Ned O'Sullivan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate the director of the Hugh Lane Gallery for organising a major collection of the works of Andy Warhol, which is opening tomorrow. This was a huge undertaking. It took nearly five years to put it together. It will be the most specific exhibition of the work of the strange, controversial genius that was Andy Warhol. It gives a great opportunity to art lovers and the general public. It will be a huge tourist attraction for Dublin in the coming months.

The Deputy Leader, the Cathaoirleach and many others here attended the launch last night of Rough Beast, the story of Máiría Cahill and Sinn Féin, in Hodges Figgis last night. It is a compelling account of her treatment at the hands of the Provisional IRA's kangaroo court system of justice. It was a very well-attended event with representation from almost all the main political groupings in these Houses. This would not be unexpected, since we are talking about a former Oireachtas colleague and indeed, for us here, a former Seanad colleague. What cheered me mainly was the presence of so many people of the loyalist persuasion, former parliamentarians included. It just goes to show that when it comes to decency, there are no boundaries. We must learn from Máiría's brave account. Not many have her courage and determination but perhaps this book will encourage others to come forward. Her story is not unique. There were other victims of Provisional IRA abuse at the launch and every one of them is still traumatised and damaged.

It must be remembered that most of her trauma took place after the Good Friday Agreement. Like the Quinn and McCartney murders, it must be borne in mind that there is still a lot of evil. This can never again happen in any part of our shared island. It is still not too late for the leader of Sinn Féin, the successor of Gerry Adams, to come clean and issue a comprehensive and unequivocal apology to Máiría and the other victims. I ask our Sinn Féin colleagues here in the House to use their influence to bring this about.