Sir, – The remembrance ceremony at Mount Argus on August 31st for the deceased members of the RIC and DMP was a most moving event (Home News, September 2nd).
It was uplifting to see in attendance members of the Garda and PSNI and Minister of State Brian Hayes. Great credit is due to all those who had the courage to organise the long overdue occasion and promote it, in that regard your columnist Stephen Collins (Opinion, August 24th) should take a bow. – Yours, etc,
TONY MORIARTY,
Shanid Road,
Harold’s Cross,
Dublin 6W.
A chara, – Regarding the report on the ecumenical Mass for deceased members of the RIC and DMP, I note the following comment from a retired member of An Garda Síochána, Gerard Lovett, “Sadly, the terrible price paid by these brave men has been largely unacknowledged, and it is our intention to ensure as much as we can that in this upcoming decade of commemorations they will not be airbrushed from history.”
I agree with Mr Lovett that the actions of the colonial police forces during the period in question should in no way be airbrushed from the history books. I would strongly hope their actions are recorded in explicit detail for all to see so that they are never forgotten.
A simple reminder of just what these paramilitary forces represented was illustrated on page 9 of your paper on August 31st, 2013. The main photograph, showing DMP activity during the 1913 Lockout, speaks volumes and clearly demonstrates just how well they served the people. However, the actions of the RIC and DMP during 1913 pales into insignificance when compared with the later period specifically referred to by Mr Lovett (1916-1922).
For these reasons alone, I sincerely hope the State never airbrushes their actions from the history books. While it is clearly time to put the past into perspective and for the modern State to reconcile itself with its origins in violence and bloodshed, to describe indiscriminately the members of these forces as “brave men” is misleading to say the least.
Although there were undoubtedly good and honest individuals within the forces in question, I certainly would not think it appropriate for the State to celebrate without reservation the role and acts of the whole body of the colonial police forces of 19th and early 20th century Ireland as some correspondents seen to suggest. – Is mise,
SEÁN HADE,
Rue Théophile Vander Elst,
Watermael-Boitsfort,
Brussels,
Belgium.