Sir, - In response to Kevin Myers's article of April 10th, I would like to make the following points. First, it was as a consequence of a talk I gave about Amnesty that the pupils wrote letters to the Turkish Ambassador. So they were not prompted by their teacher, although I am sure their teacher would support the general ideas of Amnesty.
The pupils might be young, but they certainly are not ignorant. They know the difference between right and wrong and they know it is wrong to treat children with electro shocks. I think their parents and their school can be proud that they are concerned about the fate of children in other parts of the world who are not as well protected as they are.
The pupils were given information about human rights and Amnesty's work in general, and abuses of children in particular (appropriate to that age group), not just in Turkey but all over the world e.g. Brazil, Columbia etc. The case of Done Talun is not an isolated case, but one of many well researched and documented cases of child torture in police custody in Turkey.
Although the treatment of Travellers in Ireland leaves much so be desired, a distinction has to be made between children begging in the street and abuse of children by government officials.
Human rights have no borders. Amnesty defends human rights all over the world e.g. at the moment we are writing to the German authorities to ensure the protection of refugees. As a German, I wish there had been more concerned people outside of Germany who would have criticised and interfered with the atrocities that happened in Nazi Germany (that does not mean that I equate Turkey with fascist Germany). - Yours, etc.,
Amnesty International
Group 20,
5 Bushfield Terrace,
Dublin 4.