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NINE craftsmen and women from the north Clare area have teamed up to put together one of this years biggest craft fairs, and just in time for Christmas.

The fair, which will take place in the Lady Gregory Hotel in Gort on Saturday and Sunday November 26 and 27, is being organised by the Clare Crafts Association. The fair will feature a wide range mate- rial some with a slight Christmas detosealen

One of the more interesting items on show will be a range of hand- made goat’s milk soap which is made by Janis James from Bally- vaughan. The soap, which is made in a variety of Celtic designs, uses goat’s milk because it has the clos- est PH level to human shin and acts as a moisturiser.

Also taking part in the exhibition will be Leueen Hill from Curren- rue who specialises with artistic work featuring Burren flowers. Leueen’s range includes _ water- colours, colour photopicture and handmade silk paper, all inspired by the Burren flora.

The crafts fair will also feature the jewellery and woodcarvings of Kinvara man Sam Beardon; the jewellery of Jamie Storer from Doolin; the leather work of Tony McFadden from Ballyvaughan; the jewellery of Frank Murphy from Ardrahan; the fused glass work of Gerry Ruane from Tubber; and the photography of Lisa Thielan from Lisdoonvarna.

The craft show will run each day between llam and 6pm.

A 24-YEAR-old Cooraclare man has been charged with the murder of Ann Walsh, whose body was discovered in the grounds of a church in Kilrush in August. Raymond Donovan, of New Houses, Cooraclare, was charged with murder last Friday.

Gda Michael Ryan told Ennis District Court that he formally arrested and charged Dono- van with the murder of Ms Walsh, contrary to common law, at Toler Street, Kilrush, on Au- gust 24.

In reply to the charge, the accused said, “I didn’t mean to do it”. He agreed that he under- stood the charge and caution.

Donovan had previously been charged with intentionally or recklessly causing harm to the

23-year-old woman, on the same date. Judge Leo Malone withdrew that charge on the re- quest of Inspector Kevin Moynihan.

Donovan, who was making his seventh court appearance in connection with the death of Ms Walsh, a native of Pella Road in Kilrush, was remanded in custody.

He will reappear again in court tomorrow (Wednesday).

But his trial will not go ahead until late next year at the earliest. There is currently a ten- month waiting list for murder trials at the Cen- tral Criminal Court in Dublin, although this is significantly shorter than had been the case in the past.

A spokesman for the Courts Service told

A letter, written by a Lebanese woman, which praises the efforts made by Irish soldiers in the Lebanon was the high- light of the commemoration day which took place in Ennistymon last week.

The day, which was organised by the North Clare War Memorial Committee in conjunction with the Irish Lebanon Veterans, began with a special mass in Ennistymon Church. Following the mass Limerick piper and Irish Army Captain, Michael Egan led the memo- rial parade through the town.

The parade travelled down Main Street and Parliament Street before

coming to a halt outside the commemo- rative plaque at the old cemetery on Church Hill.

A short prayer service will be held at the plague for all Irish soldiers who died in the service at home and all who were lost during peace keeping opera- tions, especially those who died in the Lebanon.

“The letter is something that I think every Irish peace keeper who served any time in the Lebanon should see or hear about,” said event organiser Ger- ard O’Halloran.

The parade was attended by a number Clare County Councillors as-well-as the Mayors of Clare and Limerick.

THE hard work and com- mitment of the people of Ennis was recognized at the Ennis Tidy Towns Lo- cal Awards Ceremony held on Friday night.

Since 1997 Ennis has garnered 27 national awards, but this years vic- tory in the overall Tidy Town’s category 1s, of course, the biggest yet. Fri- day’s ceremony at the De

Valera library paid tribute to the individual efforts and contributions of com- munities, schools and local business in enhancing the reputation of the town on a national stage.

In attendance on the evening were parents, school children, teachers, Ennis Town Councillors, town officials, members of the local clergy along with Library staff and rep- resentatives of the Ennis

Tidy Towns Committee and Shannon Develop- ment.

On the night awards were presented in four catego- ries; Primary School Art Competition Awards, The Green Area Awards, The Best Kept Garden Awards and the Shop Window Flo- ral Display Awards. There was great excitement in the crowd as Bishop Wil- lie Walsh presented the Primary School Art Com-

petition Awards. This year there were over 700 entries in this category and judges Lovee Neates eI Keke MmNOFsT MEO eCommcim- UICC ard was exceptionally high. Presenting the awards Dr Walsh praised the efforts of the Tidy Towns com- mittees in engendering a strong sense of community spirit in the town: “each person took ownership of their own area and this All- Ireland title belongs to all of you.”

The Woodlands Estate scooped the top prize in the Green Area Awards when it was named the Overall AbehlomGineosee~Vacr Maa sehl le a special award was pre- sented to St. Flannan’s Ter- race for its floral display.

Over 15 residential areas from across Ennis were honoured, highlighting the widespread community ef- fort that helped make this year’s Tidy Towns effort OTe sire eersise

THE sponsored slim for Chernobyl has reached the half way stage and so far has proved very successful.

All funds raised over the eight-week period will go towards the Beschanagovichu orphan- age in Belarus, which is home to 170 chil- dren.

Since the Slim-In began four weeks ago, participants have been meeting regularly to discuss their progress and have benefitted from the advice of a number of guest speakers

who have attended the meetings.

On November 2 Carmel form Carmel’s Health Shop spoke about products on the mar- ket that can aid weight loss while Take 30 Wo- mens Fitness have allowed participants to use their facilities for the weigh-in.

Future speakers include Brian Moore from the Hypnotherapy Clinic in Ennis and Dr Travis McDonagh of the Advanced Chiro- practic Clinic, who will offer advice on fitness and nutrition.

Organizers would like to thank all partici- pants for the commitment shown so far.

AN “EXCEPTIONALLY violent” Lithuanian man kicked and punched two gardai repeatedly as they tried to arrest him. Daryus Simkauskas (35), of 5 Aidan Park, Shannon, was convicted of assaulting two gardai and committing two public order offences, on October 2.

Gda Pat Broderick told Ennis Dis- trict Court he received a report of a domestic dispute at the home of

the accused. He went to the scene, where he saw five people. The part- ner of the accused, a woman in her thirties, had severe bruising to her right hand and said the accused had inflicted the wound. The accused had a lot of drink taken, became ag- gressive and started shouting.

‘IT asked him to leave the house. He did leave, but very reluctantly,’ said Gda Broderick.

Mr Simkauskas was then directed to leave the area, but tried to get in

the back gate. As Gda Broderick and Gda Conor McKeon were ar- resting him, a struggle ensued.

“He got away from me,” Gda Bro- derick said. “He took off his jacket, put up his hands and started throw- ing punches at both of us as we tried to affect his arrest. Fortunately, none of his blows landed. All three of us ended up on the ground”.

Gda Broderick was kicked to the back of the head and Gda McKeon kicked into the stomach. The ac-

cused was held down on the grass and handcuffed, but continued to kick out. Other gardai then arrived and it took five of them to put the accused into the personnel carrier.

‘He was exceptionally violent and it was a frightening situation to be in,’ said Gda Broderick.

Defending solicitor Caitriona Carmody said her client accepts his behaviour was completely un- acceptable. He moved to Ireland in October 2004 and currently works

at Shannon Aerospace.

Judge Leo Malone said the ac- cused’s behaviour was “outrageous’”’. He imposed a one-month sentence for the assault on Gda Broderick and suspended it on condition Mr Siumkauskas keeps the peace for two years. He remanded the accused on bail to appear again in January, to ascertain if he is suitable for com- munity service. Judge Malone im- posed fines totalling €450 for the two public order offences.

A RELIGIOUS order has contradict- ed claims by a Whelan Group-owned company that a quarry has been op- erated on lands at Cahercon since the early 1960s.

Currently, long-time opponents of the Whelan Group, the Kildysart Ex- plosives Factory Opposition Group (KEFOP) and Cairde Chill on Disirt Teo are objecting against Clare County Council registering a quarry operated by Staleen Property Co Ire- land Ltd at Cahercon, Kildysart.

The quarry has been and it con- tinues to be used by Shannon Explo- sives Ltd, the company behind plans to develop a €6 million explosives factory at Cahercon and CW Ship-

ping, the company currently operat- ing the controversial lease at Caher- con pier.

In September, the Council gave notice that the quarry was being reg- istered as part of the process under Section 261 of the Planning and De- velopment Act where the Council re- ceived almost 200 applications from quarry owners across the county.

In its statement, the Council stat- ed that planning permission has not been granted for the quarry and the Council is considering imposing conditions on the operation of the quarry.

However, KEFOP and Cairde Chill on Disirt Teo have lodged sub- missions with the Council objecting to the quarry being registered.

Supporting their opposition is Provincial of the Salesian Sisters, Sr Nora Ryan, contradicting a claim by Staleen that a quarry has always been in operation at the location prior to October 1964.

The quarry is on the 200 acres of land purchased by Managing Di- rector of the Whelan Group, Paddy Whelan from the Salesian Sisters for an estimated €1.2 million in 2002.

In her statement to the Council, Sr Ryan states that the Salesians lived at Cahercon House from 1962 to 2002 and “no part of the lands was used as a quarry for any commercial pur- pose during the time of the Salesian sisters.”

Former teacher at Cahercon, John McNeilis states in a submission that

‘the impression has been created that there was a quarrying operation car- ried out at Cahercon in the past, while it was owned by the Salesian Sisters and that up to 15,000 tonnes of mate- rial per annum left the quarry.”

He adds, “I was a teacher in St John Bosco’s Secondary School, Ca- hercon 1977 until its closure in June 2002 and I can clearly and categori- cally state that there was no such business in operation and that there was no commercial quarry in exist- Salerer

“During my 25 years working in Cahercon, I never witnessed a lorry load of gravel or stone leaving the property. Small amounts of mate- rial for use on the farm owned by the Salesian sisters was the only ‘quar- rying’ done.

In his submission, solicitor Michael Nolan on behalf of Cairde Chill on Teo states: “This was not a quarry prior to 2002 and I enclose a photo taken in October 2002 indicating the state of the lands at the time.”

“The area in question, is located, within an area which has been desig- nated visually vulnerable. My clients accordingly object in the strongest possible terms to the proposal to is- sue a licence for this quarry within the context of the Planning and De- velopment Acts.

On behalf of KEFOP, Brian Doyle States, “We are of the view that the Cahercon quarry was not in use prior to the Whelan Group purchasing the property in July 2002 with the excep- tion of use for domestic purposes by the Salesian Sisters.”

A RULING in the case of a Lisdoonvarna-based nXe)re group, accused of employing non-nationals without valid work permits in two of its ho- tels, will be made tomorrow (Wednesday).

In the first case of its kind in Clare last month, Ennis District Court heard from members of the Garda immi- eration bureau that 14 people, ranging in ages from 21 to 39, were employed at the Imperial and Hydro Hotels in Lisdoon- varna, without valid work permits, in September 2004.

The accused were William

O’Sullivan (manager of The Hydro), Geraldine Whyte (manageress of The Imperial), Marcus White, and The Hy- dro and Imperial hotels. The five accused denied a total of 36 charges against them.

The White Hotel Group ac- countant, Robert Hurley, told the court that people with- out work permits would not knowingly be employed. He said directions came from on high.

After hearing evidence over two days, Judge Joseph Man- gan dismissed the charges against Mr O’Sullivan and Ms Whyte, saying there was no evidence that either were

officers of the two defendant companies.

Defending solicitor Eugene O’Kelly said there was no evidence that Marcus White actively consented to the em- ployment of such people.

Inspector Michael Gal- lagher said two non-nationals were discovered “physically working” at one of the hotels.

Judge Mangan queried Whether there was evidence that Marcus White was direc- tor of both companies when the searches took place.

He adjourned the case to give the State the opportunity to prove he was director on WerLI@EcT oR

SPEAKING in the Dail in 1947, Fine Gael leader James Dillon famously forecast that rab- bits would over-run the runways in Rineanna.

Fianna Fail folk scoffed at the very sugges- tion — it would never happen, they roared, for Shannon was a wonder of their world, a Fianna Fail airport.

They were the great defenders of Shannon Airport — defence that manifested itself on many occasions down the years. It’s as if there was a wall around Rineanna to keep at bay in- fidels who were out to undermine the jewel of

Irish aviation.

In the fifties, the Government of President Harry Truman wanted to annul an agreement that ensured Shannon had to be used as a stopo- ver for transatlantic traffic into Ireland. Fianna Fail said no.

The stopover threat was there again in the early seventies and the Shannon Airport Action Committee circled the wagons to great affect.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs and Clare’s first political citizen, Dr. Paddy Hillery, fa- mously told a delegation of airport activists in the Old Ground Hotel that the party would al- ways safeguard Shannon Airport.

Fianna Fail were true to this principal in

Paddy Hillery’s time, but not in our time of the ‘90s and early millennium. All because, under Fianna Fail’s watch, Shannon Airport has been dealt two of the biggest blows in its eight-dec- ade history.

The great Fianna Fail defenders have let their suard down — the great Shannon Wall around the sacred cow that was the airport has come tumbling down. The former hub of the aviation world is not a jewel in the Fianna Fail crown anymore.

And all this in the space of a dozen years. Minister for Transport Maire Geoghegan Quinn said in October 1992 that the compul- sory stopover was not “up for negotiation” and

‘“wouldn’t be back on the political agenda”’.

Eight months later, her successor, Brian Co- wen, showed how empty this promise was when he abolished the compulsory stopover.

Now comes the decision to end the bi-lateral agreement that allowed one-for-one transatlan- tic flights into Shannon and Dublin.

And again, it happened under Fianna Fail’s watch. That wall has come tumbling down al- right — the night and day watchmen that were Fianna Fail activists defending the stopover in their own control tower are not what they used to be.

Now, they can only hope that rabbits don’t over-run Rineanna’s runways.

THE mother of Lorna Mahony has expressed her frustration at delays in the process of ex- traditing David Naughton. Last week Geral- dine Mahony travelled to London to be at Bow Street Magistrates for an extradition hearing. However, the application could not be proc- essed as the necessary paperwork was not be- fore the court by the Irish authorities.

“This was his fourth appearance in court in relation to the extradition and they are still waiting on paperwork from Ireland,’ Mrs Ma- hony said. “The magistrate seemed puzzled by the delay and said he would contact the Irish judge who issued the order.”

She continued, “The whole thing is very frustrating. One section doesn’t appear to know what the other side is doing. We are two

years after the girls’ deaths and we are no fur- ther down the process. We have to fight for any information from the authorities.

‘Families need to know what is going on. If we had a trial date or were kept in the loop, that would improve things. It is over two years since Lorna and Stacey left Stacey’s house on that Friday night, and we are still waiting for answers as to what happened.”

Mrs Mahony added, “It gets harder. Every- one is struggling because it hurts too much. It seems so senseless and we have no idea what happened. The inquest was formally opened in June 2004, but was adjourned because of the criminal proceedings.”

Extradition proceedings have been adjourned to December 6. Mrs Mahony said, “I would hope that by then, the Irish authorities would have the proper paperwork in place”.