Month: June 2007

‘HE has to spend the rest of his life knowing that he killed his little sis- ter.” The words of a grieving mother who has lost her youngest daughter at the hands of her only son.

Claire O’Dwyer held her nerve as she took the stand in court yesterday to speak about the effect the death of her young and carefree daughter had on her and her family.

She had earlier wiped away the tears as the court heard details of how young Marguerite had been brutally killed in the sitting room of

their family home.

In November 2004 Claire and her husband Paddy had left the country to go on a short holiday to Spain, content in the knowledge that ‘Pa’ and ‘Mags’ were caring for each oth- er at home, like “two peas in a pod.”

Their joy at having a relaxed break away together came to an abrupt end laced with agony — their only son had killed their youngest daughter.

Patrick O’ Dwyer killed his sister as she lay on the couch of their family home, smiling up at him. Marguerite thought he was messing but he was gripped. Gripped, he claimed, by the

presence of a mental disorder. Throughout the six-day trial in April, O’Dwyer showed no emo- tion and his impassive demeanour continued yesterday as sentence was passed. Earlier, as he waited for the judge to appear in court he smiled and laughed with his family and le- gal team. He later hugged his parents and sister Louise prior to being led away to continue serving his jail sen- tence. He had buried his face in his hands as details of the horrendous killing were recounted to the court. As the six-year term was imposed yesterday, O’Dwyer looked ahead.

Moments later when the court rose he held his mother’s hand.

Claire and Paddy O’Dwyer return to a very different home from that which they left two-and-a-half years ago to go on holiday. They went away believing that their three children would greet them with open arms on their return. Sadly, their home is now a quieter place. A daughter deceased, a son in Wheatfield prison where he will mark his 22nd birthday in a fort- night’s time.

Life will never be the same in the O’Dwyer home at Shrohill, Ennisty- mon.

THERE have been mixed reactions to meetings of the EU Farm Coun- cil, which took place in Luxembourg last week with the ICSA President expressing frustration with a failure to deliver in relation to farm inspec- tions.

Malcolm Thompson said that the current system “totally fails to ad- dress the concerns of Irish farmers”.

“It is very frustrating that we still haven’t a straight answer from Eu- rope on where we stand with toler- ances. ICSA will not accept that there is no room for leeway with in- spections,” he said.

“If a farmer is 95 per cent compli- ant, there is no reason to penalise him as severely as the current system

demands. Mariann Fischer Boel has promised much but delivered little,” he added.

“Unless we can get official EU sanction for reasonable leeway for farmers who are inspected, then the whole issue of inspections will con- tinue to be controversial right into next year’s CAP health check.”

He added that “Europe does not seem to want to accept that the sys- tem of inspections 1s far more favour- able to large scale tillage farmers in the Paris basin than it is to livestock farmers in Ireland”.

IFA President Padraig Walshe said he felt that further progress was made in achieving a tolerable and more reasonable farm inspection re- gime.

He added that the Department of

Agriculture could now discard the 66-page checklist and come up with a reasonable inspection programme, taking account of the variation and practical issues arising in everyday elusnbneree

“There was a discernible move in the commission towards a more practical inspection system, respect- ing the rights of farmers while main- taining good farming practice,’ Mr Walshe said, emphasising that there is a flexibility towards providing for advance notice for routine inspec- tions.

Meanwhile, Minister Coughlan said that the new fruit and vegetable regime agreed upon will bring con- siderable benefits to Irish producers, consumers and the horticulture in- dustry in general.

She said that three aspects of the new regime will have direct benefits including: Support for Producer Or- ganisations (POs), adoption of new promotion measures and inclusion of fruit and vegetables and potatoes in Single Farm Payment.

‘The new scheme provides growers with the necessary support to meet higher quality and environmental standards in the market place where the multiples now handle some 80 per cent of the retail sales of fresh produce. The scheme will empower producers to work together to form a larger supply base and work as a more equal partner with these multi- ple retailers’.

Full details of the agreements are available on www.consilium.europa. eu.

MINISTER for Agriculture, Fisher- ies and Food, Mary Coughlan, has announced the publication of the de- partment’s Annual Report for 2006, saying that the year was “marked by the adoption by Government of a policy framework for the develop- ment of the agri-food sector over the next decade”’.

Some of the most important aspects of farming covered by the report in- cluded rural development, sectoral initiatives, REPS and bioenergy.

In rural development, the minister stated that the agricultural provi- sions of the new partnership, To- wards 2016, which are designed to

address the issues of competitiveness and sustainability, were agreed with the Farming Social Partners.

The partnership includes a com- mitment that exchequer funding of €4.7 billion will be made available for the farm schemes under the Ru- ral Development Programme in the period 2007- 2013.

The Rural Development Plan, par- tially co-funded by the EU, provides for total expenditure of €7.5 billion and will implement a number of measures in the agriculture section of Towards 2016.

The Action Plan for the Future of the Agri-Food Sector was published in March and sets out a new vision for the future of the sector in the light

of the major changes now impacting on it. In order to survive and grow, Ireland’s agri-food industry must be highly competitive on both EU and world markets.

The minister said that a significant number of sectoral initiatives had been announced in 2006, includ- ing major capital investment for the dairy processing sector.

“The Government committed €100 million to the fund, to generate greater efficiencies in the process- ing industry and enable the sector to gain an increasing share of world markets.”

A €50 million investment scheme for the beef and sheepmeat sectors and a €250 million Animal Welfare,

Recording and Breeding Scheme for suckler herds, were both announced.

The report emphasied that an “agreement was secured from the European Commission to make ad- vance payments under the Single Payment Scheme, to compensate farmers for the adverse weather con- ditions in late spring and early sum- mer’. Between the months of Octo- ber and December over one billion euro was paid to 118,000 farmers.

The minister pointed out that the development of Bioenergy was a par- ticular priority in 2006

“Provision of €14 million was made to cover a number of initia- tives aimed at encouraging farmers to grow energy crops.”

SEVERAL years ago Kildysart Cul- tural Festival Committee set about the task of providing a multi-age playground and associated ameni- ties for the children of the parish and surrounding hinterland. The Quay Road field where the playground is situated was entrusted to the people of Kildysart parish by the Killaloe Diocesan Trust for which the com- mittee is eternally grateful. A state of the art playground ideally located in the heart of the village now caters

for 0-6 year olds, 6-12 year olds and 12 years and upwards in a safe envi- ronment.

The project entailed the raising of funds in excess of €100,000 volun- tarily through the running of our an- nual cultural festival. Clare County Council provided a grant of €60,000 towards the cost of some of the equipment. As the project neared fruition the committee realised that further funds were required and thus a novel method of raising the neces- sary monies was instigated.

This is the “Buy a Brick’ campaign.

It entails the purchase of a brick at a cost of €50 inscribed with a fam- ily name and town-land or in com- memoration of a deceased family member. The bricks are then used to pave the walkways throughout the playground. It has proved a tremen- dous success to-date and has enabled the participation of many, including those living abroad, to make a tan- gible contribution to their own local- ity.

The installation of the equipment, the laying of the safety matting and the landscaping has only been pos-

sible due to the generous voluntary labour provided by many in the lo- cal community. The pathways and shrubberies enhance the _ overall appeal of this picturesque village amenity.

The festival committee, under the chairmanship of Fintan Ginnane, would like to acknowledge with ap- preciation our sponsors and the tire- less volunteers without whom the dream would never have been real- ised and we look forward to provid- ing many hours of fun for the chil- dren of the area and for posterity.

THE closure of a west Clare school left the local electorate without a lo- cal polling station for last month’s General Election.

Leitrim National School provided a polling booth for the locality dur- ing the 2004 Local and European Elections, but for last month’s Gen- eral Election the people living in town lands around Leitrim had to travel to Kilmihil and Cree.

Clare county councillor Christy Curtin (Ind) is aggrieved that the council were not informed of the

change of venue for these electors.

CUE Gitta ec Desmmcninceet:ICccmmser-beumr-l on proximately 130 of the Leitrim electorate had their voting rights in Cree, with the remaining 113 voting in Kilmihil.

The members of Clare County Council adopted a polling scheme, which sets out polling places for each Electoral Division in the coun- ty in June 2006. Leitrim was in- cluded on this list.

However the returning officer has the right to change a polling station if there are any difficulties with the station.

Cllr Curtain accepts this, but feels the council who adopt the “polling scheme” should be informed of such Ost berxone

‘“T reserve the right to be informed if not consulted in the first instance of any change to the polling scheme adopted in 2006. Leitrim National School was not used as a polling place at the recent General Election with the result that voters were dis- patched to Kilmihil National School and Cree National School.

“T would suggest that an additional polling booth should have been available at each of these polling

stations for the convenience of these displaced voters. The democratic process in any part of Clare must be sustained and buttressed with all the necessary facilities,’ said Cllr Grae-sb

A spokesperson from the office of the returning officer said that Lei- trim National School was not used as a polling station for three rea- sons.

Firstly the building is no longer being used as a primary school, sec- ondly it is in the process of being sold, and thirdly it has no electric- ity, she said.

RESIDENTS in Ennistymon have claimed that the water quality in the area is still bad despite extensive work being carried out on local pipes, replacing and upgrading them.

Margaret and Victor Mulcahy, own- ers of The Green Briar guest house on the road to Lahinch, said that the problem of what appears to be rust in the water supply has been going on for at least a decade.

“Work has been done on the pip- ing system locally and granted, the problem is not as bad as it was but I still don’t trust the water. For the last few weeks there has been an awful

chemical or disinfectant-type smell from the water that even filtering it overnight would not get rid of.

“There are also little brown blobs in it. If you put it in a glass, mate- rial settles at the bottom,’ said Ms WY TUN er Vas

She said that extra work and ex- penses were being created for her business as well as causing incon- venience to guests.

“If I put in a white wash of sheets or towels, they come out with little brown marks all over them. When we replaced napkins lately they were Amo tom ee) Celtbe

“Tiles and baths are stained so that is extra cleaning. The first thing

guests see when they come in is a no- tice about the water.”

She added that they have been told that the water is safe to drink but would still have misgivings and buy bottled water.

She said that her neighbours, par- ticularly next door, were having the same problem.

Councillor Martin Conway (FG) added that he had also been contact- ed by a local resident in relation to discoloured water that she had col- lected a sample of.

“Sewerage systems in Clare should have been upgraded years ago. There has been a huge amount of develop- ment but not in tandem with infra-

structure. I don’t blame local authori- ties but hopefully our four TDs will work to rectify the situation.”

Engineer for Ennistymon, Caimin Dillon, said that old cast iron pip- ing had recently been replaced and a new system was operating. He added that there had not been complaints recently and a scouring of the line had been done last Thursday and had shown up clear.

“As for the strong smell, that is probably chlorine and we will look into it. There could be a problem with sediment in internal tanks or something between the main pipes and the building. There should not be sediment in the line.”

CONCERNED residents rb O’Callaghan’s Mills and Kilkishen are joining forces for a charity walk/ cycle to raise money for a defibrilla- tor unit for each village.

The event will be on Sunday, June 24, and will cover the distance be- tween the two villages, starting from Kilkishen at 6pm. People are asked to make a donation of any sum when registering to take part or simply do-

nate funds if not.

The target 1s at least €6,000 to cov- er the cost of both machines. Train- ing for up to 15 people is included in the price but further training costs 40 te

Local man Martin McMahon ex- plained that with the nearest hospi- tals in Ennis and Limerick, demand for local lifesaving measures was stronger than ever.

“We had two meetings- one in each village- and everyone thought that

it was a great idea. It might never be needed but if it saved one life it would be worth it. We saw commu- nities like Mountshannon and White- gate getting defibrillators as well as a large number in Limerick and we felt that it was time to do so ourselves. I would recommend that every village get one.”

The Red Cross will be enlisted to provide training and insurance and anyone can learn to save a life.

“T have gotten a lot of calls from peo-

ple interested in training to use them. It hasn’t been decided yet where we will put them but they will be kept centrally. In O’Callaghan’s Mills, we are lucky that the school, church, community centre and playing fields are all very close together.”

Mr McMahon added that donations from Overseas are welcome and also appealed for sponsors to come for- ward.

For more information, phone 086 “ORI oe

IF YOU want to cross the “Bridge to Health’, Ennistymon may hold the connection you’re looking for with the opening of new local healing and therapy centre.

The centre, officially launched last Saturday, will offer various health and relaxation treatments including reflexology, massage and reiki and classes in belly-dancing and Tai Chi.

The centre will also incorporate a gift shop selling local and outsourced crafts, homewares and jewellery.

Owner Celeste Davis and her hus- band Brian, who met in Miltown Malbay nine years ago, have done extensive work in natural therapy.

“We support the conventional sys- tem too but alternatives can work alongside it. There are often fewer side effects and my husband had great results using natural therapy to treat cancer and chronic illnesses in Sydney. The classes and shop add an extra element. We have had a lot of interest from people who want to come and teach here.”

Ms Davis, originally from Byron

Bay in Australia, said that Ennisty- mon’s Steiner-Waldorf school was a major factor in the family’s move to north Clare and this openness to alternative forms would benefit the Le LUKBE Lee

‘Bridge to Health’ will also offer bioenergy healing- a natural therapy which is rapidly gaining popularity.

“Bioenergy comes from Chinese medicine, where it is used widely in hospitals, and it works with a type of energy called ‘external chi-gung’. We are all surrounded by electro- magnetic fields and illness is outside

as well as in. Bioenergy clears the aura,’ said Ms Davis, adding that its two leading Irish practitioners are from Clare.

She added that she hopes the busi- ness will expand quickly to include counselling and psychotherapy as well as more classes and treatments such as acupuncture.

The centre will be open from 1lam to 7pm daily and later on weekends. It will close on Tuesdays. For more information, call 065 7071968 or 085 1390381.

MARY Immaculate Secondary School in Lisdoonvarna is celebrat- ing huge success by several students in the Northern Ireland Young Scien- tist Competition held in Belfast last Neto)

Fifth year student Laura Sims won first prize in her age category for the project ‘Mobile phone signal strength and topography ’- the second time she has won a prize for her sci- entific skills.

Matthew Egan and Kevin Theasby were runners up in their age category with ‘Relationship between Japanese Knotweed and soil type’.

Diarmaid O’ Donoghue was award- ed the Queens University Award for Biological Sciences for his project ‘The efficiency of seed dispersal’

and a fourth group of Amie Barrett, Sinead McNamara and Megan Byrne also took part with “The dispersal patterns of Patella vulgate on north Clare shores’.

The supervisor of the projects, Ge- ography teacher John Sims, said that his daughter and the other students had done the school proud.

‘This was the sixth year that we have taken part in the competition and we have never come away with- out a prize of some sort. All of these projects were picked because they also did well in the Irish competition. It takes passion and hard work to get everything done. It really helps kids to think outside the box.”

He added that one of the judges had complimented 17 year-old Laura on a particularly good project.

‘She worked on it since last August

and it was very intense because she had to physically map out the grid on foot and the terrain is not great. She used a mapping program called Geo- graphical Information Systems being piloted at the school by NUI May- nooth and the coverage she got was second to none. The results could be very useful, as could those of all of the other projects.”

Mr Sims said that Kevin, Mat- thew and Diarmaid had to do a crash course in the more advanced school curriculum to learn techniques like soil sample collection.

“They were in the junior category and started work in September. The Irish competition is early in the year SO work was very heavy over Christ- mas. Aside from the actual projects, they had to type up reports of up to 50 pages.

He added that the fourth project, in a category with a higher number of participants, could still get a ‘Highly Commended’ honour.

“IT have worked at the school since 1989 and past students often refer to the Young Scientist as a very useful experience. A lot of kids knew how to do reports and project work at col- lege later, which 1s a great plus.”

The students used a mix of labora- tory and field work as well as a wide variety of research methods.

After the summer, a new batch of young scientists will begin work at the school.

AMONG the groups taking part in the Clare People 10k walk/run are the Ennis based organisation, Living Links.

Over the past five years the Liv- ing Links organisation has offered a suicide outreach support service to families and individuals in Clare who have been bereaved by suicide. SU iloKomr-DeomCUUKC NU RAKoNMPAOUD DANN e-BDACeCe! volunteers staffing the service in Ee

In addition to healing programmes volunteers respond to approaches made by a bereaved family or in- dividual and can arrange to meet them inside or outside their homes or

wherever the bereaved person feels most comfortable.

All meeting are conducted in the strictest confidence.

Clare Living Links operates under the auspices of the Health Services Executive. Originally Clare Liv- ing Links formed part of a larger programme that provided Suicide Bereavement Support in Clare, Lim- erick and north Tipperary, but three years ago the service was divided into three separate units by the then Mid Western Health Board.

The service recently concluded an eight week healing programme for those who’s lives have been affected lo\VamcLe bea LO (on

The programme aimed to help

adults who have experienced a death by suicide to find healing and support in a Safe and caring environment and to provide an opportunity of meeting others who have experienced loss by suicide.

The meetings aimed to provide healing through talking and listen- ing in small groups.

A spokesperson for the service explained, “If they want, they can choose to meet one of the service’s volunteers at home or they can come to the centre, or wherever 1s suitable. It’s about giving them the opportu- nity to talk about it.

‘Depending on the need of the per- son there might be one session or they might be a number. There is no

set number”’.

The spokesperson continued, “The aim is to help people talk about their loss and the whole process of be- reavement. There is no set formula for bereaved persons feelings or re- actions. Different people will react in different ways and in a different Ocal ue

Clare Living Links also provide a booklet entitled “You Are Not Alone” which aims to provide in- formation that will be of help in the immediate aftermath of a death by suicide occurring, such as immedi- ate reactions; natural responses pro- cedures in unexpected deaths, sort- ing out your affairs and getting help for you and your children.