Dublin city councillors have unanimously agreed to honour Gay Byrne by conferring the freedom of the city on him. At the monthly meeting of the council yesterday, the proposal by the Lord Mayor, Alderman Joe Doyle, to bestow the city's highest honour on the veteran broadcaster was agreed by acclamation.
Labour members, making clear their high regard for Mr Byrne, put aside their complaints about the way the nomination was handled and decided not to push at this stage for a similar honour for the Burmese opposition activist, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi.
Gay Byrne will now join a small and distinguished group who have had their names inscribed on the city's roll of honour. Among those who have been paid this high tribute are Presidents John F. Kennedy and Bill Clinton, Mother Teresa, Pope John Paul II, Nelson Mandela, and Maureen Potter.
However, some councillors expressed regret at newspaper reports stating that Ms Aung San Suu Kyi was also going to be proposed as a "freeman" at the meeting. They agreed she was courageous and they intended honouring her in the near future.
They stressed there was a long-standing procedure for nominating people for the honour. This was always done with the agreement of all parties before it came before the full council. The Lord Mayor, moving that Gay Byrne should be made a freeman, said the broadcaster had given outstanding service to this State on television and radio over a long period.
Mr Paddy Bourke (Lab) said his group was delighted that the Lord Mayor had brought forward Mr Byrne and they fully supported it. Mr Byrne had, many people would say, brought this State from the 19th to the 20th century. His excellent work as a communicator could not be underestimated. He deserved the honour. He hoped Ms Aung San Suu Kyi would be nominated in the near future for her courageous work for democracy. Mr Eoin Ryan (FF) said he fully supported Mr Byrne's nomination. However, they had always carried out the nominating procedure in a certain way and they should continue doing that in order to avoid any possible embarrassment to whomever the nominee may be.
Mr Tony Gregory TD said: "I wholeheartedly support Gay Byrne for the honour. He is the voice of the people. He is the choice of the people." Mr Tom Stafford (FF) said that years ago somebody had proposed the freedom of the city for the Dalai Lama, but he had put forward Gay Byrne's name and he was defeated, so, in fact, he had been the first person to propose Gay for the honour. Mr Tommy Broughan TD (Lab) described as "unfortunate" the controversy which had arisen. He believed both individuals could have been deservedly honoured.
The Labour Party had tabled its nomination of Ms Aung San Suu Kyi in the proper order and it wasn't a "bolt out of the blue", while the nomination of Gay Byrne had come without crossparty consultation.