Dr. Maurice Manning:

The Senator raised a very interesting question regarding art, sculpture and so on. An area on which we would very much welcome his advice and that of other members of the committee is the Civil War. There is a proposal in the report that there be one major national event of commemoration and reconciliation. We have discussed the idea of a monument to commemorate all who died in the Civil War, but we have not come to any definite conclusions. One suggestion relates to the Cenotaph on the grounds of Leinster House. There are many reasons that might not or could not happen. We are considering whether the State should build a dedicated monument. The discussion could be opened up to artists and sculptors to see where it should be located. We would welcome input on these issues. We have made our recommendation but it has not yet been fleshed out. There could be an interesting debate among the public on what might best be done. I thank the Senator for his suggestion.