Seanad debates
Thursday, 13 November 2003
United Nations Mission in Liberia: Statements.
Our troops have covered themselves in glory, particularly with their ability to move away from their military training and peacekeeping abilities to humanitarian tasks. They have written their name indelibly on orphanages, medical clinics and schools. I think of Camp Clarke near Pristina. The homes of two brothers near there were burnt down by Milosevic's troops. The brothers had eight children between them, four of whom had special needs. The families had no winter facilities and snow was lying on the ground. Irish troops renovated the cow byre in a couple of days and the families lived there until two new houses were built. I was there when the houses were nearly finished. While the cooker had been installed the windows had not and the families had moved into the house. A beautiful little deaf and dumb daughter of one of the brothers showed me her room and we had our photograph taken. When I returned much later she caught me by the hand and brought me in to show me the photograph. By then the houses had been completed. There was such joy to be seen on their faces, even when the windows had not been installed. I mention this to demonstrate the good work that can be carried out when a certain amount of peace falls on a place. Such work cannot be carried out in the beginning; the problems must first be resolved.
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