OMAGH IS RECALLED IN WEEK OF PEACE
Omagh is recalled in 'week of peace'
By Aeneas Bonner
Students hold series of events to mark atrocity
AN estimated 1,000 people assembled in Dundalk last night to remember the tragic events of Omagh at the beginning of A Time for Peace Week.
The ritual of remembrance included the lighting of a "flame of hope" by Michael Gallagher, whose 21-year-old son was killed in the bombing, and Stanley McCombe, who lost his wife. It marked the beginning of a week of events organised by students at Dundalk Institute of Technology to recapture the spirit of reconciliation in the town that existed following the atrocity.
One week after the bombing an estimated 30,000 people attended a special remembrance service in Dundalk in memory of the dead and injured, but also to show revulsion at Real IRA members reportedly living in the town.
DKIT chaplain and co-organiser Fr Malachy Conlon said last night that local students had also wished to show solidarity with the people of Omagh and Northern Ireland.
"When we came back in September we were approached by a number of students who wanted to do something about Omagh. We felt it deserved dignity, and decided to put a week together not only to look at Omagh but to take a broad look at peace and the peace process," he said.
"We were conscious too that after Omagh there had been a well-spring of people on the streets of Dundalk in a quite remarkable objection to all forms of violence, and we too want to express solidarity with the people in Northern Ireland."
The night of mime, poetry and prayer opened with a performance of Finlandia by the Cross-border Orchestra and Setanta choir, comprised of students from Dundalk, Abbey Grammar Newry and Banbridge Academy.
It concluded with prayers and blessing from the four main church leaders in Ireland, Archbishops Sean Brady and Robert Eames, the Rev David Kerr and Rt Rev Dr Samuel Dixon.
DIKT also hopes the peace week can be a "springboard" for increased cross-border contact, and the Institute's development centre is already in the early stages of discussing possible academic contact with Omagh College of further education.
Denis Murphy, acting director of DKIT, said the protests in Dundalk last August had showed a "new sense of involvement in building a new Ireland in which the dignity of every individual is respected and cherished".
"The aim of 'A Time for Peace Week" is to recapture that spirit of reconciliation," he said.
The events continue tonight with an evening of poetry, featuring Paul Durcan and Michael Longley, while tomorrow night DKIT students and staff will parade their skills in a variety show - the week's proceeds going to the Omagh appeal fund.
On Thursday a forum discussing the political future of Northern Ireland will feature deputy first minister Seamus Mallon, UUP assemblyman Danny Kennedy and young people from both sides of the border, and the peace week ends on Friday with an uplifting evening of traditional and folk music.
By Aeneas Bonner
Students hold series of events to mark atrocity
AN estimated 1,000 people assembled in Dundalk last night to remember the tragic events of Omagh at the beginning of A Time for Peace Week.
The ritual of remembrance included the lighting of a "flame of hope" by Michael Gallagher, whose 21-year-old son was killed in the bombing, and Stanley McCombe, who lost his wife. It marked the beginning of a week of events organised by students at Dundalk Institute of Technology to recapture the spirit of reconciliation in the town that existed following the atrocity.
One week after the bombing an estimated 30,000 people attended a special remembrance service in Dundalk in memory of the dead and injured, but also to show revulsion at Real IRA members reportedly living in the town.
DKIT chaplain and co-organiser Fr Malachy Conlon said last night that local students had also wished to show solidarity with the people of Omagh and Northern Ireland.
"When we came back in September we were approached by a number of students who wanted to do something about Omagh. We felt it deserved dignity, and decided to put a week together not only to look at Omagh but to take a broad look at peace and the peace process," he said.
"We were conscious too that after Omagh there had been a well-spring of people on the streets of Dundalk in a quite remarkable objection to all forms of violence, and we too want to express solidarity with the people in Northern Ireland."
The night of mime, poetry and prayer opened with a performance of Finlandia by the Cross-border Orchestra and Setanta choir, comprised of students from Dundalk, Abbey Grammar Newry and Banbridge Academy.
It concluded with prayers and blessing from the four main church leaders in Ireland, Archbishops Sean Brady and Robert Eames, the Rev David Kerr and Rt Rev Dr Samuel Dixon.
DIKT also hopes the peace week can be a "springboard" for increased cross-border contact, and the Institute's development centre is already in the early stages of discussing possible academic contact with Omagh College of further education.
Denis Murphy, acting director of DKIT, said the protests in Dundalk last August had showed a "new sense of involvement in building a new Ireland in which the dignity of every individual is respected and cherished".
"The aim of 'A Time for Peace Week" is to recapture that spirit of reconciliation," he said.
The events continue tonight with an evening of poetry, featuring Paul Durcan and Michael Longley, while tomorrow night DKIT students and staff will parade their skills in a variety show - the week's proceeds going to the Omagh appeal fund.
On Thursday a forum discussing the political future of Northern Ireland will feature deputy first minister Seamus Mallon, UUP assemblyman Danny Kennedy and young people from both sides of the border, and the peace week ends on Friday with an uplifting evening of traditional and folk music.
Further Information
Publisher: THE IRISH NEWS
Ref: IN/0275
Published Date: 23-Mar-99
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