Letters to the Editor: My child was stolen and sold after I was ‘rescued’ from England in 1973
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I am responding to the TV review (Irish Examiner, Monday August 26) of the documentary, 'Stolen', aired that night RTÉ.
To my great sadness, there was not a single reference made towards highlighting the human trafficking of young expectant mums, living in the UK and other countries, being shipped back to Ireland financed by the government of the time.
I was one such young girl, only I was flown back through the Catholic Children’s Society — the ‘Crusade of Rescue’.
I was recorded as a PFI (pregnant from Ireland).
Nor was any attempt to highlight the fact that all Catholic adoption societies in Ireland were allowed to operate outside of the 1952 Adoption Act.
Please help all of us PFIs be heard. We foolishly believed we had escaped the cruelty of Church and State but never did.
In 1973, the coalition government financed my flight through Aer Lingus.
No matter what, I have always wanted my son to know the real truth, how much he was loved and wanted, and will always be.
He was “adopted” and sold for “kind donations”.
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No government of Ireland has yet acted in the best interest of survivors incarcerated in mother and baby homes in the last 90 years.
In February 2023, then taoiseach Leo Varadkar claimed in the Dáil that redress payments “could otherwise be spent meeting the needs of today or trying to build a better future”.
This statement from the government reflects a total lack of empathy towards a section of society so cruelly treated by mother and baby “homes” and other similar institutions.
Survivors were never consulted by the government as to their plans for a fair and just system of redress.
The department has failed to respond to several emails submitted to them including one sent seeking a meeting with the minister last year.
As for the divisive and cheapskate redress scheme offered to only some of the survivors, it is an insult.
Further humiliation and shame are heaped upon survivors by coercing them into signing a legal waiver as a condition of payment.
Sadly, opposition parties have not done enough to keep the spotlight on this important issue. A political failure for sure.
I found it very sad to learn from the general secretary of Conradh na Gaeilge that the teaching of the Irish language is at crisis point and that there must be an immediate overhaul of teaching of Irish in our schools in order to encourage more students to study this subject.
It’s now been reported that a record number of students did not sit an Irish exam as part of their Leaving Certificate this year.
It has always been my contention that, over the years, Irish has been poorly taught in our schools.
I am often bemused as to how many students in secondary school master foreign languages with relative ease and yet struggle with Irish, a subject that has been taught since the commencement of their primary school education.
This leaves me asking: is the methodology apropos to teaching Irish in our schools somewhat outdated?
It’s my assertion that if you want children to study Irish with enthusiasm, the subject must be taught well.
It has to made interesting, absorbing, and compelling or else it won’t be worth children putting time and effort into the learning of this subject.
It’s all fine and dandy peddling the notion of Irish being part of our culture and history. Such an approach will get one only so far. The answer in my view lies in discovering ways to make the Irish language fun to learn.
There needs to be a proper review of the effectiveness of tobacco control measures, culminating in a determination as to which measures lead to a reduction in consumption — ‘Plain packaging on cigarette packets made smoking less attractive to smokers, says study' (Irish Examiner, August 26).
Plain or standardised packaging has not, in itself, led to a reduced consumption.
There has actually been an increase in smoking in Ireland in recent years. The greatest level of tobacco control is achieved through price. In Ireland, despite having consistently increased excise tax on cigarettes, we have ignored the growth in purchasing of tobacco products by Irish citizens in other countries while travelling.
Last year, the joint survey from Revenue and HSE revealed that 15% (a value of €350m) of all tobacco consumed in Ireland was purchased, legally, outside the jurisdiction — either duty free or duty paid.
These packs are not required to be plain, nor even contain the same health warnings that are mandatory when sold in registered Irish tobacco retailers’ outlets.
This figure is rising year-on-year and most certainly raises concerns for the overall effectiveness of Tobacco Free Ireland strategies.
Recently, another journalist was killed by the Israel’s defence forces while working near the Mustafa Hafez School .
The journalist was Hamza Murtaja. This name is famous as he is the brother of Yaser Murtaja, the first journalist killed by Israeli forces during the Great March of Return in 2018. Yaser was shot by a sniper while covering the peaceful protests near the border with the occupied territories. He was shot in the abdomen while wearing a vest clearly marked “Press”.
2018 was famous for the sheer number of civilians killed and maimed by snipers during these demonstrations. As usual, there was little reaction to the killings by the western powers supporting Israel. With Hamza’s death, the total number of journalists killed by Israeli forces since October 7 of last year has risen to 170, marking the deadliest toll in modern warfare for journalists. Hardly any western media have commented on such a large-scale death rate among its fellow journalists.
Simon Harris’s pledge to add 40,000 extra homes to the housing stock holds no water.
As soon as new homes are built, just as many homes are being
converted into unauthorised short-term holiday lets such as Airbnb. He is trying to top up a leaking bucket.
Recently, eight homes in our
immediate area have been converted from family use to holiday rentals. These former homes will lie empty for most of the winter months.
The removal of so many homes from family use is a disaster for renters and would-be homeowners alike. It is also a disaster for the nearby guesthouses etc, that are losing revenue to these unauthorised rentals, also known as black market holiday rentals.
Spain, Italy, and parts of the US are now banning these black market holiday-lets; they increase homelessness and are a real drag on the economy.
The Taoiseach needs to quickly plug the Airbnb-size hole in his housing bucket.