muid iontach sásta le sin. Mhothaigh muid go raibh na Caitlicigh ar thaobh amháin, ná Protastúnaigh ar thaobh eile – cá mbeadh na Giúdaigh, na Giúdaigh aindiagacha? Agus mhothaigh muid go mbeimis ag tabhairt na páistí amach as pobal s’againne.” B’shin nó bhí dúil aici bheith ina cónaí lámh le tuismitheoirí a fir céile.

Chláraigh siad an céad páiste le Bunscoil, chuaigh Sue ag obair ann go lán-aimseartha “agus bhí orm Gaeilge a fhoghlaim, sin tús agus deireadh an scéil.” Tá sí anois ag obair go lánaimseartha san earnáil, agus an Ghaeilge mar chuid dá dúchas.

Janet Muller - continuing the campaign for an Irish Language Act

(An edited version of this piece was published in 'An tUltach', March 2015

Tá áthas ar Janet Muller, príomh-fheidhmeannach Phobail, leis an dóigh go bhfuil ag éirí leo agus iad ag ag stocaireacht ar son Achta Gaeilge. Mar chuid den fheachtas atá acu, bhí saincruinniú i gColáiste Mhuire, Béal Feirste, ag tús na míosa.

Mar chuid den saincruinniú sin, bhí beirt de na saineolaithe ab fhearr ar domhain. B’iad an tOllamh Colin Williams ón mBreatain Bheag, agus an tOllamh Robert Dunbar as Albain. Tá Williams eolach ach go háirithe ar chúrsaí sa Bhreatain Bheag, san Fhionlainn agus i gCeanada. Maidir le Dunbar, tá sé ar na príomh-shaineolaithe dlí sa domhan agus i gcothabháil agus athneartú teangacha mionlaigh. Mar Albanach, tá ar ndóigh an-cur amach aige ar chúrsaí Gàidhlig in Albain – is saineolaí é ag Comhairle na hEorpa.

Dar le Janet go bhfuil táithí idirnáisiúnta riachtanach. “Tá sé i gcónaí iontach tábhachtach an comhairle is tábhachtaí a fháil,” ar sise. Tá sé mar bhua ag an bheirt go bhfuil eolas acu faoi na deacrachtaí a bhíonn ann ó thaobh reachtaíochta. “Bíonn na constachtaí seo faoi chaibidil,” ar sise.

Is gné iontach tábhachtach den cheist sin. “Feiceann siad na rudaí nach n-oibríonn,” ar sise. Baineann cleachtadh idirnáisiúnta s’acu ach go háirithe le míreanna reachtaíochta nach bhfuil cruinn. “Tá sé riachtanach na ceachtanna sin a chur ó thaobh na h-áite mar a bhfuilimid ó thaobh na Gaeilge,” ar sise. “Sílim nár choir do phobal na Gaeilge ná don Roinn Cultúir, Ealaíon agus Fóillíochta bheith ag athcruthú an rotha, agus amharc ar chleachtanna oibre a rinneadh i dtíortha eile.”

Ní ar dhornán tíortha atá Janet agus Pobal ag amharc, ach ar achan tír mar a bhfuil reachtaíocht teangan.

Ní féidir cleachtadh tíre eile a iomportáil chun an Tuaiscirt, ar ndóigh. Tá cúinsí faoi leith ann. Cuireadh reachtaíocht i bhfeidhm gan móran bheith ag cur ina n-éadán sa Bhreatain Bheag, in Albain, agus i gcuid de Cheanada. Tá cearta láidre i gceist sna tíortha sin, agus iad níos laige i dtíortha eile.

Má tá ceacht amháin gur cheart a thbhairt isteach sa Tuaisceart, is é go bhfuil réimse leathan de chearta riachtanach. “Ní fiú cearta cúnga sa reachtaíocht,” ar sise. Ní cearta a bhíonn ansin, nó bíonn reachtaíocht cúng ina chontúirt. “Bheadh naimhde na Gaeilge ábalta a rá – ‘ní deireann an reachtaíocht sin’,” ar sise. “Is é an rud ná go mbeadh sé iomlán soiléar cad é tá ar ranna stáit agus seirbhísí poiblí a dhéanamh. Is é an cheacht ón gcleachtadh idirnáisiúnta ná go mbíonn fadhbanna muna bhfuil moltaí comhleanúnacha, muna bhfuil cearta soiléire, agus muna réimse agus leithne cearta reathaithe.

Tá sampla den scoth den rud nár cheart a dhéanamh ar leac an dorais. “Ní gá dul ró-fhada,” arsa Janet. “Sa Deisceart! Ní fiú Bille muna bhfuil toil leis an Bhille a chur i bhfeidhm.” Ma bhí Acht ann, ní raibh an toil ann ansin.

Leagann Janet síos coinníollacha. “Tá tábhacht le reachtaíocht atá soiléar go leoir le seirbhisí a chruthú, agus dualgaisí cuimsitheacha a chur ar ranna stáit,” ar sise. “Tá sé tábhachtach go mbeadh meá cothrom ar fáil. Tá sé iontach tábhachtach go mbeadh cáipéisí ar fáil trí Gaeilge, ach tá seirbhísí de dhíth.”

Dhéanfadh soláthar seirbhisí saol na Gaeilge a fhorbairt. Bheadh ar an stát daoine a n-earcadh le seirbhísí a chur ar fáil. Bheadh sé riachtanach traenáil agus sain-traenáil a thabhairt dóibh.

Leanann buntáistí eile ó sin. “Ceann de na rudaí is tábhachtaí ná teagasc na Gaeilge do pháistí,” ar sise. “Táimid ag iarraidh córas láidir Gaelscolaíochta. Ba cheart go mbeadh ceart ag gach tuismitheoir páiste a chur chuig Gaelscoil.”

Ní sin an t-aon ceart amháin ó thaobh scolaíochta. “Ba cheart gur coir go mbeadh sé de cheart ag gach tuismitheoirí an Ghaeilge a bheith dá theagasc i scoileanna Béarla,” ar sise. “Sa Bhreatain Bheag, rinne sin an difear.

“Thar cúpla glúin tá an chuid is mó de na daoine ag foghlaim Breathnaise ar scoil. Bhí gach duine ábalta cúpla focal a rá. Cé nár lean achan duine den teanga, d’aithin siad a luach.”

Tá go leoir le foghlaim ó achan cearn den domhain. Dar le Janet gurb é an buntáiste atá ag Pobal ná go bhfuil siad ag glacadh le fíor-saineolas ar bhonn idirnáisiúnta.

Aithníonn sí gur cheist pholaitiúil atá ann chomh miath. “Tá sé ionteach tábhachtach teachtaireacht iontach láidir a thabhairt do pholaiteoirí,” ar sise. Tá sin le déanamh cinnte nach ndéanfaidh siad ach na rud gur mhaith leo a phiocadh amah. Tá an saineolas riachtanach, leis, le bheith ag plé le polaiteoirí.

Caithfear rud eile a dhéanamh agus pobal na Gaeilge ag plé le polaiteoirí. “Tá sé riachtanach na moltaí bheith scríofa síos ar pháipéar,” ar sise. “Ní bheith polaiteoirí ábalta cur chuige roghnach a dhéanamh.”

Tá cainteanna ag dul ar aghaidh go leanúnach leis na páirtithe polaitiúla. Agus ní páirtithe an Tuaiscirt amháin atá i gceist. Bhuail toscaireacht ó Phobal le hAndrew Murrison, Fo-Rúnaí Stáit Parlaiminte in Oifig Thuaisceart Éireann. “Rinneadh an cás go láidir gur gheall Rialtas na Breataine i 2006 gur cheart an tAcht a chur isteach,” arsa Janet.

Má rinneadh an gealltanas sin i 2006, tá díomá ar Janet nach amhlaidh anois. “Tá sé ráite ag Cearál (Ní Chuilín, an tAire Cultúr, Ealaíon agus Fóillíocht) nach bhfuil comhaontú aici ó Rialtas na Breataine maidir le hAcht Gaeilge,” arsa Janet. “Tá sé ráite, leis, nach raibh comhaontú ó na hAontachtaithe ar léibhéal an Tionóil.”

Tá idir imní agus díomá ar Janet. “Bhí an-imní orainn nuair a chonaiceamar an Stormont House Agreement,” ar sise. “Ní raibh rud ar bith súntasach ann faoin Ghaeilge, Níor luadh Acht na Gaeilge.”

Tá sé tábhachtach gur chinn Cearál Ní Chuilín ar chomhairliúchán eile “le go bhfaighfeadh na polaiteoirí amach cad é tá de dhíth ar phobal na Gaeilge.” Tá doiciméid ar shuíomh Pobal a bheadh ina gcuidiú ag daoine atá ag tabhairt freagraí ar an chomhairliúchán. “Tá fadhb le próiséas comhairliúcháin, sin go mbainfeadh polaiteoirí úsáid as muna mbeadh freagraí cruinn,” arsa Janet. Dar léi go bhfuil sé tábhachtach go mbainfí úsáid as saineolas agus sain-táithí idirnáisiúnta le freagraí a thabhairt. Leis, ba cheart úsáid a bhaint as na moltaí deimhne.

Creideann Janet go leanfaidh pobal na Gaeilge ag brú leo ar son Achta, agus ag cur an brú sin ar an trí rialtais, agus “ar na páirtithe, bíodh siad Aontachtach nó Náisiúnach.” Is cinnte go bhfuil rún ag Janet gan stopadh go mbeidh Acht ann.

Journalists must deal with traumatic experiences

(An edited version of this piece was published in 'The Irish Journalist' December 2014)

David Bolton is an internationally recognised trauma expert, who has spoken at several meetings of the NUJ’s Derry North West Ireland Branch. He spoke to ‘The Irish Journalist’ because he believes the work of journalists is of “utmost value” in helping victims – and that some journalists suffer trauma-related conditions because of their work.

Such conditions develop when people undergo life-threatening or appalling experiences. Afterwards they, and those near them, are in danger of developing serious psychological problems.

“One of them is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, but people can also experience trauma-related depression and other anxiety disorders,” Bolton said. “These can be quite transient, and be overcome fairly rapidly, but are often likely to persist for some people. We know for example that 15% of people involved in traumatic events in Northern Ireland have gone on to develop Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. And then if you add to that depression and other disorders you’re clocking up quite a number of people.” He stressed that “people suffer almost identical outcomes and risks when exposed to non-Troubles related traumatic events such as road traffic accidents, sexual assault, being held hostage in a bank robbery, or indeed things like a sudden and serious illness.”

Through work, journalists meet sufferers. “One of the first reactions a journalist might get in approaching someone is a refusal to take part in an interview,” Bolton said. “That may well be because the very thing the person is trying to keep at bay is the last thing they want to talk to a journalist about – or indeed to anyone else, a doctor or whoever. And one of the most powerful symptoms of traumatic reactions is a desire not to deal with it, to keep it at bay, and that can be done by avoidance, by drinking a lot of alcohol, by working too hard, playing too hard.”

Journalists can help because, like therapists, they tell the person it is safe to speak about a terrible experience. “One of the things a journalist might want to do as part of their care of a person who has been speaking to them is to suggest that they seek help and maybe even suggest that they go and see their doctor,” Bolton said. “And they might even want to say that ‘in the course of our conversation it seems to me that this is a major worry to you and you are deeply upset by this experience and maybe it would be a good thing if you went and saw your own doctor’.”

Bolton believes the work of journalists is “of utmost value. For the individual, it can be the beginning of doing something about their distress. But there’s a wider role here, and the wider role is that, through the telling of stories of traumatic experiences and their consequences, people out there who have had similar experiences, and have yet to seek help, and have yet to deal with their own experiences, are reading material and are hearing people speaking about a thing they can identify with. So what happens is that a person’s terrifying and lonely experience becomes one that is shared by others and is normalised in that way.” The rest of society benefits “because it allows us to be much more sympathetic as a society to the needs of those who have been through these types of experiences.”

Because of their work, journalists also suffer. Journalists are “a bit like medical workers, health care workers, undertakers, who are there to pick up the pieces, to reflect the stories, but who are not thought of as being human and are seen as being somehow immune from the consequences of these experiences.”

He explained that people often don’t make the link between a traumatic experience and their reaction “particularly if the reaction comes some time after the experience. Whatever kind of behaviours are going on they may not be able to link back to that particular event. If journalists find that they are not themselves, then one of the useful questions they might wish to ask is – is there something about the recent past that may somehow be linked to how I’m feeling at the moment. I’m down, I don’t have the energy I had, I’m not the person I was. Or maybe more dramatic than that I’m having these nightmares, flashbacks to something I don’t fully understand.”

The feedback at NUJ meetings has impressed Bolton. Members were interested in the general issue, and able to connect it to their lives. “Even though I was conveying how members of the public react in certain situations, many of the people in the meetings were saying ‘I’ve had those experiences in my work, in reporting events, being a witness to events’,” he said.

He said journalists, like other sufferers, should seek help rather than “walk into darkness. Often people feel highly isolated, alone, the only people who are suffering this problem because it’s so odd and so perverse that nobody else could ever feel like this or be like this. And yet when people came to us and we said ‘Here’s what the problem is. You’ve got Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or you’re having a depression in reaction to a traumatic event,’ that information alone is highly reassuring for people, and was the basis from which people began to recover and make progress.”

His final recommendation to journalists is to use clear language. “I would urge journalists to use the phrase ‘traumatic stress’, ‘traumatic experience’, ‘traumatic reaction’, so it’s a bit more precise, rather than just the word ‘trauma’,” he said.

Bolton’s expertise in trauma comes from experience. A social worker, his work on trauma began with victims of the Enniskillen bomb of 1987. After the Omagh bomb of 1998, he headed up the trauma team. He is currently a researcher with the Initiative for Conflict-Related Trauma. He is impressed by the work the NUJ in Ireland is doing, most recently the Journalist Safety Conference last year, seeing us as serious in facing the issue.

Four of Fermanagh's most prominent criminals sentenced

(An edited version of this piece was published in the 'Sunday World' of April 5th)

A Judge at Omagh Crown Court has called a case “bizarre and unusual" in sentencing Fermanagh career criminal Paul Arthur Maye. Maye, Malcolm Woods, Patrick McDonagh and Kevin Rogers pleaded guilty to defrauding Gerald McDonald of £107,000 in a betting scam. McDonald was led to believe bets had been placed on his behalf. Then he was persuaded pay money to release his ‘winnings’.

According to a statement of facts agreed between prosecution and defence, the fraud began in December 2010. McDonald met McDonagh in an Enniskillen bar. McDonagh gave McDonald a tip on a “sure thing,” and Maye said he’d put £500 on for McDonald.

That horse lost. Next day, a man called ‘Charlie’ rang McDonald, claiming to be the horse’s trainer.  ‘Charlie’ claimed to have bet on another horse that supposedly won, netting McDonald £4,000.

Next day, McDonagh arrived by taxi at McDonald’s house, saying McDonald would have to pay to access his winnings. The two went to a bank in Enniskillen and McDonald withdrew £1,000 for McDonagh. He withdrew another £500 and paid Maye.

The following week, ‘Charlie’ rang twice. Firstly, claiming he had placed a £2,000 winning bet. Secondly, seeking £1,000 to release the winnings. ‘Charlie’ arranged to meet McDonald – but a young boy came instead, and collected the money.  

McDonald got no winnings. Next, ‘Charlie’ rang so say Customs had stopped him, seizing his jeep – and McDonald’s winnings. McDonald borrowed £1,200 to have the jeep released. McDonagh collected that money.

Then ‘Thomas Montgomery’ rang, claiming to be a Customs officer and to have McDonald’s cash. A ‘Brian’ also rang, offering to sort the matter. McDonald started paying him to do so.

The last caller called himself ‘Aja’. He persuaded McDonald to pay £60,000 to access the winnings, supposedly between £170,000 and £200,000. By the end of June 2012, McDonald had paid over £107,000, but received no winnings. A number of the various callers rang from Woods’ phone.

Giving judgement, Judge Ramsey said: “This is, on any point of view, a bizarre and unusual set of sentences.” It was unclear whether any of the callers existed. “There is no evidence this fraud was masterminded by another person not before the court, or by some of the accused” the Judge said. He noted, however, there was no application for the recovery of proceeds of crime.

The Judge said Maye has “a significant and substantial record for dishonesty,” but added “your role in the case is relatively peripheral.” He said Woods had “a considerable record which relates to offences of dishonesty.” Rogers had a “formidable record, with many offences of dishonesty.”

The Judge imposed an 18 month suspended sentence for conspiracy to defraud on 51 year old Maye of Sallys Wood, Irvinestown. He imposed the same sentence on 25 year old McDonagh of Briar’s Hill Road, Irvinestown for conspiracy to defraud and converting criminal property. He imposed a 12 month suspended sentence on 43 year old Rogers of Sallys Wood, Irvinestown, for conspiracy to defraud: along with suspended sentences of three months and one month for assaulting police in another incident. He imposed an 18 month suspended sentence on 48 year old Woods of Sallys Wood, Irvinestown, for aiding and abetting conspiracy to defraud.

Maye was ordered to pay McDonald £2,500 in compensation, and Woods £2,000. McDonagh and Rogers were ordered to each pay £1,000. After the hearing, Maye approached a number of police officers in the court and shook their hands.

Pupil's father seeks judicial review of suspension

(An edited version of this piece was published in the Impartial Reporter March 19th 2015)

The High Court in Belfast has heard a Judicial Review against the decision of St Joseph’s College to first suspend and then expel an Enniskillen boy who suffers from learning difficulties. Harry Reid is taking the Review on behalf of his son, Shaun Reid. Harry Reid is also seeking to judicially review the decision of the Western Education and Library Board’s Schools Expulsion Appeals Tribunal to uphold the expulsion.

Shaun Reid was first suspended, then expelled, from St Joseph’s following a classroom incident in March 2013. The other boy in the incident suffered a broken nose.

A lawyer for Shaun Reid accused the school of not using proper procedure because it wanted rid of a pupil seen as troublesome. The lawyer told the Court that the version of events which school principal James Jackson-Ware gave differed significantly from the statement given by the teacher present at the time. The teacher, Ms Sproule, said: “I became aware that Shaun Reid and (another boy)  had started to fight at the back of the room. … I realised that it was a serious fight and not just giving each other a push. I observed both boys throwing punches and saw one punch landing on (the other boy’s) face.  I ran across the room and separated them. (The other boy’s) nose was bleeding and I walked him over to a seat at the front of the room and told Shaun to go to his seat (at the back corner).”

In a further statement, Ms Sproule said that, when she approached them: “The boys immediately stopped.”

The lawyer said that, in evidence to the Western Education and Library Board Expulsion Appeals Tribunal, Jackson-Ware said: “He (Shaun Reid) did not stop when he was told and broke Ernest’s nose.” Judge O’Hara commented there was nothing to indicate that Reid had continued with the attack when told to cease.

The lawyer said that Harry Reid always accompanied Shaun Reid to and from school. On the day of the incident, Jackson-Ware met Harry Reid at the gate and took him to the office. There he told Harry Reid: “Shaun had been involved in an unprovoked attack on another pupil.” Jackson-Ware then suspended Shaun Reid, telling Harry Reid this was to give him time to find another school for his son. The lawyer said this was before Jackson-Ware saw Ms Sproule’s statement. Shaun Reid was first suspended for 10 days. A second letter, received on the same day, reduced that to five days.

The lawyer said “the Principal had already come to a conclusion.” Shaun Reid had caused difficulties in the past and “this brought it to a head.”

A Board of Governor’s meeting in April 2013 expelled Shaun Reid. This was upheld by the Schools Expulsion Appeals Tribunal.

The lawyer accepted there had been problems with Shaun Reid’s behaviour. He quoted school records indicating this had improved since November 2011, when Shaun Reid had been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. He also accused the school of breaching the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools scheme for suspension and expulsion. ‘Fighting’ is not given as a reason for expulsion.

A lawyer for St Joseph’s College said it was “a school that cares. … This is a school that has provided continuous supportive assistance to this individual.” He said there had been a whole series of “red flag” disruptive incidents. Shaun Reid was “someone who has caused a lot of difficulties for the school,” and given inconsistent versions of the incidents. St Joseph’s College had a “duty of care” to staff and other pupils.

Judge O’Hara interjected that, on the statement of Ms Sproule “the one who came off best was suspended.”

The College’s lawyer said the expulsion was “a last resort measure” because of an accumulation of events. “It’s not just the 13^th of March,” the lawyer said. “It’s not just the previous incident. It’s the two together.”

Judge O’Hara interjected to query whether there was anything in the Board of Governors’ minutes regarding Shaun Reid’s future education being discussed. The lawyer said this was only when raised by Harry Reid.

A lawyer for the Western Education and Library Board said the Schools Expulsion Appeals Tribunal “have to have regard to other pupils and teachers in the school.” He called the fight “a last resort incident,” and said Shaun Reid was guilty of “persistent unacceptable behaviour.”

Judgement in the case is expected in the next couple of weeks. Shaun Reid had been charged with assault in connection with the incident, but the charges were later dropped.

  

Pam Brighton - making the voices of the voiceless heard

(An edited version of this was published in the Irish Times March 7th 2015)

Pam Brighton born October 22^nd 1946; died February 22^nd 2015

Pam Brighton, who has died in her adopted home of Belfast, was a Yorkshire-born theatre director who was central to developing people’s theatre in West Belfast. She mentored almost a generation of the city’s playwrights and actors, and was a founder of the innovative DubbleJoint company.

Brighton’s theatre was about making the voices of the voiceless heard. She had little interest in directing classic texts, and preferred working outside the established theatre. Her commitment was to making theatre relevant and accessible to working class people, which flowed from her Marxist beliefs. In her later years she specialised in work which articulated the feelings of Catholic West Belfast.

Brighton was an excellent script editor, because she could spot the flaws in a script. Another gift was the ability to find nuances in a character which the playwright hadn’t identified.

Pamela Dallas Brighton was born in Bradford, Yorkshire, in October 1946, the only child to Norman Brighton and his wife Marjorie (née Peel). Norman Brighton worked in a garage, installing insulation in vehicles. He died of asbestosis when she was 15.

After secondary education at Bradford’s Grange Girls Grammar School, where she won the prize for Senior Scripture, she studied Politics at the London School of Economics.

After graduating, she worked at London’s Royal Court Theatre, in charge of its Young People’s Theatre Scheme. The language used in some productions provoked protests from the Inner London Education Authority, and questions in the British parliament. After leaving the Royal Court she worked at other theatres in London, Toronto, and Stratford (Canada), with some forays to Australia. She lived in Canada for a number of years. A couple of times, she seemed to be on the verge of mainstream success only to have it elude her. Her complex personality and honesty did not help. A Toronto newspaper interviewed her the day before one production opened. She said: “It’s very depressing to do a play that’s terribly flawed. But there’s no use pretending it’s good when it isn’t.” She was bankrupted by a High Court action against playwright and close friend Marie Jones over the authourship of hit play ‘Stones In Our Pockets’.

She came to Belfast by accident. She met playwright Martin Lynch at the Edinburgh Festival in the early 1980s. He needed a director for a play he had written for the Charabanc theatre company. She came over, found West Belfast was a home, and moved there permanently in the late 1980s. For a while she worked there with the BBC’s drama department. However, she was not a woman who fitted into such a structured organisation – particularly as she only wanted to do work she was interested in.

At one stage she abandoned theatre altogether, and qualified as a barrister in 1986, working for a while in the human rights field. The sirens of the theatre called her back, though, and she answered them.

Pam Brighton is survived by her son Ned Cohen, daughter-in-law Jeanette, and grandchildren Oisín and Dearbhla.

GAA Centre of Excellence in legal battle

Tyrone GAA’s £6million Centre of Excellence at Garvaghy is at the centre of a legal battle. A sub-contactor who claims he was not paid for work done during construction is taking legal action against the Tyrone County. Fintona-based Top Tools is seeking £26,879.40 from the County Board

A lawyer for the sub-contractor told a short hearing at Omagh County Court that the Board first main contractor hired to build the Centre had agreed a contract to supply items with Top Tools. This first main contractor then “went bust.” The lawyer said that a senior GAA official offered payment for work done. “Afterwards, the Tyrone County Board denied the existence of any contract,” the barrister said. However, the County Board subsequently settled one invoice for work carried out for the first contractor. This was done “when faced with the inevitability of legal action.”

A barrister for the Board told the Court that another main contractor took over construction at Garvaghy. As a result “Tyrone County Board circulated a letter that they would pay for works completed after (the first contractor went bust).” He accused Top Tools of seeking that “the Board should pay for work, which the Board had already paid for, but McCann Brothers (the contractors) did not pay the subcontractors for.”

The barrister for Top Tools denied this. He said that the County Board had authorised payments to subcontractors after the first main contractor had gone bust. He named a senior County Board official as having “paid for materials after McCann Brother went bust from his own credit card.”

Judge McReynolds said it was “a very Tyrone case.” She suggested both sides “spit on their hands” and shake on a deal, in the traditional way. After a short adjournment for discussion between the two sides, the case was adjourned for hearing on April 15^th.