26th August 1998

I hope you enjoyed whatever break you had over the past few weeks. The country and the world are struggling to comprehend what happened in Omagh on August 15th. We hear from Mary Minihan, a reporter who works in Omagh. For those who have just received exam results we hear some helpful advice on how to cope with the good or the bad news.

Side 1

1. Crossways: News in the Church and the World. An increased number of people are reporting that their drinks have been spiked and that they have been raped. Telephone counsellors at the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre are worried about this increase. In our main report we hear some advice from the Centre's Director, Olive Braiden. The news was read by Elaine Comerford.

Time: 6.24

2. The Omagh Bombing: The bombing of Omagh on 15th August 1998 catapulted an otherwise quiet Northern market town into the glare of the international media spotlight. In the week that followed the massacre, newspapers here and in Britain were full of stories and photographs documenting the suffering and devastation. Mary Minihan is a reporter with The Tyrone Constitution, a newspaper based up the street from where the tragedy occurred. In this interview she tells Mark Harkin of the experience of a local journalist on the ground.

In: (Harkin) "Having lived there.............want to remember it." Out: (Minihan)

Time: 5.56

3. Exam Results and Facing the Future: At this time of year many young people are making decisions about the future. Some are delighted with their exam results. Others are anxious about the future, others still are disappointed. As young people start jobs or set out for college they need the support of parents and family. Marie Stuart, RSM, talked to Fr Paul Andrews, SJ, about how parents can be of most help to their young people at this time. Paul is a well known psychotherapist, broadcaster and writer who has a lot of experience working with young people and parents.

In: (Stuart) "It’s a difficult time .............. it’s my life not Mum’s." Out: (Andrews)

Time: 5.14

4. Church in Crisis: It has almost become fashionable to suggest that the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland is in crisis. Falling Mass attendance, the virtual disappearance of sacramental confession and the exposure of the sins of many high profile Churchmen seem to point towards an almost terminal decline. Martin Browne asked Fr. Andrew Greeley to comment on this trend in the Church. Andrew Greeley is a priest, sociologist and novelist from Chicago. He has a particular interest in Ireland.

In: (Browne) "On this side..........change ahead of us." Out: (Greeley)

Time: 5.13

5. Sudan: Mary Healy is Trócaire's Emergency Co-ordinator in South Sudan, where she has been distributing relief supplies. There has been a civil war in this country for fifteen years between the Islamic north and the Christian south. The result of this war is forced migration, a displaced population, hunger, disease and famine. Mark Harkin spoke to Mary about the situation.

In: (Harkin) "What has been............to the situation." Out: (Healy)

Time: 5.58

Side 2

1. An Gairdín: An Gairdín is an ecological and environmental centre in the grounds of the Mercy convent in Portumna, Co. Galway. Here a group of people are searching for and developing ways of living in harmony with the earth. Teaching people to grow vegetables organically, providing related courses and re-introducing people to nature and the environment are part of the programme in The Gairdín. Marie Stuart, RSM, visited An Gairdín and talked to Kathleen Gibbons about the project. First she asked about growing organic vegetables. Kathleen comes from near Portumna and is a Mercy sister. She worked in education for many years until she became increasingly concerned about the way we are destroying our environment. She has been working on this project for most of the last ten years.

In: (Gibbons) "We are in a way kind of ........ all of 17 years old." Out: (Gibbons)

Time: 5.44

2. The Lambeth Conference: Every ten years, all the bishops of the worldwide Anglican Communion gather in Canterbury and spend some weeks in discussion, fellowship and prayer. All the Churches of the Anglican Communion, including the Church of Ireland, are independent and so the Lambeth Conference's power is purely moral, not legal. Critics have often claimed that the Anglican Communion is mainly a British or colonial institution. However, there were more black than white bishops at this year's conference, representing Anglican Provinces from all around the world. For the first time ever, women bishops were also present. One of the leading contributors at this summer's Lambeth Conference was the new Archbishop of Capetown and Primate of Southern Africa, Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane. He spoke about his experiences there with Christopher Halliday of East Coast Radio.

In: (Halliday) "Archbishop, this is your.............this global village." Out: (Ndungane)

Time:4.48

3. Spice Island Youthquake: The island of Grenada in the Carribean is known as Paradise Island. It's probably true to say that few people in Ireland know much about the place. It did make it onto international news screens in 1983 though, after the USA invaded the island in the aftermath of a civil war. Spice Island Youthquate is the name of a group of young Grenadian singers and musicians who are touring Ireland at present. As well as sharing with some people here something of their West Indian Culture, they hope to raise some money for a youth development programme in Grenada. Martin Browne spoke to the tour organiser, Fr. Oliver Leavey, a Kiltegan missionary.

In: (Leavey) "The island of Grenada..........and so on." Out: (Leavey)

Time: 5.34

(Spice Island Youthquake's remaining concerts are as follows: Friday August 28th, Regent Theatre, Clonmel; Saturday 29th, Dolmen Hotel, Carlow; Sunday 30th, St. Canice's Cathedral, Kilkenny; Tuesday September 1st, National Concert Hall, Dublin; Wednesday 2nd, Longford Arms, Longford; Thursday 3rd, Keadeen Hotel, Newbridge; Friday 4th, Presentation Secondary School, Portlaoise; Sunday 6th, St. Mary's School, Mullingar; Monday 7th, Harry's Hotel, Kinnegad and Tuesday 8th, Tullamore Court Hotel, Tullamore. They will also participate in RTE Television's broadcast Mass on this Sunday, September 30th)

4. Teresa’s Story: Teresa now has a better life than she ever dreamed possible. It wasn’t always that way. For 12 years she lived in a violent marriage. She never thought it would happen to her. She always believed that if it did, she would leave immediately. The most difficult thing was that her husband was a really kind, caring, sensitive person when he wasn’t being violent. Over time she told neighbours who were sympathetic but not really able to support her. Eventually she found someone who was able to make suggestions that helped her on the way to a new life. Teresa talked to Marie Stuart, RSM, about her experience of living with violence. (Anybody who is experiencing violence in the home can call the Women’s Aid Freephone Helpline at 1 800 341 900)

In: (Stuart) "You lived in a violent …………… understood me." Out: (Teresa)

Time: 5.59

5. Aid Work in North Korea: Kathi Zellweger is the Director of International Co-operation at Caritas (a branch of Trócaire) in Hong Kong. She visited the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (aka North Korea) this summer. There has been a food crisis in North Korea since the late 1980's mostly due to climatic conditions, especially flooding. The purpose of Kathi's visit was to assess how the country is coping, how ordinary people are surviving and how adequate the medical facilities are. She spoke to Mark Harkin.

In: (Harkin) "What have been...........to feed itself." Out: (Zellweger)

Time: 5.32