The Clare People Archive

A FORMER Green Party MEP will be in Ennis this week to voice her op- position to her party’s stance on the upcoming EU Treaty.

Patricia McKenna, who contested the leadership of the party with En- vironment Minister John Gormley last year, has criticised the “sheer ar- rogance’”’ shown to the people of Eu- rope by their political leaders.

McKenna is the chairperson of The People’s Movement, an organiza- tion campaigning against the Lisbon

Treaty.

“Regardless of the fact that voters in France and the Netherlands have rejected the EU Constitution, it has been renamed, repackaged and put back on the table as if nothing had happened and we are being told to say yes or Ireland will be isolated.

‘There is almost unanimous agree- ment among EU leaders, including Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, that the sub- stance of the rejected Constitution hasn’t changed. The difference be- tween the original Constitution and the present Lisbon Treaty is one of

approach, rather than content.”

McKenna will speak at a public meeting in the West County Hotel this Thursday, March 7, at 8.30pm.

She has been asked to speak by the Ennis-based Irish Drivers As- sociation, who are also opposing the treaty.

“The blatant conspiracy by EU gov- ernments to deny their electorates the right to vote on this treaty is an affront to democracy,’ she continued.

“EU leaders openly admit that they have taken the rejected EU constitu- tion and renamed and repackaged

it in an unreadable format. Giscard D’Estaing said that public opinion will be led to adopt, without know- ing it, the proposals that we dare not present to them directly.

“All the earlier proposals will be in a new text, but will be hidden and disguised in some way. What was al- ready difficult to understand will be- come utterly incomprehensible, but the substance has been retained.”

Meanwhile, Ms McKenna will be back in Ennis on Monday, March 10 to debate Clare TD, Timmy Dooley (FF) on the treaty.

The pair will take part in a public meeting in The Old Ground Hotel next Monday, March 10, at 7pm.

Deputy Dooley is the vice chair- man of the Joint Oireachtas Com- mittee on European Affairs and will argue in in favour of the treaty.

Other members of the National Forum On Europe, on which is rep- resented all the political parties and leading national organisations, are expected to attend. Copies of the fo- rum’s recently-launched

under the Freedom of Infor- mation Act show that the proposed link had a benefit to cost ratio rang- ing from .13 to .17, pointing out that a 1.0 benefit to cost ratio is normally required.

The report points out that the link would allow a 25-minute journey to Limerick and a 65-minute journey to Crea

A note for the Minister for Trans- port, Noel Dempsey points out, “The poor outcome to the economic evalu- ation reflects the high specification of the line which is necessary to ensure an attractive service and the small benefits to users in time savings due to the relatively good road-based services serving the airport.”

A separate note for Minister Demp- sey concluded, “In essence, there is very significant capital outlay for a minimal return for passengers in terms of time saved.”

It continues, “There would be sig- nificant capital expenditure and on- going increase in subvention to ena- ble passengers to save very little time on their journeys.”

The report recommends that an ‘all bus’ option would give the same ben- efits at a much lower cost.

A separate memo concluded that the cheapest option of €245 million would involve an irregular service every 75 minutes at a cost 1n excess of that for the whole of the Ennis to Tuam Western Rail Corridor and would not achieve journey-time sav- ings. The report forecast that the most basic service would result in 260,000 journeys in the first year, while the full service, including fast trains to Galway, would provide one million journeys in the first year.

Apparently ending any hope of a rail-line into the future, the consult- ant’s report states in relation to popu- lation projections that “even the most optimistic projections do not materi-

ally alter the financial and economic analysis of the project”.

The report forecast that 15 per cent of airport users would use the rail- ihe

A separate memo points out that the “economic case for the rail-link is poor and that road-based public transport offers the best short term solution for public transport access to the airport”.

It goes on to state that at this stage, Irish Rail will be taking no further action on the issue and that it should be noted that the project is not in- cluded in Transport 21.

PLANS are running to schedule to open the first phase of the Galway to Limerick rail link next spring.

The move should see a connection between Ennis and Athenry up and running within the year.

larnnrod Eireann is seeking per- mission from Galway County Coun- cil for stations at Gort, Ardrahan and Craughwell. The company says that it is hoped that this section will be open for business next spring.

The investment to complete the re- development of the line between En- nis and Athenry is €106 million.

Chief Executive Officer of the En-

nis Chamber of Commerce, Rita McInerney, said that businesses would warmly welcome the opening of the link.

But she added that the issue of crossover connections needed to be addressed now.

“Crossovers need to be looked at for Athenry, Oranmore and probably Craughwell to ensure that the fre- quency of links is sufficient if there are problems like a breakdown.

‘We are very conscious of this, par- ticularly looking at what happened with the Ennis to Limerick line.

“That had to be closed because of flooding and that’s not a situation we want to see with Galway”, she said.

PASSENGER numbers on the En- nis-Limerick line have increased by almost 40 per cent since the line was re-opened in 2004.

Figures released yesterday by Irish Rail show that 200,000 journeys were made on the line last year, an increase of 39 per cent on the 144,000 journeys that were recorded on the line in its first full year of op- eration in 2004.

According to the Irish Rail Busi- ness Manager for the mid-west, Jim Gallivan, the 200,000 journeys that were recorded on the line last year represented an increase of 20,000 on the 180,000 journeys recorded in paul ete?

The 2006 figure was, in turn, an increase on the 166,000 journeys on 2005.

‘The steady increase is very posi- tive as it reflects that passenger num- bers on the line are on a continuous upward graph,” said Mr Gallivan.

However, the line has been closed since the first week of February due to flooding.

Mr Gallivan yesterday conceded that, at the earliest, it would be March 15 or 16 before the line would be re- opened. “All we can say at this time is that the line will be re-opened in March, sometime after those dates.”

Mr Gallivan confirmed that it was costing Irish Rail €4,000 to €5,000 a week to provide buses to replicate the train timetable. He also con-

firmed that there had been a 20 per cent drop off in passengers who were opting not to take the replacement bus service.

Mr Gallivan confirmed that the Office of Public Works (OPW) had engaged consultants to carry out an assessment of the flooding at the scene. He said passenger traffic on the rail-line had allowed Irish Rail to meet all operational costs in running the service. The service was facing increased competition from road transport but at peak-time, the train was the fastest method by far of get- ting into Limerick.

“If you are travelling by road when you get to the Coonagh roundabout outside Limerick, it could take you 10 minutes or an hour,’ he said.

THE Strand Restaurant and Guest- house, Kilkee and Murphy Black’s Restaurant, Kilkee are the latest es- tablishments to be awarded Seafood Circle membership by Bord lascaigh Mhara (BIM).

Both restaurants also have a lit- tle more in common than achieving Seafood Circle membership. Johnny Redmond, owner and head chef at The Strand Restaurant and Guest- house, and Mary Murphy (nee Red- mond), owner and head chef of Mur- phy Black’s Restaurant are brother and sister.

“My sister and I are thrilled we’ve both achieved Seafood Circle mem- bership,’ said Johnny Redmond.

‘More and more diners are order- ing seafood from our menus.

“The Seafood Circle plaque out-

side our doors will assure new and existing customers that both estab- lishments have excellent seafood and provide quality service.”

The total number of Seafood Circle members in Clare is now eight.

These are Cullinans Seafood Res- taurant and Guesthouse, Doolin; Morrissey’s Seafood Bar and Grill, Doonbeg; René Cusack, Ennis; Bar- rtra Seafood Restaurant, Lahinch; Vaughans Anchor Inn, Liscannor; and Burren Smokehouse, Lisdoon- Weve Ite

The BIM Seafood Circle recognis- es and awards hospitality and retail businesses that consistently deliver the highest standards of seafood and Service.

During February and March 2008, 132 Irish restaurants, pubs and sea- food retailers will be awarded BIM Seafood Circle Membership.

BRAZILIAN beef is back on the table, literally, after the EU bottled it’s month long ban on beef imports from the South American country.

The farming organisations have been up in arms about the decision to recommence importing cattle from Brazil, with Clare farmer and ICSA General secretary, Eddie Punch, de- scribing the decision as stunning and ObTSeabrianetee

“ICSA has always maintained that nothing short of a full ban would ever be acceptable, and we have proven that the Brazilians cannot be trusted. It is inconceivable that the Brazilians should be taken at their word, without FVO inspections, giv- en their history of unreliability,” said the Cratloe man.

The ICSA, in one of a number of farm organisations, who have lodged complaint with the EU ombudsman, questioning the EU commission’s duty of care towards EU consumers.

Another is the ICMSA, whose pres- ident, Jackie Cahill, has condemned the decision by the EU Commission to permit the importation of beef from 106 Brazilian ranches to the European market.

“The news that the Commission has rolled-over in these circumstances is unfortunately as predictable as it 1s disappointing,” he said.

Meanwhile, the IFA are attempting to put a positive gloss on the situa-

tion, with President Padraig Walshe saying that saying that the decision to place the 106 Brazilian farms on a list for export to the EU will have no impact on Irish cattle prices as the volume will be no more than 2,000 tonnes.

According to the farming leader, the volume is negligible and less than | per cent of the 330,000 tonnes of beef imported from Brazil in 2006 and 2007.

“Nothing has changed in Brazil — the deficiencies still exist and their standards do not meet EU require- ments,” he said.

‘The Commission decision makes a mockery of European food trace- ability standards, with stringent regulations for European farmers and non-compliance for Brazilians. It is incredible in the light of the ad- mission by the Brazilian Agriculture Minister Reinhold Stephanes that untraceable beef had been exported by Brazil.”

IFA Livestock Chairman Michael Doran said that prior to the IFA cam- paign Brazil was exporting beef from between 10,000 and 15,000 farms to Europe, which failed to meet EU standards. “Initially, Brazil had at- tempted to have 2,800 farms cleared for export, but this was rejected by the EU because they failed to meet the necessary standards. After sev- eral rejections by the EU, Brazil reduced the list down to 106 farms involving 86,000 cattle,” he said.

After last week ‘French kiss’ with her French counterpart, Michel Barnier, the Minister for Agriculture, Mary Coughlan, is turning Japanese this week by leading an Enterprise Ireland visit to the far eastern nation WNL oo) .@

While the emphasis of the visit will be on food innovation as well as spe- cific sectoral innovation in the soft drinks and seafood processing sec- tors it is expected that the visit will facilitate the development of new trading opportunities.

“Japan is a world leader in pioneer- ing and developing the food and functional foods industry. This visit offers an opportunity to explore the potential for future collaborative research projects between Japanese and Irish food companies and food research institutes,” she said.

“The functional food and beverag-

es sector has grown to be one of the biggest global trends in food supply over the past 20 years.

“Ireland’s traditional strengths as a dairy and beverage producer along with our strong pharmaceutical in- dustry base, ample availability of quality raw materials, state-of-the- art food and drink research centres, and world class third level institu- tions, position us to become a lead- ing force in the functional foods sec- tor,’ he continued.

“We are also committed to emu- lating the collaborate approach be- tween Government, industry and the research community that has proved so successful in Japan.”

Also on the plane will be Mike Feeney, Director of Internationally Traded Business Sectors, Enterprise Ireland.

“A number of Enterprise Ireland clients are already collaborating with Japanese food companies who

are experts in this field of food sci- ence and processing,’ he said.

“Not alone will it benefit our clients to learn from Japanese expertise, but collaboration will also benefit Japa- nese food companies, offering them access to our leading-edge food sci- ence and technology research and access to a valuable and growing EU market for Functional Foods and Beverages.’

Six Irish soft drinks companies are participating in the Soft Drinks In- novation Study programme whereby they will meet with a number of key Japanese soft drinks manufacturers to evaluate emerging technology, packaging and product innovations in the sector.

In conjunction with Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM), six Irish seafood processing companies, will be in ex- amining the latest freezing technolo- gies with a view to transferring them back to Ireland.

IT’S 5.45am, South African time and the phone is ringing in the hotel room, an alarm call to get going. Downstairs in the SIlver Springs the dining room has opened early for the Irish. The bus for Mission- vale will leave at 6.30am. An array of every kind of cooked food, cold meat, cereal and exotic fresh food greets us as we stumble in, bleary eyed. It’s our first day on the Build- ing of Hope project. We arrived yesterday after travelling for thirty hours and thanks, Aer Lingus for adding more than three hours on to that with the loss of the Heathrow connection. There are almost 170 Clare volunteers who will be cross- ing you off the Christmas card list. And it’s only 4am back home for God’s sake! But the cheerful banner crew are undaunted. We board the bus and before a hammer is lifted we re greeted by staff of the centre, singing, waving Clare and Irish flags and then we get the tour of Mission- vale and the surrounding township. The level of deprivation is hard to take in on first sight, it contrasts con- fusingly with the neat, clean dress of the children who come to school in

the centre and play in the yard where later we eat lunch.

After the first lunch-break, kitchen staff start gathering up the leftovers.

“Do you compost that or feed it to the dogs or what?”’, a volunteer asks. TMC oD remot Misa URN Ce TIN LONG ers will eat whatever we have left. There is not enough money in the kitty to provide packed lunches for them as well as the Irish volunteers and we are used to eating while they are used to going hungry. It’s the last day that anyone eats a full lunch. But then, there’s none of us likely to starve anytime soon.

By day’s end at 5.30, 6pm or later as the week marches on, there are little clusters of children waiting in the playground. They love to talk to the Irish, and the smaller ones wrap themselves around you, climb on laps and stroke the women volunteers’ hair in fascination at the straightness. They are mostly orphans, hungry not just for food but for affection also.

By day two a lot of the volunteers have bought bags of sweets to give to the children who wait at the gate for work to finish. It’s a heart-rend- ing exercise.

The children, anxious for any bit of a treat mob the volunteers and it’s

impossible to have something for everyone, there are so many.

The staff and African workers on the project ask on day one _ that volunteers leave them their clothes When they go home. The women want trainers, t-shirts and shorts. The men ask for work-boots. One of the Africans is using a whacker with no shoes on his feet.

Each evening, the volunteers hit the showers and go down for food and cold beer. Some evenings, with the red African dust lining our throats, the cold beer is the first priority. By ten everyone is singing, laughing and oar Denes

Missionvale may exist in the midst of poverty and death. But being here, and helping to build hope, we have never felt more alive.

THE biggest thing about the tiny baby boy is his eyes. They stare in alarm out of a face that is sunken and a body that is covered in the open sores which are the tell-tale sign of infection with the HIV virus.

He is nine months old, but to lift him up is to discover that he weights little more than a large teddy-bear.

His mother looks almost as sick as he does and there is no alarm in her eyes, only defeat.

Sr Ethel wants to introduce the pair, who have come for help to the Mis- sionvale clinic, to a volunteer.

When the young mother leaves Ethel confides that her little boy will probably not live to see his first birthday.

“We have to work very closely with her now. She is close to giving up. She’s saying ‘what’s the point?’ It’s when people go that far down that they slip away”, says Ethel. “This is the face of AIDS in Africa.’’, she SEAS

Hope is a very valuable commodity at Missionvale, particularly for the children who come every day to be fed as part of the Orphans and Vul- nerable Children programme.

Around 3pm, they arrive and sit in lines on the grass of the school playground. There are 500 or more children involved. They sing togeth- er and then sit quietly with hands outstretched for a sandwich and the

jOLOLB Cod O1 Mo) ONTO SloXO MM OM UDLMMCDMDOL Gm Zen(on| kitchen staff have been preparing all morning.

The older children help marshall the younger ones into lines and they carry the crates of sandwiches for distribution.

These are the children who have had their childhood snatched from them by being made heads of house- holds often before they are ten years old. The AIDS virus has taken their parents and caregivers. Look into their eyes and you will see adults looking back.

Parents don’t have to be dead for a child to be an orphan in the town- ship. Many have parents who are too ill to provide care for them. Many more belong to families who have been defeated by poverty, hunger, disease or alcoholism.

Sr Ethel feeds these children and also supports the older children who have been cast into the parenting role to ensure they can continue going to school, getting an education which will provide them with wings to fly the grinding poverty trap.

Her investment in the future of the youngsters is already paying off.

Many who came to her when her only facility was the shade of a tree are now working as care-giv- ers, teachers and clerical staff at the centre and many more have fulfilled their contract with Missionvale and have gone out into their brave new Ke) u lem

SR ETHEL Normoyle is trying to decide exactly how many beds will be provided in the medical ward of the new care centre and hospice built by the Irish.

“Tm thinking thirteen beds, be- cause I want families to be able to come and spend time with the pa- tients – we don’t want them on top of each other’, she says,

The thinking is typical of the ethos of Missionvale. “Only the best is good enough for the poor’, is a say- ing often on Ethel Normoyle’s lips.

The 9,000 square foot centre will help her to provide much more of the best. The best quality of care, the best quality of life and the best chance for many of the children who have nothing else.

One section will be used as a treat- ment room, where treatment will be holistic . Drug regimes will be drawn up but clients will also be giv- en space to tell the care givers and medical staff about other aspects of their lives and needs.

The wards are places where the very sick will be taken care of and while

many will find in them a place to end their lives in dignity, many more will be treated with retroviral medication and rehydration and go back to their families to fight another day.

The social worker and administra- tors who deal with a spaghetti junc- tion of red tape in securing state al- lowances and grants for the people of the township will have a space of their own to work in.

Another room will provide an edu- cation facility for people who are ill, to teach them how best to manage the HIV virus, to try to stay as well as possible and most importantly, the try to educate the township’s popula- tion in how they can prevent AIDS from claiming new victims.

Finally, there is one room which will constantly be filled with hap- piness. That is the room where pro- grammes for the orphans and vulner- able children will be held. That room will be where they will be taught, fed and valued. It will be constantly filled with song and laughter.