FEBRUARY-MARCH 2008
TARAWATCH
TARAWATCH.org
01 March 2008
'Adams to Pay Tribute to Tara Campaigners in 5:00pm Ard Fheis Address'
Gerry Adams is expected to pay tribute to save Tara campaigners in his5:00pm address at the Sinn Féin Ard Fheis in Dublin today.
Colm Mac MacNiallais of TaraWatch attended the Ard Fheis and has been briefing Mr Adams on the current status of the M3 motorway works atTara. Mr Adams is said to be particularly sympathetic to those campingout in order to demonstrate near the site in County Meath.
This comes on the same day that BBC Radio Ulster aired a documentary about the Tara campaign in which Ireland's poet, Seamus Heaney, said that the M3 motorway “literally desecrates an area - I
mean the word means to desacralise’ and, for centuries, the Tara landscape and the Tara sites have been regarded as part of the sacred ground”.Heaney referred to the 1916 Proclamation having summoned the Irish people “in the name of the dead generations”. Heaney said: “If ever there was a place that deserved to be preserved in the name of the dead generations from pre-historic times...it was Tara”.
The BBC documentary also featured Dr. Jonathan Foyle, chairman of World Monuments Fund, Britain, who placed Tara on their list of 100 Most Endangered Sites. He compared the motorway to the destruction by Afghanistan’s Taliban regime in 2001 of the Bamiyan Buddhas.
Colm MacNiallais of TaraWatch said:
"We are very honoured that Mr Adams would set aside significant time in his address to condemn the works at Tara, and honour those who are fighting there, to the last."
Vincent Salafia of TaraWatch said:
"It almost seems that Northern Ireland politicians care more about Tara than Southern ones.
"Carmel Hanna, SDLP, MLA has tabled a private members motion in the Northern Assembly, calling on the northern and southern environment ministers to try and find a solution to the M3 route at Tara. "We are now confident Sinn Féin will support that motion, and hope that this will be treated as a non-political matter, of all-island importance, by all northern parties.
http://www.tarawatc
5 February 2008
New High Court Action to Protect Lismullin National Monument Being
Launched Today.
A new High Court action, aimed at protecting the Lismullin national
monument, which was discovered in the pathway of the M3 motorway last
year, will be launched today.
A short press briefing will be held at 11.00AM, outside the main
entrance to the Four Courts, Dublin. Copies of the Statement of Claim
will be made available at that time.
The action is being taken by Mr. Gordon Lucas, a resident of Limerick,
who is seeking to enforce EU environmental impact assessment directives
and the European Convention on Human Rights. He is seeking an
injunction, and a declaration that the National Monuments Act 2004 is
in breach of EU law.
The case is being taken as a last resort, after the Irish Government
has refused to concede to pressure and a legal action from the European
Environment Commission to perform a new environmental impact assessment
on the proposed demolition of the Lismullin national monument.
Lismullin was recently declared one of the Top Ten Most Important
Archaeological Discoveries in 2007, by Archaeology magazine, published
by the Archaeological Institute of America.
http://www.archaeol
Expert evidence will also argue that Lismullin is a central part of the
archaeological complex associated with the Hill of Tara, which was
placed on the 2008 List of 100 Most Endangered Sites by the World
Monuments Fund.
A new survey by Red C Research opinion poll has shown that
- When asked directly, almost two thirds (62%) of all Irish adults
agree that the current format set down for the M3 is wrong, and that
alternatives should be found to protect the heritage sites.
- over half (58%) support a proposed Heritage Park solution, while less
than a third (31%) agree they would prefer to keep the M3 running
through the valley as already agreed.
Vincent Salafia of TaraWatch said:
“This is a parallel case to the case being taken against Ireland by the
European Commission, which states the Irish Government is in breach of
EU law.
“Work should cease immediately within the Tara archaeological complex,
until this matter is resolved for once and for all.
“It is ironic that the Irish Government is pushing its citizens to
adopt the Lisbon Treaty, while they flatly refuse to obey current EU
law with regards to protection of the environment and the national
monument at Lismullin.
ENDS
Contact: Laura Grealish 087-972-8603 / Vincent Salafia 087-132-3365
More information:
Archaeology Magazine – Top Ten Discoveries of 2007:
http://www.archaeol
World Monuments Fund – 2008 List of 100 Most Endangered Sites:
http://wmf.org/
Red C Research – Tara/ Skryne Opinion Poll:
http://www.sacredir