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January 30, 2006

Ahern Plays Down Findings Of IMC Report

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News About Ireland & The Irish

IT 01/31/06 Ahern Plays Down Findings Of IMC Report
IT 01/31/06 Hain To Announce Review Of NI Public Spending
DI 01/30/06 Moment Of Truth Nears- Thousands Honour BS Dead
DI 01/30/06 Parties Unite In Call For Justice
DI 01/30/06 Families Wait For Truth Over Bloody Sunday
BM 01/30/06 Loyalist Paras Pledge Future Peace
IT 01/30/06 Bishop Casey To Return Home Within Week
DI 01/30/06 Irish Language Daily Goes Global On The Net

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http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/ireland/2006/0131/97530466
1HM8IMCMAIN.html

Ahern Plays Down Findings Of IMC Report

Dan Keenan, Northern News Editor, & Jamie Smyth, European
Correspondent

Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern has played down
the importance of any finding in the Independent Monitoring
Commission report to be published tomorrow that the IRA is
still involved in criminality.

Sinn Féin has stepped up its condemnation of the IMC ahead
of its eighth report into paramilitary activity and
criminality.The party claimed the ceasefire watchdog's
membership and reports were "politically loaded,
discriminatory" and worked "to subvert the democratic
rights of the electorate".

The IMC is expected to confirm a broadly positive outlook
on current levels of activity by illegal groups, despite
continuing IRA involvement in intelligence-gathering and
crime. The report will be published amid new signs that the
UDA and UVF are considering their future activities
following last summer's move by the IRA. The British and
Irish governments are already looking to the next IMC
report in April hoping for a "cleaner" report which will
enable the British prime minister and the Taoiseach to
press the DUP into dealing with republicans.

"The IMC made it quite clear publicly that it would
probably never be able to give a clean bill of health,"
said Dermot Ahern, who was attending an EU foreign
ministers meeting in Brussels.

"You can't expect that when you turn on a light that
everything will be rosy in the garden. It would be naive to
think that you can do that after 35 years of violence."

Asked to clarify what level of IRA criminality was
acceptable, Mr Ahern said criminality that was not aligned
with the political process, and not in any way connected to
the ideals of the IRA, was a matter for the security forces
to deal with.

A well-placed Irish source has suggested to The Irish Times
that Tony Blair's contacts with the DUP leadership in
particular will prove crucial in the next few weeks. Multi-
party talks involving the two governments are scheduled to
begin next Monday.

The Rev Ian Paisley has already stated that a political
deal to re-establish the Executive at Stormont is not
likely for the foreseeable future.

However, if Sinn Féin moves closer to acceptance of the
PSNI and the next IMC report confirms the IRA is sticking
to its commitment made last July not to engage in any
activity, Mr Blair will be better placed to press the
leading unionist party to talk to Sinn Féin.

The two governments will hold discussions under the
auspices of the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference
in London tomorrow morning.

The Taoiseach Bertie Ahern said he had not seen the IMC
report, but that he hoped it "will show that incrementally
we've made progress across all areas since the last report
in September." In relation to the issue of criminality, he
said it was "more difficult" but in that things were "not
as clear cut" because it was more difficult to establish
whether those involved were still in the republican
movement or acting on orders.

Tt would be "unfair to focus" on any specific finding on
this issue at the the expense of an overall finding of
significant progess. "From a Governmentt point of view
we're not happy that anything at any level happens," he
said. However, the Government was "sensible to know" that
getting all activity to cease was part of a process, and
that it would be very hard for the republican leadership to
get all activities to cease immediately.They hoped to "move
into intensive talks with the parties next week and then
try to build on that up to the April period where we want
to get substantive movement"

© The Irish Times

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http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/ireland/2006/0131/33747496
36HM8HAIN.html

Hain To Announce Review Of NI Public Spending

Dan Keenan

The Northern Secretary will today announce a thorough
review of public spending and signal a new, wider approach
to North-South arrangements.

Peter Hain is expected to refer to opportunities for
enhanced economic cross-Border co-operation as well as to
an audit of North-South social opportunities.

He will outline his ideas in a keynote speech to be
delivered at Stormont at a conference organised by the
Fabian Society.

Mr Hain could signal a new North-South strategy for
investment spanning both parts of Ireland and greater
linking of markets on either side of the Border.

It is understood the speech may refer to the Republic's
economic success and suggest lessons for Northern Ireland.
This could include the possibility of "outsourcing" jobs
across the Border.

The speech is further expected to confirm a radical
reassessment of the allocation and expenditure of public
funds in Northern Ireland, especially in relation to
education.

The Irish Times understands that 2007 will be designated a
"base year" for a review of public spending which will take
two years to complete.

The review will address the funding of education in view of
the falling school registers and the range of state-
controlled, maintained, integrated and Irish-language
schools all supported by the Department of Education.

There are 50,000 empty desks in Northern Ireland classrooms
and this is expected to rise to 80,000 within the decade.

Some 130 schools are currently under construction or major
upgrading.

© The Irish Times

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‘Moment Of Truth Nears’ - Thousands Turned Out Yesterday To
Honour The Bloody Sunday Dead

“It has the potential to send either a wave of hope or a
sea of despair to all the other victims of state violence
on this island.” – Kay Duddy — sister of Jackie, shot dead
by a British paratrooper on Bloody Sunday — on the
importance of the Saville inquiry

By Eamonn Houston in Derry
30/01/2006

Thousands of people yesterday retraced the route of the
1972 civil rights demonstration that ended in 13 deaths on
the streets of Derry on Bloody Sunday.

They heard calls for 2006 to be the year that justice is
done.

British paratroopers shot dead 13 civilians on January 30,
1972. A further man died in June that year as a result of
his wounds.

Relatives of the dead bearing 14 crosses led yesterday’s
procession as it wound its way from the Creggan estate to
Rossville Street in the Bogside, the scene of the Bloody
Sunday killings.

Prominent Sinn Féin and SDLP politicians attended the
commemorative march. Marchers held photographs of those
killed, and over 3,000 candles were distributed to the
crowd to honour all those who died in the conflict. The
candles were lit in a misty Bogside as the rally approached
its close.

At Free Derry wall, the main address was delivered by Kay
Duddy, whose brother Jack was shot dead as he fled members
of the first battalion of the Parachute Regiment.

Ms Duddy thanked the people of Derry for their support over
the years. She said that the findings of Lord Saville, who
oversaw the second inquiry into the events of the day, had
the potential to send “a wave of hope or a sea of despair”
to other victims of state violence in Ireland.

Lord Saville is due to publish his report later this year.
The Bloody Sunday inquiry was the largest tribunal of its
kind in British legal history.

Ms Duddy said: “2006 will be a challenging year for all of
us. In many ways, it will mark a potential watershed for
the campaign for truth and justice concerning Bloody
Sunday. It also has the potential to send either a wave of
hope or a sea of despair to all the other victims of state
violence on this island.”

Ms Duddy said Bloody Sunday had been viewed as a litmus
test for the British government in Ireland “and as a beacon
of hope for many other families and campaigns who have not
had the opportunities nor witnessed the progress that we
have achieved.”

She added: “We are conscious that there are many families
throughout Ireland who are looking to the Saville report to
get a sense of whether the British state is now prepared to
face up to the consequences of their attitudes and their
actions in Ireland.


“For make no mistake about it — the true challenge of 2006
will be whether the British state can come to terms with
the conclusions that I am confident the Saville inquiry
will deliver, and that paramount among them will be that
British soldiers murdered 14 innocent men and boys and
wounded another 14 innocent men and women on the streets of
Derry on the 30th of January, 1972. That is the challenge
that will confront the British state when the Saville
report is published because the tribunal really has no
alternative finding to offer.”

Ms Duddy said the Bloody Sunday families were confident
that Lord Saville’s report would finally exonerate the
victims and affirm their innocence.

“And so we are fast approaching the moment of truth and the
moment of justice. The Saville report will probably be
delivered within the next six months. But whenever it is
delivered, I am confident that certain conclusions will be
contained, simply because certain conclusions are
unavoidable.

“So what do we expect from the Saville inquiry in real
terms? How will the Saville report rise to the challenge
and, in light of the evidence that was presented, what are
our expectations?

“Firstly, we expect the Saville report to state clearly
that British soldiers committed murder on the streets of
Derry on Bloody Sunday.

“Secondly, that there was never any justification for any
of the British army’s actions carried out on the day.

“Thirdly, that the circumstances and atmosphere created
within the Parachute Regiment immediately prior to their
deployment in Derry were a direct contributor to their
murderous actions.

“Fourthly, culpability for events on the day lies with the
British government ministers and British army officers who
made the decision to murder the civil rights movement on
the streets of Derry, and that the British state must
finally take full legal and political responsibility for
the actions of their agents.”

Ms Duddy said the “lies, untruths and evasions” that
characterised British state policy towards Bloody Sunday
should be “forever purged from the history books”.

“Only then will the Saville inquiry have delivered on the
challenge that it was set — to tell the truth that so many
of us already knew,” she told yesterday’s rally.

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Parties Unite In Call For Justice

As republicans and nationalists reflect on the Derry
massacre they reiterate the call for equality

Eamonn Houston
30/01/2006

Power-sharing in the North must be restored to end the
current political vacuum, a Derry assembly member told
thousands who had gathered yesterday to commemorate the
34th anniversary of the Bloody Sunday massacre.

Sinn Féin’s Raymond McCartney said: “The leadership of
political unionism in the North fear change and that is why
they refuse to engage with republicans and oppose power-
sharing.

“They have run out of excuses. Their rationale for not
engaging with republicans is threadbare.

“Now is the time for all those who are genuinely interested
in seeing power-sharing in the North and the peace process
advanced to show leadership.

“Last year, despite all of the short-term difficulties and
obstacles placed in the way of progress, the IRA looked to
the future and took the decision to end its armed campaign
and deal with the issue of arms. They set out their intent
to further their objectives by peaceful means,” Mr
McCartney said.

The former hunger striker said he was honoured to speak at
yesterday’s rally in honour of the 14 civilians killed as a
result of Bloody Sunday.

Mr McCartney described Bloody Sunday as “one of the most
seminal days in my life, and I know that experience is one
shared by many of my generation”.

The Foyle assembly member added: “Whatever idealism we had
that the civil rights movement could deliver for us
equality of opportunity and citizenship, our hope and
idealism collided with the might of the British state and
it lay crushed alongside those who were killed and wounded
only yards from where we now gather.

“The British state and its unionist allies could not
contend with giving nationalists and republicans equality
because the Northern state was formed and maintained on
inequality and injustice.

“Those in power often use the policy of placing blame on
those who are without blame – and guilt on those who are
without guilt.”

Mr McCartney said Lord Saville’s report should live up to
the expectations of the families of the dead because,
otherwise, the campaign for justice would continue.

“It is up to them to place blame on those who are to blame
and to place guilt on those who are guilty,” he said.

“I would like to take this opportunity to commend the
families and the wounded for their dignity, integrity and
endurance on what has been a long journey in their campaign
for justice and truth.”

Mr McCartney said Sinn Féin would push for equality and
change on the island.

“Equality means change. Change in our health services, in
our education systems, in the way our economy is organised,
change in how we are policed.

“Let there be no mistake. Change is required throughout the
length and breadth of this island – north, south, east and
west. Sinn Féin will work to bring about that change.

“Those who oppose change will hide behind private briefings
from Special Branch, which are then passed onto the IMC.

“The time for excuses is over. Now is the time for those in
political leadership to do our job.

“Republicans have shown our commitment to the peace process
by our words and actions. Others need to do the same.

“There are major challenges ahead and, in particular, for
the British government and the unionist parties,” said Mr
McCartney.

SDLP Derry councillor Colm Eastwood described Bloody Sunday
as “a crucial moment in this country’s history”.

“We should never forget that it was also a crushing moment
for so many Derry families. Too often we overlook the
tragic human consequences of the conflict here.

“The hurt it caused. The homes it destroyed. The hopes it
shattered,” he said.

Mr Eastwood also urged political progress.

“My generation wants to move forward. We want to build an
Ireland where conflict, division and despair will be the
footnotes of our tragic history. And justice, prosperity
and equality will be chapter headings in the new book we
will write together.

“To get there, we know we have to leave the past behind.
But let me be clear. We will never get there unless we
leave the past behind on a moral basis. Not through immoral
legislation like the Northern Ireland (Offences) Bill,
rightly described as ‘diabolical’ by John Kelly.”

The 22-year-old SDLP councillor added: “I march in
solidarity with the Bloody Sunday families and with the
injured.

“You stood tall for truth against the lies and cover-up of
Widgery. You will stand only for full truth from Saville.
In the face of provocation, insult and abuse, your dignity
has shone through.

“Whatever may come in the time ahead, your cause will win
through,” he said.

Mr Eastwood said the victims and survivors of conflict must
be put at the top of the political agenda so that a
“recovery process” could begin – “by ensuring that all
victims and survivors have the opportunity to have their
stories heard, instead of ensuring the victim makers can
avoid having to face theirs,” he said.

“There is no failsafe mechanism through which we will be
able to meet all victims’ needs. But that does not absolve
us from doing all we can.

“We need to give more to victims than the unfulfilled
promises they have got to date. Instead of patronising them
with empty and insincere promises, it is our duty to make
good for all victims the promise of truth we made to them.”

Mr Eastwood said all victims should be treated equally and
referred to the killing of Robert McCartney in Belfast a
year ago.

“The time has come for truth and justice for all,” he said.

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Families Wait For Truth Over Bloody Sunday

This week marks the 34th anniversary of the Bloody Sunday
outrage and it is particularly significant for victims’
families as they await the findings of Saville’s second
inquiry, in their long search for truth

Eamonn Houston
30/01/2006

The year 2006 – 34 years after British paratroopers killed
13 innocent civilians on the streets of Derry – is loaded
with expectation and some degree of apprehension for the
families of the Bloody Sunday dead and those injured on
January 30, 1972.

This year, Lord Saville of Newdigate will publish the
findings of the second inquiry into the events of that day
and the biggest tribunal of inquiry set up in British legal
history.

For 34 years, the families have marched, as they did again
yesterday, with tens of thousands of supporters. Their
message has been consistently simple. They have always
craved nothing less than the truth about why their loved
ones were killed by British soldiers at the close of a
civil rights demonstration.

The families and the people of Derry have always known the
truth. It was murder on a scale that has often been cited
as the main primer of what became known as the Troubles.

As the families of the dead stand on the cusp of a defining
year of their justice campaign, they are both hopeful and
determined. Nothing less than a full statement of innocence
and a declaration that British troops murdered their loved
ones will be accepted. The families also expect Lord
Saville to indicate the involvement of the British
government in what happened on the day.

Saville has a heavy burden. To deliver a report that has
weighed the evidence of around 2,500 people, 921 of whom
appeared on the witness stand, is a task in itself. To get
as near to the truth of what happened on the day 34 years
later is a massive undertaking.

The marathon inquiry, which sat in Derry’s Guildhall and in
Methodist Hall at Westminster, has also taken its toll on
the families of the Bloody Sunday dead. It was often hard
for them to hear military witnesses, including the top
military men of the day, continue to stick to stories that
were blatantly flawed, if not completely fabricated.

To see some of the former “elite” troops of the Parachute
Regiment in the flesh was a traumatic experience.

As people marched again yesterday, on a bright frosty and
sunny day reminiscent of the weather conditions on January
30, 1972, the families and the people of Derry who have
sustained their justice campaign down the years were more
determined than ever that the civilians killed on Bloody
Sunday should have their innocence emphatically affirmed
and the fact that they were murdered stated in the clearest
possible terms.

“If not, we’ll march for another 30 years,” John Kelly,
whose 17-year-old brother Michael was shot dead at a
makeshift barricade on Rossville Street, told Daily
Ireland.

His brother’s killer, known only to the Bloody Sunday
inquiry by the cipher Soldier F, sat passively in the
witness stand as he was cross-examined. Soldier F spoke
matter-of-factly and appeared devoid of emotion, displaying
all of the bearing of a regimental schoolteacher.

On the other hand, the Bloody Sunday families were consumed
with emotion. It would be a defining moment in their
justice campaign.

But they were safe in the knowledge that their people, and
people worldwide, were aware that these soldiers had
committed a crime against innocence.

So big was the crime that the Parachute Regiment has
virtually written the actions of its first battalion on the
streets of Derry out of its history.

In recent times, the families underwent further trauma on
the back of the now dumped Northern Ireland (Offences)
Bill, which would have allowed the killers of Bloody Sunday
to be untouched by courts of law.

For John Kelly and the other families, the legislation was
rank.

“This was a diabolical piece of legislation. The soldiers
who killed our loved ones should not only be brought before
a court but prosecuted as well,” he said.

Lord Saville must pave the way for further legal action to
be taken against the soldiers who fired live rounds into a
fleeing crowd in the Bogside.

They must not escape. The families rightly point to these
cases being different from other mass killings carried out
during the course of the Troubles.

British prime minister Tony Blair concurred with this view
when he announced the setting up of the new inquiry in
1998.

“Bloody Sunday was different because, where the state’s own
authorities are concerned, we must be as sure as we can of
the truth, precisely because we pride ourselves on our
democracy and respect for the law and on the
professionalism and dedication of our security forces,” he
said.

As such, the events of Bloody Sunday were a “definite
matter of public importance”.

At the same time, Lord Saville outlined the difficulties
that would face the search for the truth of Bloody Sunday.

“The events with which we are concerned took place 26 years
ago. We therefore have a very difficult task in trying to
find the truth,” he said in 1998.

The families and the thousands who crammed the streets of
Derry for the civil rights demonstration are fully aware of
the truth. They know that people fled in terror as British
troops eyed them through the cross hairs of their guns.
They know that there was no “fusillade of bombs and
bullets” being directed at the paras as the soldiers began
their so-called scoop-up operation.

For Derry people, the facts are safe knowledge. They have
watched and supported as the families of the dead conducted
a dignified and just campaign in the face of cover-ups and
insults.

They came in their thousands again yesterday to reaffirm
their belief in innocence. They want Lord Saville and the
British government to acknowledge a grave wrong, and the
events of that day and its aftermath to stand as a beacon
of healing. This year is a year that can deliver closure.

It is also an opportunity for a wider healing process. For
the families, Saville’s findings will mark a further
milestone on a long and arduous journey. The majority want
justice to be seen to be done in the courts thereafter. In
the words of Emily Dickinson: “Truth is such a rare thing,
it is a delight to tell it.”

That would be the hope.

The Saville inquiry into Bloody Sunday will publish its
findings later this year.

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http://www.breakingnews.ie/2006/01/30/story242361.html

Loyalist Paras Pledge Future Peace

30/01/2006 - 17:24:11

Northern Ireland’s big two loyalist paramilitary
organisations will co-operate on a major initiative to
abandon all violence for good, a senior source said
tonight.

Ulster Defence Association and Ulster Volunteer Force
bosses are expected to make a pact not to recruit any men
thrown out of either group during attempts to move away
from crime.

Both terror groups have been holding internal talks over
their future directions following the IRA’s decision to end
its armed campaign and decommission.

But with senior loyalists unconvinced that all Provo guns
were destroyed last September, an imminent disarmament move
by the Protestant paramilitaries was ruled out.

Disbandment of either the UDA or UVF is also highly
unlikely.

Instead the discussions, which British government officials
are being kept abreast of, are centred on moving the
organisations away from sectarianism and racketeering
towards greater political and cultural involvement.

High ranking loyalists said the process has already yielded
results in parts of Belfast where levels of drug dealing
has diminished.

Part of this is due to the new regime installed in the east
of the city by the UDA since its flamboyant commander Jim
“Doris Day” Gray was ousted and assassinated last year.

“We’re both involved in processes,” an authoritative source
confirmed.

“There will have to be a cross-over at a few stages along
the line.

“If people are expelled from either organisation the other
won’t take them in.

“There shouldn’t be a need to recruit anymore anyway.
There’s no war out there.”

The UVF has set up a conflict transformation panel to draw
up its future strategy.

No deadlines were installed, but it has been consulting
thousands of members in units, or battalions, across
Northern Ireland.

UDA contact with representatives from the British
government and General John de Chastelain’s international
disarmament body has also continued.

“Personally I wouldn’t see disbandment as likely,” a senior
loyalist said.

“The IRA said it has left the stage, but P O’Neill (IRA pen
name) issued a statement at Christmas.

“We’re not foolish enough to believe the IRA gave up all
their weapons last year, so what loyalists do with theirs
has to be dealt with.

“What happens is another thing. That would be for the
interlocutor and de Chastelain.

“But we heard for so long that the IRA was going to make a
seismic move on arms then it kept being put back. We will
not be making any promises.”

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http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/ireland/2006/0131/29617000
33HMRAFFERTY.html

Rafferty Family Pleased With US Envoy Meeting

Conor Lally

The family of Joseph Rafferty, who was shot dead by a
former member of the IRA in Dublin last year, has met the
US special envoy for Northern Ireland just ahead of a trip
to the US.

Mr Rafferty's sister Esther Uzell last night said two Sinn
Féin elected representatives had information on the killing
which they had not given to the Garda. She believed if it
was, it would result in an immediate arrest.

She was "very pleased" with how yesterday's talks in Dublin
had gone between her family, Mitchell Reiss and US
ambassador James C Kenny.

"He [ Mr Reiss] listened to everything we had to say and
I'm very confident that he will be able to help us . . . we
discussed a lot of the evidence about Joseph's murder which
we have already discussed with the Independent Monitoring
Commission."

Ms Uzell, her brother-in-law Bart Little, her sister Sandra
and Fianna Fáil councillor Gary Keegan will travel to the
US for a week on Saturday for a series of meetings with US
politicians.

Mr Rafferty, a father of one, was gunned down last April in
the Ongar housing estate in west Dublin. He was originally
from the south inner city.

In the months leading up to his murder, he had become
embroiled in a dispute with a family from the south inner
city. The dispute had its roots in a fight the previous
October at which three brothers from the area assaulted two
members of Mr Rafferty's family.

Mr Rafferty was told a number of times that he would be
"got" by the IRA.

© The Irish Times

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http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/ireland/2006/0131/39293436
44HM8CASEY.html

Bishop Casey Expected To Return Home Within Week

Patsy McGarry, Religious Affairs Correspondent

Bishop Éamonn Casey will return to Ireland within a week
but is not likely to assume residence at his Co Galway home
for sometime yet, the Bishop of Galway Dr Martin Drennan
indicated yesterday.

Whether Bishop Casey "does or does not make an apology was
a matter for him, not me" though some thought a statement
might be appropriate, Dr Drennan also said.

Bishop Drennan hoped "for a quiet homecoming" and planned
to say Mass in Shanaglish Church at Beagh in south Galway
with Bishop Casey shortly after he had taken up residence
there.

Dr Drennan said the response in Galway to Bishop Casey's
return had been "very positive." People in Galway had
"always been positive" on the matter.

They "wanted closure" believing that after so much time,
"forgiveness must come into this after all that has
happened. Time has moved on. There were a few exceptions,
but by and large the response [ to news of the homecoming]
had been very positive," he said. "We are at our best when
we are a forgiving people."

Informed sources confirmed last night that Bishop Casey
would return to Ireland for good over the coming weekend.
It is believed he will stay with relatives pending the
outcome of a Garda investigation into allegations of child
sex abuse made against him last November.

To date it is understood he has not been spoken to by
gardaí in connection with the allegations.

The middle-aged woman who made the allegations claimed the
abuse took place more than three decades ago in Ireland.
She has made similar unproven allegations against others in
the past.

Bishop Casey has vigorously denied the allegations and had
said he would not return to Ireland until formally notified
by civil and church authorities that he had been cleared.

He had to stand aside from active ministry in the parish of
Staplefield, west Sussex, in the diocese of Arundel and
Brighton in the south of England, when the allegations were
made. He has been living in another parish there since,
although he spent Christmas and new year in Ireland.

It is understood that rather than waiting in England for
the investigation to be completed, he has been persuaded to
return to Ireland to await its outcome.

© The Irish Times

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Irish Language Daily Goes Global On The Net

Internet boost for the world’s only daily Irish language
newspaper

30/01/2006

The ever-growing global Irish language diaspora will
receive a fillip this Monday morning when the world’s only
Irish language daily newspaper becomes available to be
downloaded on the web.

On Monday, Irish language enthusiasts who have been seeking
this service from as far afield as Australia, the USA and
the Far East will be able to download PDF versions from
Lá’s popular website www.nuacht.com . This will enable them
to download and print the newspaper, which has recently
enhanced its appeal to learners with snappy English
language summaries for its hard-hitting news stories and
columns, and read it in San Francisco, Singapore or Sydney
on the same day as it’s being read in Dublin, Belfast or
Conamara.

“For a long time we’ve understood that Lá has a readership
throughout the world and this has been backed up by the
statistics for our website – www.nuacht.com – which is
getting up to 1,000 visitors per day, most of which are
from overseas,” said Lá editor Concubhar Ó Liatháin.

“The global Irish diaspora is showing an increasing
interest in their heritage and a large part of this is a
passion to learn their language. The numbers availing of
the internet services provided by the likes of TG4, RTÉ
Raidió na Gaeltachta, Beo and Leabhar.ie is proof positive
of the hunger that’s out there for more fresh material ‘as
Gaeilge’. What better way to learn it in a contemporary
context than catch up on the news and opinions in the
world’s only Irish language daily!”

He explained that calls have come to the office from
distant locations across the globe where Irish speakers and
those learning the language want to avail of such a
service. Initially the service will be free. After three
months or so, a decision will be taken whether to continue
on that basis or whether to make it available on a paid
subscription: “From next Monday, Lá will be able to call
itself, without any hint of exaggeration, the World’s Irish
Language Daily Paper!”

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