Rónán Mullen (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I compliment Judge Smithwick on his fine work and echo the calls for a debate on the report. One often hears the phrase, "We can forgive, but we can never forget", but seeing the photographs of Chief Superintendent Breen and Superintendent Buchanan in the newspapers today is a reminder to us that it is important that we do not forget. Sometimes people think the requirement of a peace process is that one forget things, but it is never appropriate to forget. Forgiveness, of course, is essential.

Senator Darragh O'Brien drew our attention to what appear to be very troubling remarks by Deputy Gerry Adams this morning. We must all live this experience, obviously recognising our own failings, of continuing to feel disgust at what happened and continuing to expect that those who have rightly made the move to a democratic life and respect for the Constitution would acknowledge the wrongness of what happened in the past, while we also celebrate their arrival into legitimate political activity. Our thoughts today must be with the families of those men who were killed. It is striking how terribly recent it all is.

Senator Crown intends to raise on the Adjournment the issue of supports for people with Huntington's disease. I fully support him on that. I am delighted to welcome to the Visitors Gallery today two academics from National University of Ireland, Galway, Mary Dempsey and Professor Bob Lahue, who were both nominees for the Irish Laboratory Awards last night. Professor Lahue won two awards, for medical laboratory of the year and the pharmaceutical laboratory of the year. The Lahue laboratory has been involved in the discovery of a new target to combat Huntington's disease and it is at the pre-clinical trials stage. We owe academics such as Ms Dempsey and Professor Lahue a great debt. I am sure Members will join me in wishing them every success with their work and congratulating them on their achievements to date.