Category: News

CLARE primary schools that could be threatened with closure over the next year will be prepared to take to the streets in their fight for their survival, The Clare People can reveal this week.

Taking the ultimate sanction of strike action will loom large on the teachers’ agenda, as early as this Easter as delegates from the county look set to attend the annual INTO Congress in Sligo in large numbers.

At that annual gathering, delegates representing the county’s 122 national schools will voice their concerns and anger over the controversial McCarthy Report recommendation calling for all primary schools with numbers of under 50 be closed.

Last week The Clare People revealed that the Department of Education are studying Colm McCarthy’s recommendations.

This week we publish the list of 44 across the county earmarked for closure under the contentious cutbacks – that second largest number of schools in the country under threat.

“We are talking about a preliminary being done by the department, but at local level, this is as if the Titanic was about to sink,” Clare INTO leader Sean McMahon told The Clare People. “People are standing up on their feet and they are seriously demanding that the INTO support them. The INTO will support these schools and are seriously demanding that their politicians support them.

“I organised the meeting in Spanish Point two weeks ago and out of those 44 schools, 37 attended. I organised another meeting in Nenagh and we had an enormous attendance, including schools from east Clare.

“I have been involved in the INTO for a good while and I’ll tell you, I’ve never seen the same level of participational involvement as there has been in relation to this issue.

“Yes it will be a huge issue. There will be a number of motions at Congress this year in Sligo. Of all the is- sues that have ever reached the stage, the issue of small schools will be absolutely dynamic,” added Mr McMahon, the INTO Central Executive Member for Clare.

The Mullagh NS principal pointed out that its not just teachers and their pupils that would be affected by any school closure, but the communities that they serve across the county.

“I have been getting feedback in the last week and I’m not just getting it from teachers. I’m getting if from a whole variety of rural organisations,” he said.

“The objections will be massive from teachers, but it will be just as massive from parents, from local shops and local community groups. Take the GAA for example.

“The GAA is organised on a parish basis and if you go down the road of closing schools, you may not have a school in a parish.

“Every school would see itself as the cement that holds the community together. The schools and the community they serve would certainly be very strong in demanding that their schools continue.

“If this doesn’t get buried you will have the same type of campaigns that you had in relation to Garda stations and post offices. If you go back west of Kilkee, if these proposals were implemented you’d have an entire peninsula where where there mightn’t be any school.

“Rural schools, large or small, or indeed rural Ireland did not drive the financial madness that became the Celtic tiger. This was instead driven by the greed of banks and the self interest of large developers allied to the inaction of central government to regulate.

“We must not now allow our small, often isolated, rural communities to pay the price in terms of the educational opportunity of our children,” added McMahon.

ONE of east Clare’s legendary pubs saw the dawn of another era when the new publican became the first in five generations to have a name other than Vaughan.

But while Brid Kelleher might be the new kid on the block in the Broadford pub, she’s not new to the job.

Breda has been pulling pints behind the bar in Vaughan’s for 35 years – “my whole life,” she told The Clare People .

When the opportunity to take over the licence came up, barmaid Brid decided it was time for her to take the plunge.

“I’ve worked here all my life so I said ‘here goes’ we’ll give it a try. I’m looking forward to it. At least I know the job,” she said.

Brid will have plenty of support and practical help in the challenge ahead from hubby, Christy Kelleher, who jokes that he “knows the job very well from the other side of the bar. It will be a change”.

Vaughan’s has been in the family for four generations and was in its heyday one of the biggest attractions for miles around because of its ballroom of romance.

The pub and the dance hall can claim credit for scores of marriages in Clare and further afield.

“They came from all over to dance here and to hear the big bands. Sean Bolan, The Firesiders, Michael O’Mahony, The Vantones, The Boys in Blue – they all played here,” said Christy.

But the big band era drew to a close and Vaughan’s went back to being a quiet country ‘local’.

“But there’ll be music here again – there’s going to be a big monthly trad session and we’ll have lots of local musicians playing,” said Brid.

James Vaughan officially handed over the reins to Brid at the weekend at a celebration night of music and dancing at the pub.

But the Vaughan’s legacy won’t be forgotten with the Vaughan name remaining still over the door.

MARY Davis is seven years on dialysis. Three nights a week the mother of four travels from her home in Ennistymon to Limerick for the life saving procedure, which cleans her blood and allows her some form of normality.

She also has to strictly monitor her lifestyle, diet and liquid intake, making her beloved cup of tea a rare treat rather than the norm.

But living with renal failure isn’t the biggest heartache for this north Clare woman, as she must also watch and care for three of her four children who face a similar fate.

Mary’s two younger sons, Garry and Stefan, as well as her daughter, Victoria, all share their mother’s condition – Alporte Syndrome.

This rare condition leads to renal failure, leaving the patient relying on dialysis and eventually the hope of a transplant.

For Garry the gift of a transplant has already become a reality.

His mother Mary is through most of her “work up tests” and will hopefully be put on a transplant list soon. It could take another year or two before she will receive a precious kidney, but the process gives her hope.

Her youngest son Stefan is now in the later stages of pre-dialysis, and is expected to begin dialysis as early as July.

For Victoria the wait will hopefully be longer as, although she has the condition that will eventually see her life also become reliant on dialysis and a transplant, it is hoped that is a few years away yet.

Despite the health difficulties facing her family Mary Davis is a very optimistic woman, looking to hope rather than despair.

Above all she remains grateful to a family that in a time of grief gave her son the gift of a kidney.

Garry was 18 years old when he received his transplant – six years after he was first diagnosed with the condition.

Now aged 25 he hasn’t looked back since, as his quality of life has improved and he acts as a catalyst of hope for his family.

Describing the donor family as “fantastic people” his mother said, “The morning Garry was called the first thing I thought was, while it was great joy for us, you think of the other family in their time of distress.

“You are very aware of the people who are grieving and think of them often and have a Mass said,” she added.

Making her way towards the transplant list seven years after dialysis and almost 20 years after she first became sick, Mary said she has hope.

”It gives you a new lease of life,” she said.

“The initial shock is awful when you are first diagnosed, but you get on with it. Your health improves with dialysis and if you do what you are told you can lead a reasonably good life.”

Mary first began to feel unwell after the birth of her last child 20 years ago. However shortly afterwards her second youngest child also began to complain of ear and kidney infections, and her priority became his well-being.

Doctors were mystified as to what was wrong with the little boy, and it was only when Stefan, her youngest, began to have similar problems at the age of seven, that both boys were diagnosed with Alporte Syndrome.

Mary was soon diagnosed with the condition as well, and after all of the family were tested, Victoria also got the news that she too had the rare condition.

This family would have to learn to live with renal failure and the harrowing fall out.

Garry who was 12 at the time of this news was the first and so far only member of the family to receive a transplant six and a half years later.

“A transplant is a wonderful gift of life, especially for younger people,” said Mary.

This is the very generous gift that Clare branch of the Irish Kidney Association is hoping more people will sign up to give during Organ Donation Week – beginning this Saturday.

Organ donor cards are available free by texting the word DONOR to 50050. Cards can also be acquired at doctor surgeries and pharmacies.

THE Queen of England, Michael Flatley and Barack Obama can play their part in Clare becoming the first county in Ireland to drag its way out of recession.

That was the message delivered by the Ennis Development Forum this Monday as it kickstarted its campaign for the county’s economic recovery by holding face-to-face talks with Clare’s newly elected TDs.

Retaining existing jobs, moulding Clare as a low-carbon county, revitalising the construction industry and cashing in on the county tourism potential emerged as the key tenets the forum’s policy going forward, with the county’s TDs pledging to play their part in the process.

“This is the start,” Aoife Madden of the Ennis Development Forum told The Clare People. “We believe that Ennis and Clare can come out of recession.

“Businesses can play their part in that, so can politicians and we are determined to make it happen.

“We have to look at a lot of things. There was general recognition of the need to support local businesses in order to support local jobs.

“Minister of State for Small Business John Perry has been briefed on our concerns and we want him down in Ennis for formal discussions on the financial and red-tape challenges being faced by small and medium enterprises.

“It was also recognised that Clare must exploit it’s tourism potential through expanding the demand for what we currently have to offer by fully utilising Shannon Airport as a facility and the development of Ennis as a National Centre of Welcome and the creation of a Triangle of Clare Tours.

“Clare could generate significant marketing spin-off from events like the Lord of the Dance at the Cliffs of Moher, the Royal Visit, the London 2012 Olympics and the visit of President Obama,” added Ms Madden.

Clare’s four TDs, Fine Gael’s Pat Breen and Joe Carey, Labour’s Michael McNamara and Fianna Fáil’s Timmy Dooley have pledged to meeting with business representatives on a quarterly basis to discuss progress on these actions, with the next meeting scheduled for Monday, June 13.

THE second highest number of complaints made to the Office of An Coimisinéir Teanga came from Clare, a new report shows.

Of complaints received by Seán Ó Cuirreáin’s office 9.5 per cent came from Clare, compared to 9 per cent in Galway, 6 per cent in Kerry, 4 per cent in Donegal and 3 per cent in Mayo. The highest number of complaints (41 per cent) were made by people in Dublin.

The report looked at the level of service provided through Irish to customers by public service bodies.

The report states that in one instance, “An Coimisinéir Teanga decided, as a result of an investigation, that Iarnród Éireann was in contravention of its statutory duties in relation to certain signage erected in Ennis, County Clare.”

The report explains, “A series of complaints were made to the Office of An Coimisinéir Teanga with regard to various Iarnród Éireann signs, alleging that they were not in compliance with the language requirements in signage legislation. The complaints concerned the signage at train stations, in car parks and at a new level crossing on the western route between Galway and Ennis.”

According to the report, “Based on the case put forward by Iarnród Éireann, An Coimisinéir Teanga considered it likely that these problems with the signage had arisen because of changes that had taken place over the years and because of misunderstandings in relation to the legislation.

“Iarnród Éireann indicated in its reply that ‘the signs included in the investigation are in place for many years’ (translation) and ‘generally the signage at level crossings are in English’ (translation). The investigation did not accept that either of these two arguments could be accepted as an excuse for neglecting to make the necessary corrections.

According to Mr Ó Cuireáin, “This investigation could have been avoided completely and the matter could have been dealt with on an informal basis if the public body had put its position in writing at the start.”

Despite the criticism, one Irish language activist in Ennis has welcomed efforts by Iarnród Éireann to make all signs bilingual.

Announcements on trains are now being made in Irish while upgraded signage has been placed at ticket offices, car parks and buses. The man, who did not wish to be named, said, “Another first for the town. The growing presence of Irish at Ennis station will surely contribute to the sustainability of the language through increased visibility and status.”

A NEW discount store in Shannon, which will employ 12 people, is expected to play a pivotal role in increasing business in the town centre by at least 10 per cent. That’s the prediction of the manager of SkyCourt shopping centre Pat Kelly, who said he is optimistic that Buy Lo will attract huge numbers of shoppers to the centre.

A number of businesses in SkyCourt have closed in recent months including fashion outlet Pink, Roxy Records, Cafe 2000 and Bank of Ireland. Nevertheless Mr Kelly remains optimistic about the future.

“We have 65 units open at the moment. There are 13 or 14 vacant. How many have they vacant in Ennis? 70. In the last two months alone we let a small grocery supermarket, Jen, which does ethnic foods. What I’m finding is that recently we are getting a lot of enquiries about people who are trying to start up businesses,” he said.

“It has been a difficult 12 months. Our footfall figures were only down eight per cent last year, but the spend of the customers wouldn’t be the same,” said Mr Kelly.

“We are weathering the downturn reasonably well and the decision by Buy Lo to locate here gives us great confidence for the remainder of 2011 and beyond,” he said.

Mr Kelly said that the plan to attract anchor tenant Buy Lo – which will open in SkyCourt next week – had been on the cards for the past two years.

“We were working on it for the past two years. We had to go for planning which held it up for a few months and then negotiations and then we had to fit out the store,” said Mr Kelly.

“We’d be hoping with Buy Lo we would get back the figures we had in 2006/2007; that’s about 12 or 13 per cent,” he said.

Buy Lo will occupy 65 per cent of the unit previously held by Tesco. Additional car parking has been created to the back of the premises. The entire unit has been gutted and subdivided. Repairs have been carried out to the roof, while new flooring has been put in place.

“Their [Buy Lo] prices are very reasonable. They are the Irish version of Lidl and Aldi. I’d be very confident that it will bring a lot of people from Ennis and further afield,” said Mr Kelly. “I feel that Buy Lo is going to be a great bonus for us. In the times we are in, it is ideal because it is discount products and that’s what people want,” he said.

THE circumstances surrounding the murder of mother-of-two Sylvia Roche-Kelly in Limerick in 2007 is featured in a new book which will hit the bookshelves later this week.

The case is included in a book written by The Cla re People journalist Emer Connolly. Out On Ba il focuses on crimes committed by people who are on bail, early release or temporary release. It features the human impact of crimes committed by those who are out on bail and contains particular emphasis on a number of specific cases.

Sylvia Roche-Kelly (33) was murdered by Jerry McGrath in a Limerick hotel bedroom in December 2007. McGrath, then aged 23, of Ballywalter, Cashel, County Tipperary, was on bail at the time, for assaulting a female taxi driver in Cavan earlier that year.

Another Clare case to feature in the book is the tragic deaths of teenage girls Lorna Mahoney (13) and Stacey Haugh (16) in a road accident near Carrigaholt in October 2003. David Naughton, who was then a teenager, was later jailed for six years for dangerous driving causing the deaths. However, after he was initially charged in connection with the accident, he was granted bail and disappeared. He was later tracked down in the UK. His decision to flee while on bail had a profound effect on the families of the two young girls, who waited every day for justice.

Among the other cases featured in the book is the vicious rape of a 75year-old widow in Nenagh by a man who was on bail at the time; and the murder of teacher Noel Carmody in Limerick in 2003 by two men – one who was on bail and the other who was unlawfully at large at the time. The murder of Swiss teenager Manuela Riedo in Galway in October 2007 by Gerald Barry is also featured. Barry, of Rosán Glas, Rahoon, Galway, was on bail at the time, having been charged with assaulting his ex-partner. Out On Ba il looks at the bail laws in Ireland and gives a voice to families who speak of the pain and suffering they have experienced, while gardaí involved in investigating such crimes express their frustrations at the system. Out On Ba il is Emer Connolly’s second book. Her first book, Lying Eyes a nd the Hitma n for Hire , was published in 2008. It was based on the story of Sharon Collins from Ennis, who solicited a ‘hitman’ to murder her partner, millionaire businessman PJ Howard, and his sons Robert and Niall. Both books are published by Gill & Macmillan. Out On Ba il will be available in bookshops from Friday.

DETAILS of specific aircraft that anti-war protesters believe have been linked to renditions have been formally handed over to gardaí in Clare.

Anti-war campaigners transported wheelbarrows of material to Shannon Garda Station last Friday morning in an effort to highlight the use of Shannon Airport by military aircraft.

Members of Shannonwatch brought the wheelbarrows – containing photographs and documents relating to the use of Shannon by CIA planes – from the Oakwood Arms Hotel to the local Garda Station, as part of their ongoing efforts to highlight their concerns.

They say that the evidence supports their claims and they are hoping that gardaí will now investigate alleged human rights violations and other possible breaches of international law at Shannon.

Ray Murphy of Amnesty International said there is substantial evidence to suggest that Ireland has played a role in the rendition circuit but that to-date, the gardaí have been either unwilling or unable to conduct searches and inspections.

“We need an effective reporting, verification and control system put in place immediately. The Minister for Justice, Equality and Defence must direct the gardaí to act to ensure Ireland complies with its international legal obligations,” said Mr Murphy.

Former United Nations Humani- tarian Co-ordinator in Iraq, Denis Halliday, emphasised the humanitarian disasters that are a direct result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. “Those who were complicit in these wars, including the Irish government, must be held to account,” he said.

“It is vital that the new Irish government prohibits the transit of belligerent US troops through Shannon Airport immediately, and focuses Irish foreign policy on genuine humanitarian support for victims of violence and natural disasters,” he added.

Shannonwatch is calling on the gardaí to review the evidence presented, and to provide a comprehensive report on the actions that will be taken to ensure Ireland complies with its international legal obligations.

The information presented to gardaí includes a list of aircraft that have at one time or another reportedly been linked to the US renditions programme. These include 20 that have been recorded at Shannon over the last eight years. “Some of these are frequent visitors to the airport,” said a Shannonwatch spokesperson. “And while many of them may not now be in use by CIA rendition crews, the fact that they have not been adequately investigated means that it is still possible for them or other aircraft to be used to commit breaches of international law,” added the spokesman.

THE Clareman caught up in the earthquake and tsunami tragedy in Japan has re-iterated his intention to stay living and working in the country, despite the decision of many other foreign nationals to leave because of nuclear meltdown fears.

Thirty-six-year-old David O’Donoghue from Shannon, who has been in Japan for the past six years was made homeless when a tsunami hit Kamasu City, where he lives and works as a teacher.

“The Irish embassy have been advising practicality in the situation,” O’Donoghue told The Clare People this Monday. “The French jumped the gun in providing two planes last week to get people out, while the international media have been dramatising the situation.

“The situation is that things have become quite upbeat and positive over the pat few days, regarding the reactor situation in Fukushima. There was and remains trepidation and some fear, people are anxious but composed,” he added.

O’Donoghue was teaching when the disaster that destroyed his apartment struck, which rendered him homeless and living with friends until finding alternative accommodation this week.

“I’m back teaching as of last Friday,” he revealed, “but the national school system is off for the time being. We still have no water and won’t have water for three months, that’s the expectation. There’s well water and water supplies have been supplied by the Japanese self-defence forces.

“It has devastated the country in many respects and what the emergency services are doing now is going step by step to repair any damage that there is. Even after only one week the change in my home town is astonishing.

“A lot of the electricity poles and telephone poles that collapsed or were teetering have been put back. They have made huge repairs in one week. There is huge progress being made. Emergency crews have been working non-stop 24 seven,” he added.

A MAN whose jail term for raping his pregnant ex-girlfriend at gunpoint in her County Clare home was described by a court as “unduly lenient” will reappear in court later this week.

Last week, the Court of Criminal Appeal (CCA) ruled that a 10-year jail term – three of which was suspended – handed down to a 45-yearold man last year should be reconsidered.

However, it did not finalise the case and adjourned it to allow for a governor’s report and psychiatric report to be prepared by the man’s legal team. The case will be before the threejudge CCA again on Thursday. The case came before the CCA after the DPP appealed the sentence handed down.

The man, who was living in Clare, was convicted last year of rape, anal rape, false imprisonment, possessing a firearm and threatening to kill the woman on September 9, 2007.

The CCA said last week it found the case to be “most shocking” as it had involved profound violence.

The man was convicted after a 14-day trial at the Central Criminal Court last year.

The trial heard that the man and his ex-girlfriend had broken up on 27 occasions.

The victim described the night as “mentally torturous” and said she had been made to believe her death and the death of her unborn baby were imminent. The trial judge, Mr Justice Paul Carney said, “It was serious criminality involving a lifethreatening siege which was diffused only by the extraordinary skilled and sensitive approach by the gardaí.” He described the incident as being at the upper end of criminality, involving a dangerous hostage siege.