Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I join the Acting Chairperson in welcoming the students. It is great to see all the schools back in action. It is only a matter of time before some of those students will be replacing us in the Houses.

I thank Senator Warfield for raising this very important issue. The conversation about the issue is very important also because it is not just about a monument but about framing that conversation with our plans and efforts in this area, which are ongoing.

It has been 40 years since the first clinical diagnosis of AIDS in Ireland and its impact here was no less than devastating to the lives of individuals, their families and communities. The initial outbreak of HIV and the corresponding AIDS crisis was marked by fear, isolation, misinformation and stigmatisation. In those early years, much of the fear and stigmatisation arose from a lack of information and myths about transmission. It is a legacy that many communities still struggle with today. To serve as a reminder that this terrible period has not been forgotten, it was proposed that a monument be commissioned. Many strides have been made in the treatment and prevention of HIV, meaning people with HIV today can live full and enriched lives. The monument will also serve as a tribute to those friends, families, support groups, doctors, nurses, and carers who dedicated so much of their lives and work to the treatment of HIV and to improving care.

A committee chaired by the Department of the Taoiseach was established to oversee the design and commissioning of an HIV and AIDS national monument. The remit of the committee is to consider the views of relevant parties on the nature of the monument to be commissioned, to make recommendations on the location and nature of the monument and projected timelines, to oversee the commissioning and delivery by the Office of Public Works, OPW, through competition, of the design and commissioning of the monument and to assist with the official unveiling and launch of the monument.

The purpose of the competition is to commission a monument that appropriately and respectfully remembers those who have died and to mark their lives and contribution to society, while also showing solidarity with those living with and affected by HIV today. The monument will be commissioned through a competition organised and administered on behalf of the committee by the OPW. The oversight committee includes representation from HIV Ireland, Fast-Track Cities, the Irish Haemophilia Society, members of the LGBTQI+ community and the Ana Liffey Drug Project, along with representatives from the Arts Council and the OPW. The site proposed for the monument is the People’s Gardens in the Phoenix Park, which will be its permanent location. The monument will be the focal point within the site location and must be in sympathy with the People’s Gardens and their green-space environs.

The competition seeks to elicit the most ambitious, creative, inclusive, and exceptional proposal for the monument. The monument must take a physical form but there are no preconceived ideas regarding its design. Applicants are free to choose any artistic medium for the expression of the monument. It should seek to represent hope out of sadness, drawing from the different phases of the epidemic, from the devastation it brought individuals and their families in the early years to the transition from terminal illness to a life lived fully with HIV, as well as the challenge of ending the stigma associated with living with HIV and the hope for a time when HIV will be a thing of the past. The monument should seek to create a better understanding and awareness of HIV and AIDS and their impact on communities. It should also be representative of individuals, families, and communities impacted by HIV and AIDS including members of the LGBTQI+ community, people who use drugs intravenously, people who have acquired HIV through contaminated blood products and people from migrant backgrounds.

The expression of interest for the HIV and AIDS national monument competition was first advertised on 1 June 2022. It will be a two-stage open competition, with a closing date for first-stage entries of 8 July 2022. The first stage comprises the call for expressions of interest to outline the artistic concept and approach to be taken by applicants. The nature of the monument and the medium and format through which it is to be delivered are open to the choice of the applicant. The competition is open to individuals and project teams and professional and non-professional applicants. The jury will select a maximum of ten applicants in the first stage, to be shortlisted to proceed to the second stage.

I congratulate all those who have been involved in the process so far.