Eibhlin O'Neill's blog

The Round Ireland Yacht Race began yesterday. The 63 yachts taking part set out on the 1,130 km 704 nautical mile journey from Wicklow (Irish: Cill Mhantáin) harbour. The Round Ireland Race is held every two years. The first boats are due back at Wicklow Head early on Moday morning. Progress of the race can be followed at: http://yb.tl/wicklowroundireland2016

News from the Celtic League:

‘Your life is turned upside down in minutes’

A moving expression of sympathy from the widower of murdered campaigning Irish journalist Veronica Guerin to the husband of British MP Jo Cox.

Speaking on RTE Radio Graham Turley described father-of-two Brendan Cox as being in the same position he found himself in 20 years ago.

Protests have taken place around the world to stop the exportation of Irish Greyhounds to countries which do not have sufficient animal welfare protection, in particular Macau, China. Mick Barry TD (Member of the Irish Parliament), who was elected for the People Before Profit–Anti-Austerity Alliance group for the Cork North–Central constituency in the 2016 Irish general election has raised the issue in Dáil Éireann (Assembly of Ireland).

Loughinisland (Irish: Loch an Oileáin) is a small village in County Down in the north of Ireland. It was the location on 18 June 1994 where members of a loyalist terrorist group (Ulster Volunteer Force UVF) burst into the Heights Bar and opened fire with assault rifles. They murdered six people and wounded five others. The pub was targeted because it was frequented mainly by Catholics, and was crowded with people watching the Republic of Ireland team playing Italy in the 1994 FIFA World Cup being held in the USA.

The prehistoric monument of Newgrange (Irish: Sí an Bhrú) in County Meath, Ireland, was built during the Neolithic period around 3000 BC to 2500 BC. Making it older than Stonehenge and the Egyptian pyramids. Regarded as a place of great ceremonial and religious significance, it is aligned in a way that allows the light from the rising sun to shine directly into the chamber on the winter solstice.

The US Festival of Arts and Culture Celebration Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising continues at the John F Kennedy Center in Washington DC. The festival which is part of the global celebration of the Easter Rising is running from May 17–June 5, 2016. Under the title IRELAND 100: Celebrating a Century of Irish Arts & Culture, the event highlights Irish culture and its relationship to America.

News From The Celtic League:

We can report that one year after what was described as a historic International ruling to curb the activities of the so called monster trawlers from devastating fish stocks and displacing the livelihood of indigenous communities the EU has still not acted to implant the judgements.

News From he Celtic League:

Even as the fishing community were sitting down yesterday evening in Burtonport, Donegal, to see a premiere showing of the film ‘Atlantic’ made by Irish documentary film maker Risteard Ó Domhnaill the problem the film highlights was being exacerbated.

In the film, which focuses on not just Ireland but also Norway and Newfoundland, Irish fishermen speak about the dearth of fishing stocks caused by the rapacious activities of factory trawlers of their coast.

News from The Celtic League:

Irish documentary film maker Risteard Ó Domhnaill who became famous for his film ‘The Pipe’ which documented the struggle of the people of North Mayo against the decision to site a gas refinery onshore in the area has produced another groundbreaking film.

‘Atlantic’ charts the impact on fishing communities along Ireland’s west coast (and further afield) of the devastating fishing practices carried out by so called super-trawlers.

News from the Celtic League:

With much of Irelands 1916 commemorations focusing on the political and military not to mention a degree of controversial revisionism which has caused anger it was interesting to stumble across this article in the Irish Times that looked at the life of Easter Rising leader Padraig Pearse from a different perspective.

The article is entitled ‘Patrick Pearse: Nature lover and warmonger’ so initially I thought ‘not more revisionism’ but when I read the article I was pleasantly surprised.