"For Anna, my lovely sister, my princess, never forgotten, Catherine."
The pain behind the message pinned to a bouquet of flowers for Anna Massey was evident on the faces of many of those who attended yesterday's unveiling in Dublin of a memorial to victims of the 1974 bombings in the Republic. Thirty-three people died in Dublin and Monaghan on Friday, May 17th.
The unveiling was a sombre occasion and it was clear that for some of those present, time has not healed the hurt. Three bombs were detonated in Dublin in the rush hour, at Parnell Street, Talbot Street and South Leinster Street. Hundreds of people fleeing one explosion ran unwittingly into another. An hour and a half later, a bomb exploded in Monaghan. It killed seven people.
The memorial commemorates the victims of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings. It is located at the end of Talbot Street, opposite Connolly Station and comprises a plain memorial with the names of the victims set in the centre of a small, circular area with benches.
Among the 33 names on the memorial, the most poignant, perhaps, are those of the O'Brien family. John, the father, Anna, the mother and the two babies, AnnMarie and Jacqueline, had set out for the new children's playground in St Stephen's Green - but within minutes they had been killed by the blast outside Guiney's in Talbot Street.
Anna O'Brien's brother, Mr Barney Doyle, said he had been waiting nearby to meet his daughter when he heard a bang. "I thought it was two cars crashing," he said. Then he saw smoke rising over Talbot Street. Bits of timber had been thrown up into the air by the blast and "I saw them turning in the sky and swirling down". The O'Briens' pram was found on a roof in Parnell Street, he said.
Hanging over the ceremony was the unresolved issue of whether the bombings were the work of loyalists on their own or if there was British intelligence services or the RUC involvement. Mr Patrick Doyle, grandfather of the O'Brien children, lost a case in the High Court last month when he sought an order allowing him to inspect Garda files on the bombings.
The memorial was unveiled by the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Mr John Stafford. An interdenominational prayer service was led by the Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Connell.
Present were the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern; the Minister for Justice, Mr O'Donoghue; Fianna Fail TD, Mr Sean Haughey; Independent TD, Mr Tony Gregory; Sinn Fein TD, Mr Caoimhghin O Caolain and former TDs, Mr Joe Costello of Labour and Mr Tomas Mac Giolla of the Workers Party.
Taped to the memorial is a poem written by eight-year-old Sarah Butler for her aunt, Anna Massey, whom she never saw. It read:
How Jesus loved the people, they used to laugh and pray.
I love you all very much, Jesus used to say.
Laughing and praying, Jesus cared a lot, I will be with you no matter what. If everyone was like this, with love and care, there would be no need for Heaven, you would already be there.