26 Meith 2013, 17:41
Rev Dr Gary Mason of the East Belfast Mission will appear before the Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement tomorrow to discuss how religious sectarianism and the trauma of conflict continues to weigh heavily across communities in Northern Ireland.
26 June 2013
Committee Chairman Joe McHugh TD says: “Our Committee has been warmly received by Rev Mason and his team in the Skainos Centre in East Belfast on two occasions since its opening last November. On those visits, we were frequently reminded that peace remained fragile and that the gains of the past fifteen years could not be taken for granted. We were told of how the legacy of the conflict weighs disproportionately on working class communities in Northern Ireland.
“Rev Mason is at the forefront of community relations in East Belfast and can offer a valuable perspective on how both sectarianism and trauma continue to cast a long shadow on individuals and communities emerging from the conflict. We are also expected to hear how the Northern Ireland experience can be applied to conflict resolution in other trouble areas around the globe.\"
The Committee will also hear from leading academics on the links being forged between St Angela's College in Sligo and the School of Education at the University of Ulster.
Deputy McHugh continues: “At a meeting with Minister for Education Ruairi Quinn and presidents of the Institutes of Technology last month, our Committee heard of the considerable synergies that exist in the provision of third level education North and South of the border. Tomorrow, we will have an opportunity to discuss the formal links that have been established in the area of teacher training between St Angela’s College in Sligo and the University of Ulster. We look forward to engaging with representatives from St Angela’s College and the University of Ulster in an effort to explore how the robust links between these two institutions can be further progressed.”
The meeting commences with discussions on cross-border collaboration in teacher training at 12 noon tomorrow Thursday 27 June in Committee Room 4 in LH 2000. Committee proceedings can be followed live here.
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Ends
For further information please contact:
Paul Hand,
Houses of the Oireachtas,
Communications Unit,
Leinster House,
Dublin 2
P: +3531 618 4484
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paul.hand@oireachtas.ie
Members of the Committee:
Deputies Seán Conlan, Seán Crowe, Clare Daly, Regina Doherty, Peter Fitzpatrick, Frank Feighan, Martin Ferris, Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan, Michael P. Kitt, Joe McHugh, Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, Joe O’Reilly, Brendan Smith and Joanna Tuffy.
Senators Jim D’Arcy, Maurice Cummins, Mary Moran, Mary White.
Chairman: Joe McHugh, TD Vice-Chairman: Joe O'Reilly, TD