Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Two weeks ago I had the honour of being invited to Finner Camp in County Donegal for the stand down parade of Sergeant Major John O'Connor, at which I listened to him recount his experience in his rescue in Lebanon 40 years ago. He had just arrived in Lebanon and was severely wounded. While lying dying on the ground, the now retired Sergeant Major Dick O'Hanlon and Corporal Martin Fahy, under mortar and rifle fire from the enemy, travelled 400 m to collect Sergeant Major O'Connor and bring him back to a bunker, from where, under fire, they brought him to a medical treatment unit. Has anybody heard of a medal being awarded to the now retired Sergeant Major O'Hanlon and Corporal Fahy or any of the others who were there? There has not been a word, nothing. If these men had done it while serving with the British Army, they would have received the Victoria Cross. If they had done it while serving with the US Army, they would have received the Medal of Honor. We are a begrudging, mean nation in the way we treat members of the Defence Forces. The Leader has supported the men of Jadotville, from where the commander, Commandant Pat Quinlan, brought 155 men home alive after a battle against 3,000. He has not so much as found his name on a citation. He was entitled to the highest military honours, as were the 168 others who served in the Congo. Last weekend in Cork there was a march to call for respect and loyalty. I thank my colleague Senator Colm Burke for turning up at the march, as did many county councillors and many members of the Fianna Fáil Party. I appreciate that it was a difficult time for people to turn up at such events, but they did turn up to send their good wishes. I know that the Leader has expressed his support for the Defence Forces many times, but at the end of the day, there is more to showing respect than money. We owe it to those who have been neglected and forgotten to carry out a review of every act of valour since Irish troops first went on UN peacekeeping missions in the late 1950s. Not only that, we need to respect those who lost their lives during the Troubles. It is a small matter for most of us, but it is a big matter for their families. I ask the Leader for his support in this quest to right the wrongs of the past. It is never ever too late to do so. The Ceann Comhairle said in the Dáil that the neglect of members of the Defence Forces was up there with the Magdalen laundries and other such instances of abuse. In this instance we are talking about acts of valour.