Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for her comprehensive reply. I also mention the need to recognise the role played by Cumann na mBan and by some people who were pacifists, such as Francis Sheehy-Skeffington, as well as other people who were involved who were not necessarily in agreement but who became part of what it was at the time, which we now have inherited. The point about inclusiveness to which the Minister referred is of huge importance, as we must try to ensure that everyone is recognised for his or her own particular contribution while recognising, as Members should now, that it was not a popular thing to do at the time. There was quite an amount of antipathy towards it, but it was a landmark decision at a highly sensitive time in our history.

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