15 July 2004 Edition

Resize: A A A Print

Mála Poist

Citizenship worries

A Chairde,

I hope millions of second-generation Irish people around the world, like myself, wake up to the possible knock-on effects of the disgraceful Citizenship Referendum, recently engineered by that bunch of racists in Leinster House.

It only now requires all those countries that are home to the Irish Diaspora to do the same and make it retrospective, and we could all be repatriated back to Ireland. The amount of shipping required would be phenomenal and the numbers disembarking would make the settler plantation in the North look like a delegation of Town Twinning visitors.

What I am wondering, though, is whether it is part of a cunning plan to head off the restoration of a United Ireland. As millions of us stood literally shoulder to shoulder across the 32 counties, the country would begin sinking under our weight, at the same time as the elite went on extended holidays abroad. The Brits would be happy, as the border issue would be resolved when we joined the city of Atlantis on the seabed. Boston would become the next parish west of the Isle of Man.

The perception of many Londoners I have grown up with, of the Irish being somewhat irrational, is fuelled by this sort of measure. What we are now saying is that if two economic migrants arrived from the Middle East, with the wife pregnant, and she gave birth to a baby boy on 25 December, who would grow up to be a carpenter, we would not want that baby to be an Irish citizen. Yet we are more than happy to have a Brit as our Patron Saint!

Francis Connolly,

London

Ag foghlaim Gaeilge

A Chairde,

Ba mhaith liom tréaslú le Jim Gibney as an fháinne óir agus an Dioplóma sa Ghaeilge a bhaint amach ar na mallaibh, agus as an alt breá a scríobh sé fána iarrachtaí féin an Ghaeilge a fhoghlaim le tríocha bliain anuas. Is léir go bhfuil meas aige ar an teanga agus orthu siúd a labhraíonn í. Labhair sé fá dtaobh den tréimhse ag tús na n-ochtóidí i mBóthar na Croimghlinne nuair a tháinig feabhas de chineál éigin ar na coinníollacha sa phríosún de bharr na streachailte a rinneadh ar feadh na mblianta roimhe sin.

Is maith is cuimhin liom féin Pádaí Ó Ceallaigh as Dún Geanainn agus an tsuim a bhí aige sa teanga. Ba ghnáth le Pádraig na horduithe a scairteadh amach achan Domhnach nuair a bhíodh an pharáid chuimhneacháin againn dóibh siúd a fuair bás ar son saoirse na tíre seo. Bhí mé féin óg an t-am sin, agus is beag a shíl mé nárbh fhada go mbeadh Pádaí é féin ina measc siúd a thug a raibh acu sa streachailt seo. Ach ba dhaoine mar é a spreag muidne, an mhuintir óg ag an am, an Ghaeilge a fhoghlaim. Bhí fear eile a chuidigh linn, fear a dtugtaí Trampas mar leasainm air, ach ní cuimhin liom a ainm ceart anois. Bhíodh múinteoir istigh againn gach seachtain, agus chuidigh sin go mór linn an fuaimniú ceart a fháil ar na focail.

Tuigim an díoma a bhí air Jim ar shroichint na Ceise Fada dó, agus an Béarla i réim mar ghnáthmheán cumarsáide i ndiaidh ré na stailce ocrais. Ach bhí neart daoine ansin a raibh an Ghaeilge go líofa acu ón tréimhse sin, daoine nár chuala Ráidió na Gaelachta lena mbeo, nó nach raibh riamh i dteagmháil le cainteoir dúchais. Bhí a rian sin le cloisteáil ar an Ghaeilge a bhí á labhairt againn, ach ba theanga bheo líofa í san am céanna, agus éacht a bhí ann gurbh ann di ar chor ar bith. Bhíodh an Ghaeilge á labhairt sa "chillín mhór" chomh maith, mar a dúirt Jim. Ach bhí casadh eile sa scéal níos moille anonn nuair a ghlac foireann an champa an cinneadh sciathán lán-Ghaeilge a bhunú i mí na Bealtaine 1995, mar atá Gaeltacht na Fuiseoige. Cuireadh cuid mhór cimí isteach sna sciatháin sin a bhí ag freastal ar ranganna Gaeilge ar feadh tamaill roimhe sin, agus tugadh chun líofachta sa teanga in aicearracht iad. Is cuimhin liom go ndearnadh bord "monoplachta" agus contaetha na hÉireann ar díol seachas Pall Mall srl. Tuigfidh sibh gur tharla seo i ndiaidh titim an Aontais Shóividigh agus aisling an tsóisialachais!

Ach is é an rud is mó a d'fhoghlaim mé féin ón am a chaith mé i nGaeltacht na Fuiseoige ná go bhfuil áit ar leith de dhíth má tá an Ghaeilge le maireachtáil beo mar theanga labhartha pobail. Is beag is fiú ranganna ná cúrsaí a dhéanamh mura mbíonn áiteanna dá cuid féin ag an Ghaeilge, bíodh sé sa Ghaeltacht, i gcultúrlann, i scoil, i dteaghlach srl, áit ina dtuigeann achan duine gurb í an Ghaeilge príomhtheanga chumarsáide na háite. Cheal seo, beidh sí báite ag an Bhéarla.

Cúpla moladh do Shinn Féin, a bhfuil obair mhaith déanta acu i leith na teanga. Ná bíodh an Ghaeilge níos lú ná an Béarla agaibh ar aon phóstaer a deir "Building an Ireland of Equals". Déanaigí iarracht roinnt cumann a bhunú i gceantracha éagsúla le feidhmiú go hiomlán trí mheán na Gaeilge, agus deis ag lucht foghlamtha na Gaeilge seal a chaitheamh ag obair iontu. Léigh an tAcht Teanga agus cuir na moltaí atá istigh ann i bhfeidhm insan pháirtí féin.

Seán Mór

Tír Eoghain

Fair coverage

A Chairde,

Michael O'Conchuir's criticism of Sinn Féin (Mála Poist 1 July 2004) for the An Phoblacht editorial regarding George W Bush's policies in Iraq is overly defensive as well as inaccurate.

First of all, Mr O'Conchuir rejects Sinn Féin's neutrality platform because the party receives Irish-American support. Since when are donations to political parties equal to military invasions?

Secondly, O'Conchuir seems oblivious to the fact that none of the planes that flew into the World Trade Centre were from Iraq, nor were the pilots Iraqi. The attack on 9/11 was perpetrated by Saudi pilots who were jihadists in Al-Qaeda.

The multitude of justifications for the Iraq invasion have all been revealed to be false. Most Americans polled now object to Bush's invasion of Iraq. Most Iraqis also oppose Bush's occupation of Iraq. Most international legal analysts condemn US violations of the Geneva Conventions committed daily under the guise of 'interrogations' and now, in a sham transfer of 'sovereignty'.

Sinn Féin has long advocated neutrality as a party policy. That Mr O'Conchuir suddenly finds that objectionable is based more on his own partisanship than Sinn Féin's "appeasement".

It's a pity that Mr O'Conchuir confuses Irish republicans with American Republican Party dogma. But, it's an even bigger pity that the Bush administration couldn't find the patience to wait six months for weapons inspectors to discover that George W Bush was lying to the US Congress and the American people and indeed, the world about Iraq.

Robert Lynch

USA


An Phoblacht
44 Parnell Sq.
Dublin 1
Ireland