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Tuesday 20 and Wednesday 21 JOINT COMMITTEE ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT ------------------------------------------------- AN COMHCHOISTE UM FHORFHEIDHMIÚ CHOMHAONTÚ AOINE AN CHÉASTA Tuesday 20th and Wednesday 21st February 2018 Visit to WAVE Trauma Centre, British Irish Intergovernmental Secretariat, Belfast Gaeltacht Quarter, Lower Shankill Community Association, Cultúrlann MacAdam Ó Fiaich, Féile an Phobail, Coláiste Feirste, and Relatives for Justice: Key Findings TRAVEL REPORT 32/JCIGFA/06 1 1. Background The Joint Committee, as part of its Work Programme, agreed the importance of stepping up engagement with the spectrum of political and community representatives in Northern Ireland on the issue of Brexit, and in other areas. Following on from the conclusion of a series of public meetings on the impact of Brexit, and the launch of the Joint Committee report titled “The Implications of Brexit for the Good Friday Agreement: Key Findings” dated June 2017, the Joint Committee agreed to undertake a visit to Northern Ireland. The Committee has held a number of informal meetings in the last 12 months which have all taken place in Leinster House. While these meetings are very useful the Committee also sees considerable potential in outreach visits both for informing stakeholders in relation to the work of the Committee and for providing access directly to the Committee in an informal setting. At its meeting dated 6 July 2017, the Joint Committee agreed to a series of meetings with various community and interest groups. This report provides details of the meetings held in Belfast on Tuesday 20th and Wednesday 21st February 2018. 2. Members The meetings were attended by the following Members from the Houses of the Oireachtas. - Deputies: Sean Crowe (Chair), Declan Breathnach, Brendan Smith, Maureen O’Sullivan, Fergus O’Dowd - Senators: Frances Black, Frank Feighan, Niall Ó Donnghaile and Mark Daly The Joint Committee was accompanied on this visit by: - Committee Secretariat: Diarmaid Breathnach, Policy Advisor/Visit Rapporteur During the Wednesday Programme, the following Northern Ireland MPs were invited to accompany the Joint Committee: - Chris Hazzard, Paul Maskey, Elisha McCallion, Michelle Gildernew 2 3. Visit to WAVE Trauma Centre The WAVE Trauma Centre1 was established in 1991 to offer care and support to anyone bereaved, injured or traumatised through the conflict in Northern Ireland, irrespective of religious, cultural or political belief. WAVE’s direct support services have been provided since 1991and availed of by over 5,000 individuals ranging from adults, to young people and children. Over 2,000 people currently engage in its support provisions which include advocacy & casework service, complementary therapies, counselling & psychotherapy, and outreach support and welfare advice. Services are delivered regionally across five project centres located in Belfast, Omagh, Armagh, Derry/Londonderry and Ballymoney with associated satellite provision. The Joint Committee met with the following members of the WAVE team at their centre in South Belfast to hear about their work and concerns: - Alan McBride and Sandra Peake – CEO WAVE (the work of WAVE) - Rev Dr David Clements and Fiona Kelly (the needs of the bereaved) - Alex Bunting (special pensions for the injured) - Paul Gallagher and Peter Heathwood (the on-going challenges faced by the injured) - Professor Jean Orr, Marianne Moutray and Marie Therese O’Hagan (trauma education) The main areas of focus during the meeting were: On-going legacy issues for the bereaved Special pension provisions for the severely injured Trauma Education A discussion followed and challenges faced by the community availing of WAVE’s services were outlined; these included unresolved justice issues, statute of limitations, placing all cases on official and public record, amnesty, and pensions. Speakers also stressed the importance of establishing what historic information is there for all those affected and emphasised the strong need within families affected by the Troubles wanting to know that their cases have been thoroughly reviewed and are part of the official record. They would like to see an end to the many consultations which keep coming and see mechanisms put in place to acknowledge all cases both big and small. The main concern of the bereaved was that their loved ones be not forgotten and that whatever comes out of the process must not raise false expectations but be realistic and helpful. 1 http://www.wavetraumacentre.org.uk/home 3 Another legacy issue raised by the group was that of pensions. Committee members were told that WAVE’s Injured Group had been campaigning for over seven years to get legislation through the Northern Ireland Assembly for pension provision for those injured during the Troubles. However, while all local parties support the provision of pensions for the injured they cannot agree on who should qualify. When the issue was brought to the Northern Ireland Office it maintained that this was a devolved matter, a point of view with which WAVE is in strong disagreement and it informed the Committee that it was seeking the support of the Irish Government to use its leverage on the UK Government to legislate for such a pension. Trauma Education and awareness was an area for which WAVE members could find no training and therefore started its own programme within its communities to assist in dealing with trauma (including intergenerational trauma) as an emotional response and to educate victims on trauma awareness. Members were provided with information on WAVE’s trauma education programmes and how they have been developed over 18 years to address the lack of trained personnel in dealing with trauma. Students are now being offered a range of options to meet their learning needs and credited programmes are provided at diploma and degree level. A master’s level will commence in the coming year. While these developments in trauma training are very positive, the group expressed concern around current funding issues in general and cited the example of bursaries being available to attend courses in the North only but not in the south of the border. Committee members heard how WAVE sees victims and survivors as having a common voice irrespective of background, and inclusivity is all-important in this regard. Those affected are both in the north and the south, however it was pointed out that services and resources in the South were not adequate in this regard and WAVE is not funded to operate in the Republic. As a result of the points raised above, representatives pointed out that the severely injured are left to struggle and live on benefits and are in fear of being totally dependent on such benefits and on organisations and individuals. It was further suggested that all legacy issues raised at the meeting must be dealt with by both governments and the Committee could perhaps play a role in this regard. Committee members thanked the group for facilitating the meeting, and acknowledged the work carried out by WAVE to date and the challenges remaining. The Committee Chair informed those present that it was willing to assist in raising awareness of the issues spoken of and furthermore explained that Northern Ireland MPs receive invitations to all Committee meetings and could also avail of the Committee as a forum to raise these same issues. It was further explained that the Committee’s main aim of the current exercise was to visit groups in their local areas and to listen to their experiences and needs as part of its wider programme to report on legacy issues and to use this mechanism to make recommendations and engage in discussion and get out and meet groups. Committee members explained to representatives present that while it was guided by the Department of Foreign Affairs it will continue to engage with groups and produce reports as part of a consultative purpose to reflect the victims’ experiences. While meetings in Parliament can be a barrier to communication and more visits to the communities are essential, it was also suggested that Committee members 4 would be interested in hearing more Unionist voices and proposed that some Unionist MPs come and make a submission to the Committee at one of its meeting in the Houses of the Oireachtas. The Joint Committee Members advised they would be discussing their visit at the next Joint Committee meeting and would discuss what actions the Committee could take to help and support them. Members of the Committee and victims of the Conflict (WAVE Trauma Centre - 20 Feb 2018) 5 4. Working Lunch hosted by British Irish Intergovernmental Secretariat The Committee was welcomed by Kevin Conmy, Joint Secretary, and some of his staff. Members received briefings over lunch on the re-formation of the Northern Ireland Executive, legacy issues arising from the Stormont House Agreement, on going legacy cases, and Brexit. 5. Visit to Belfast Gaeltacht Quarter The Gaeltacht Quarter/An Cheathrú Ghaeltachta is an area surrounding the Falls Road in West Belfast aimed at promoting the Irish language and culture. The Committee met with representatives from Forbairt Feirste Thiar and Failte Feirste in Cultúlann MacAdam Ó Fiaich (An Chultúrlann)2 on the Lower Falls Road in West Belfast. The Cultúrlann was opened in 1991 as an Irish cultural centre in an former Presbyterian church named after 19th century Presbyterian businessman and Gaelic revivalist Robert Shipboy McAdam and 20th century Gaelic scholar Cardinal Tomás Ó Fiaich. Members were given a tour of the centre which has a theatre, restaurant, book shop, offices and conference rooms. In 2011, the centre was estimated to receive over 80,000 visitors per year. 2 http://www.culturlann.ie/en/welcome/ 6 Forbairt Feirste is a development agency which uses the Irish language as its main resource in empowering the socio-economic situation in Belfast. It was established in 1994 to promote the cultural and linguistic heritage of Belfast. Its main thrust is unleashing the socio- economic power of Belfast’s Irish speaking community to the benefit of the entire city.
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