Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 19 Dec 1996

Vol. 473 No. 3

Adjournment Debate. - Great Famine Commemoration.

Mr. Andrews

There appears to be a mistaken impression in regard to the manner in which this matter is being dealt with. I never suggested that the Minister of State made the remarks, as suggested, in the United States. What I am saying is that remarks were made and I wonder how she dealt with them. I raise this matter on the Adjournment so that the Minister of State can make a full statement regarding a controversy which appeared to have occurred in the United States while she was there and how she handled it. I do so to ascertain how the 1845 to 1848 famine, perceived in the United States as an act of genocide by the then British authorities, was dealt with.

I also wanted to ascertain how the commemoration of The Great Famine has been continuing and to inquire whether it is the Minister's intention to build a monument to the victims of that famine in our capital city.

The Great Famine was a defining moment in Irish history. If it had not occurred, Ireland probably would be a much different place, when a much larger population probably would have forced the early development of an industrial base and an enterprise culture would have been fostered here.

I should like to pay tribute to Breandáin Ó Cathaír of The Irish Times on his weekly Famine Diary. It has done a lot for me personally, for what I believe to be the appropriate approach to this terrible time in our history. I find quite unacceptable revisionists' attempts to blame the people of Ireland for starving themselves to death, while of course, discharging the British authorities from any obligation for what occurred between 1845 and 1849. That is the reason I look forward to that weekly article with great appreciation, apart from the various literature on The Great Famine itself, the book entitled “The Great Famine”, and other tracts of that nature.

We have been forced to innovate and develop at a much faster pace since that time. In addition, Anglo-Irish relations might not have been as strained in the decades following that event if the famine had not occurred, or if the response to it had been different. It is not good for continuing Anglo-Irish relations to term the famine as a deliberate act of genocide. What happened was more a case of appalling neglect and disinterest on the part of some of the reigning officialdom. Serious mistakes were made but there was no official genocide policy. It was really the manifestation of a laissez faire philosophy — let market forces reach their own level and, in the meantime, let the people die or try to survive, as inevitably they would. Certainly it was a philosophy that failed disastrously and for which we still pay.

Given the enormity of the catastrophe that was The Great Famine it must continue to have a focus in 1997. I hope the commemorative events this year were just a warm-up and that in 1997 the profile of the famine commemorations will be raised even further. I urge the Minister of State to concentrate on events that will capture the public mind and provoke reflection and deliberation among our ordinary people. The commemorations must be accessible as we are all descendants of people who experienced this horrific famine.

There has been much comment about the centralisation of activities in Dublin. However, our capital city is home to one-third of our population and now the main destination of many tourists.

For that reason, a monument to all The Great Famine victims should be erected in Dublin. It would be a starting point for many who live here or come here on trips. It would have a major impact, stir the national conscience and serve as a reminder and help us to focus on the Famine and the threats which still exist around the globe. Such a monument in the capital would be a fitting project for the Famine commemoration.

I urge the Minister of State to give serious consideration to this proposal. I commend her for the efforts she has made to highlight the commemorations of this terrible time in our history.

Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach (Mrs. Doyle)

The notice I received about this matter stated that the Deputy wanted to ask the Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach, Deputy Doyle, to explain the controversy that was alleged to have arisen on her recent trip to the US when the Famine was described as an act of genocide by the then British authorities. I interpreted that to mean that something I had said or done had given rise to that controversy.

I am delighted to take this opportunity to refer to my recent and successful trip to the United States and Canada where I visited seven cities and was warmly received in them. The lecture series was publicly advertised in the seven cities. I also appeared on a number of radio and television programmes on the Government's commemorative programme of the Famine and the impact it had not only on modern Ireland but also on the Irish-American community. On behalf of the Government and the people, I explained the pivotal role which the Famine played in creating the modern Irish-American community. My visit was also to strengthen the close ties between Ireland and our diaspora. As I said on many occasions there, it was an exercise in strengthening the hyphen in Irish-American.

I was gratified by the positive response I elicited from all sides, particularly the professional and academic sectors. We had large attendances at every venue in Chicago, South Bend, San Francisco, San Diego, Washington, New York, Boston and Montreal. We had excellent question and answer sessions for more than an hour at the end of each lecture series.

I was accompanied by two eminent academics from Ireland, Dr. Kevin Whelan and Mr. Luke Gibbons from Roscommon. The lectures were full of excellent intellectual vigour. At each venue we had a guest moderator from the local universities where the Irish studies courses were being held. In South Bend, for example, it was Professor Seamus Deane who is in Notre Dame at present and in San Diego it was Mr. David Lloyd. I introduced the lectures and I acted as chairperson for the question and answer sessions. I responded to the political questions and the academics responded to the historical ones. Politicians cannot always speak authoritatively on an issue, particularly if they are not professionally trained in the subject. We are general practitioners, not specialists on some topics.

I was happy to be in a position to reassure the Irish-American community that the Government will continue its programme of commemorating in an appropriate, dignified and worthy manner our one million Famine dead and to recognise the descendants of the two million Famine immigrants who ended up in America. There are now more than 44 million Americans who claim Irish ancestry.

The Deputy is obviously aware of the recent Crowley amendment in New York state. That controversy predated my visit by a couple of weeks, although it was still topical in the local newspapers when I arrived. This amendment was signed into law in New York state by Governor Pataki. It mandated schools in New York state to teach what was called in the amendment "the mass starvation of Ireland" as part of the same human rights school curriculum that deals with slavery and the Holocaust. Unlike here, they have a system whereby politicians can influence the curriculum. I warmly welcome the fact that the story of the Irish Famine will be taught to American school children. It is important, however, that the curriculum content is designed to reflect the views of professional historians of the Famine.

The woefully inadequate response of the then British authorities and the misguided relief policies which they pursued are now well established in the professional literature of Famine studies. It was a rigidly doctrinaire and ideological administration, remote from the people whom it allegedly served and determined to pursue a programme of economic modernisation, even at the cost of thousands of people's lives. However, it goes way beyond the boundaries of acceptable analysis to argue that there was a genocidal intent on the part of the British Government at the time and that the Irish Famine is therefore directly equivalent to the Holocaust. By using that argument, we are letting the British authorities off the hook. Their hands appear to have been clean but they certainly were not. In my comments in America and elsewhere, I have made my position abundantly clear. The British response during the Famine was entirely inadequate, but the genocidal argument has no validity and this inaccuracy does a disservice both to the victims of the Holocaust or the Famine.

The National Famine Commemoration Committee, which I have the honour to chair, has chosen a magnificent site for the National Famine Memorial at Murrisk, County Mayo. It will be in the shadow of Croagh Patrick overlooking Clew Bay. The memorial is being designed by the sculptor, Mr. John Behan. We hope to have the installation completed by August or September next year.

Mr. Andrews

What type of memorial will it be?

Mrs. Doyle

It will be a bronze coffin ship. I would be delighted to show the Deputy photographs of it. We examined many sites and chose this one because it is fitting that the national memorial should be located in the west. One in four of the population of Connacht died in those terrible years.

I am delighted to indicate the programme for 1997 to commemorate the Famine, which is extremely extensive. There will be major art and photographic exhibitions, a major international historical conference in May in Dublin Castle, concert and candle lighting ceremonies, a set of stamps, an ecumenical service, an atlas of Famine sites of Ireland and the publication of a book of Irish Famine manuscripts. We have a vigorous programme which will continue officially to the end of 1997.

Mr. Andrews

I am not being critical of the Minister who has done a good job. I am delighted there will be a memorial.