Irish Newsbriefs 4/23 PM Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit News from the Wire Services Re: Ireland & the Irish PA 04/23/99 22:16 Catholics To Snub Cromwell Celebrations PA 04/23/99 22:14 400th Anniversary Of Oliver Cromwell PA 04/23/99 20:31 Search For Student After Friend's Body Found AP 04/23/99 20:00 Today In History PA 04/23/99 12:06 More Mainland Police Called To Murder Probe PA 04/23/99 12:06 Truant Boy Dies In Lift Tragedy PA 04/23/99 11:57 Ulster Warder Sickness `Costing #8m A Year' RT 04/23/99 08:43 Irish Unions, Firms In Joint Call For Peace ****************************** Catholics To Snub Cromwell Celebrations PA 04/23/99 22:16 Copyright 1999 PA News By Brian Farmer, PA News Catholics will snub celebrations to mark the 400th anniversary of the birth of Oliver Cromwell tomorrow. A church service and 17th Century street market will be held in Huntingdon, Cambs, where Cromwell was born. But the local Catholic Church said it would be playing no part because of the hatred many Catholics felt towards Cromwell. Cromwell was involved in two massacres of Irish Catholics - at Drogheda and Wexford and was quoted as saying: "It is the righteous judgment of God upon these barbarous wretches." Father Nicholas Kearney, parish at St Michael the Archangel, Huntingdon, said parishioners did not think it appropriate to commemorate Cromwell. "It's very difficult. Many people remember Cromwell for what he did in England and have no idea of his role in Ireland and why Irish Catholics feel so bitter about him," said Fr Kearney. "But we did not feel in would be appropriate for us to celebrate the life of this man and we shall be taking no part in the service." Huntingdon will be closed to traffic while the street market and birthday party takes place. ****************************** 400th Anniversary Of Oliver Cromwell PA 04/23/99 22:14 Copyright 1999 PA News By Brian Farmer, PA News The "devilish" legacy of Oliver Cromwell - whose 400th anniversary takes place tomorrow - still casts a shadow over relations between Britain and Ireland, according to a senior Northern Ireland Catholic priest. Monsignor Denis Faul says it will probably be at least another generation before the "curse of Cromwell" is finally lifted from Irish Catholics. Cromwell, celebrated as a founding father of parliamentary democracy in England, is remembered for his "ethnic cleansing" of Catholics by many Irish people. "Unfortunately the legacy of Cromwell's puritanism and his slaughter of the Mass is still alive in Northern Ireland," said Mgr Faul. "It is not as powerful as it was but it is still very much alive. He will always be remembered I think but hopefully if we can establish a proper lasting peace then the memory of Cromwell will be very distant next generation." Cromwell was involved in two massacres of Irish Catholics - at Drogheda and Wexford and was quoted as saying: "It is the righteous judgment of God upon these barbarous wretches." Mgr Faul added: "Many people in Ireland cannot understand why Cromwell is celebrated by the English. Here he would be regarded by many as some akin to Slobodan Milosevic. What he did amounted to ethnic cleansing. "The way the Serbs are behaving to the Kosovans is the way Oliver Cromwell behaved in Ireland - butchering men, women and children. The curse of Cromwell is the worst kind of curse you can put on anyone. He is remembered as a devil." Historians have always held starkly differing views on Cromwell, who was born in Huntingdon, Cambs, on April 25 1599. Some have viewed him as an enlightened figure who believed he was doing God's will. Others have classed him as a ambitious tyrant. Cromwell was born into a wealthy landowning family but ranked near the bottom of the landowning elite. For the first 40 years of his life he lifted in relative obscurity and played no role in national politics. He rose to power during the Civil War battles of the 1640s, joining the parliamentary army and revealing himself to be a brilliant military commander. As the Royalist army was defeated he proved to be an accomplished military leader and statesman and became England's only Lord Protector in 1653. He earned in monstrous reputation among Catholics after being sent to crush Irish rebellions in the late 1640s and early 1650s following the execution of King Charles I. Following his death in 1658 the parliamentary cause fragmented and the monarchy and house of Stuart were restored. Professor Colin Davis, leading Cromwell expert and history lecturer at the University of East Anglia, in Norwich, said Cromwell was a complex paradox who would remain one of the most famous figures in English history. "I have been teaching history around the world for many years. And wherever you go in the world there are two British historical figures who people immediately feel they know something of - they are Cromwell and Elizabeth I. "There is almost a folklorish quality about a Cromwell. He is an extremely complex character who oscillates between enlightenment and tyranny. "I think people associate with him for a number of reasons. Here is a man who really came from nowhere. He was very close to being a yeoman farmer at the end of the 1620s. "He was a man who had never been involved in an military activity at all until at all. Then, at the age of 40, he gets involved in the Civil War and reveals a military brilliance that is just astonishing, and then rises to govern the country. "What is striking about him is that he comes in the aftermath of a period when we could have had a full-blown revolution. He comes on the back of this revolutionary ferment and he is looking to stabilise the situation." Professor Davis stressed the importance of now allowing Cromwell to affect relations between Britain and Ireland 400 years on. "His legacy had caused a large part of the problems there have been between Britain and Ireland," added Professor Davis. "When you look at Cromwell and Ireland, particularly after the New Model Army has taken Ireland there is a really strong language being used about a clean sheet. "But one has to look for some sort of healing and a way of moving forward and I think that is where historians have a job to do. The danger is that we can allow ourselves to become prisoners of the past if we simply allow these old scores to determine what we do in the present. "There is a real danger that Cromwell becomes a man for all seasons - that he is still a living presence. That cannot be right and that is where it is the historian's job to try and help. He added: "From an English perspective the paradox is absolutely fascinating. He is the first to summon a British parliament. He is pulling Britain, for better or worse, together." ****************************** Search For Student After Friend's Body Found PA 04/23/99 20:31 Copyright 1999 PA News By Padraic Flanagan, PA News A missing student was today being sought by police after the body of her companion was washed up on a beach in Wales. Esther Spillane, 22, from County Cork, Ireland, was last seen with a male friend after they enjoyed a night out at a seafront hotel earlier this week. The body of Christopher Lewis, 27, of Aberystwyth, was found yesterday washed up on the beach at Ynys-las, near Borth, six miles north of the university town. The couple were last seen together leaving the Bay Hotel in Marine Terrace, Aberystwyth shortly after midnight on Wednesday. Police investigating Miss Spillane's disappearance fear both may have drowned after going for a walk on the beach. A police helicopter, police launch and shore teams combed the coastline around the town yesterday but failed to find any trace of the missing woman. Miss Spillane was described as 5ft 10 ins tall, slim build with long redhair. She was wearing blue flared trousers, a blue sheepskin coat andsandals. ****************************** Today In History APO 04/23/99 20:00 Copyright 1999 The Associated Press By The Associated Press Today is Saturday, April 24, the 114th day of 1999. There are 251 days left in the year. Today's Highlight in History: On April 24, 1916, some 1,600 Irish nationalists launched the Easter Rising by seizing several key sites in Dublin, including the General Post Office. The rising was put down by British forces several days later. ****************************** More Mainland Police Called To Aid Lawyer Murder Probe PA 04/23/99 12:06 Copyright 1999 PA News By Ian Graham, PA News. More detectives from outside the Royal Ulster Constabulary are being drafted into Northern Ireland to join the murder squad hunting the killers of human rights lawyer Rosemary Nelson, it emerged today. But Ulster Security Minister Adam Ingram ruled out any steps being taken to remove the RUC from the investigation of the solicitor's death in Lurgan, Co Armagh last month despite growing calls for such a move. Mr Ingram said the "bottom line" was that in the opinion of English officers and the FBI "RUC involvement is essential" to the success of finding the loyalist bombers who planted a booby trap device under Mrs Nelson's car. He said Norfolk Deputy Chief Constable Colin Port, who has been sent to Northern Ireland to lead the murder investigation, was drafting in extra officers from the mainland. "The team currently includes 14 members from outside the RUC whom he picked, and this number is set to increase," said Mr Ingram . There have been mounting calls for the removal of the RUC from the investigation because of allegations made by Mrs Nelson before her murder that her life had been threatened by members of the RUC. Her widower, Paul Nelson, repeated the call for an independent inquiry in a statement read to a US Congressional Committee meeting in Washington last night. "If the RUC or other security forces were involved in collusion in the murder, this must be exposed," he said. "If they were not, they have nothing to fear from any independent inquiry," Mr Nelson added. Mr Ingram, writing in the Belfast Telegraph, said what Paul Nelson and others were calling for was an independent international investigation as well as a judicial inquiry. They wanted truth and justice, and he could not agree with that more. But he said: "Only a criminal investigation by the police will achieve that and I believe that the investigation now led by Colin Port is best placed to do so." ---- However, Mr Ingram faced calls for his resignation from hardline unionists after he suggested any witnesses unwilling to deal with RUC officers in the investigation should contact the international inquiry team instead. Northern Ireland Unionist Party leader Cedric Wilson accused the minister of "undermining public confidence in the RUC" in his article. The Assembly member for Strangford said: "By suggesting members of the public should go to other outside officers, he is giving credence to the view that the RUC is not to be trusted. "What kind of message does that send out, not just to members of the public but to members of the force? This is the latest in a series of gaffes by Mr Ingram. He really must go." ****************************** Truant Boy Dies In Lift Tragedy PA 04/23/99 12:06 Copyright 1999 PA News By Ruth O'Reilly, PA News A 14-year-old boy was killed when he became trapped on top of a lift while playing truant from school with friends, police said. The victim either became entangled in cabling or was crushed while playing in the lift shaft of a block of flats on St Michael's estate, Inchicore, west Dublin. The victim's three companions were taken to St James' Hospital where they were being treated for "deep shock". They were otherwise unharmed. St Michael's flats are run by Dublin Corporation and are earmarked for demolition. Tenants are gradually being moved out of the complex which has become strongly associated with drug abuse and crime in recent years. The city authority eventually plans to build a new development on the site and the grounds of a neighbouring convent. Vincent Jackson, a youth worker and independent councillor in the ward which includes Inchicore described the accident as "a dreadful tragedy". "It is now vitally important that the plan to demolish these flats proceeds as soon as possible," he said. ****************************** Ulster Warder Sickness `Costing #8m A Year' PA 04/23/99 11:57 Copyright 1999 PA News By Ian Graham, PA News Sick leave by prison officers in Northern Ireland's jails has become a "chronic problem", the Prison Service said today. The rate of absence due to sickness and stress for officers is among the highest of any industry or service in the UK. During 1998 the Prison Service lost 8.2 million worth of man hours due to sick leave. In Northern Ireland prison officers averaged 19.4 days off each last year, compared with just over 16 days in England and Wales. Just over 5% of the entire Northern Ireland Prison Service budget is spent on sick pay. The problem has been worse - in 1994 staff averaged 24 days sick leave - but there are indications that it is on the increase again. Maghaberry Prison in Co Antrim has the worst record for absences, with an average of 15% of warders off duty due to illness or stress every day last month. "The Prison Service has had a chronic problem with absenteeism going back many years," said a Prison Service spokesman. But he said the "vast majority of staff who go off sick are genuinely sick" and blame the high stress of working in Ulster's special jail circumstances for the absences. Additionally plans for mass warder redundancies as the Good Friday Agreement early release scheme is completed by July 2,000, increase stress levels. An independent review of absenteeism has just been submitted, and its conclusions and recommendations are being studied by senior management. ****************************** Irish Unions, Firms In Joint Call For N.Irish Peace RTw 04/23/99 08:43 Copyright 1999 Reuters Ltd DUBLIN, April 23 (Reuters) - Ireland's main business and union federations joined forces on Friday, calling on all parties in the Northern Ireland peace progress to break through deadlock and allow the establishment of cross-border bodies. Peter Cassells, general secretary of the ICTU union federation and John Kenna, director of the IBEC-CBI Joint Business Council, welcomed the agreements on cross-border bodies but said the recent inconclusive round of peace talks was regrettable. "We would therefore encourage the governments and the parties involved to redouble their efforts to find an accommodation which would allow these and the other institutional arrangements to be put in place as soon as possible," Cassells and Kenna said in a joint statement. The union and business federations said they were working together to develop the full potential of the cross-border bodies, whose creation is a key element of the Good Friday agreement on the future of Northern Ireland. That deal, signed in April last year in Belfast, also provides for the province -- for decades the scene of conflict between pro-Irish Republicans and pro-British Unionists -- to run its internal affairs. An all-party executive is due to act as the province's government. But its formation has been delayed because of Protestant Unionist objections to the Republican Sinn Fein party sitting on the executive before its military wing, the Irish Republican Army, surrenders arms and explosives. ICTU and the IBEC-CBI Joint Business Council -- which groups Irish employers' federation IBEC with the Confederation of British Industry -- said their priorities were implementing the Business and Trade Development Body, tourism and European Union special programmes. But the groups said they were also examining other areas of cross-border cooperation, including transport, health, education and the environment. The groups also urged the British and Irish governments to proceed with the setting-up of the independent Consultative Forum, which will be considered under the terms of the Belfast Agreement. They said the forum could play a key role in identifying areas of common interest and opportunities. ------- Jay Dooling (jdooling@worldnet.att.net) Irish Aires - 90.1FM KPFT in Houston http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Irish_Aires/homepage.htm Dooling & Mabe, CPA http://www.doolingmabe-cpa.com/ ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytire-04.25.99-12:56:14-20191