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Here you will
find photos of the second weekend break to the Corrymeela centre situated on Ireland's
northern shore.
Click the thumbnails to get the bigger picture.
Clare Morrison, Breandan Ó Lochlainn and Mary Thornbury do
some posing.
(Picture by Bill Smith courtesy of the Irish News 13-11-2000)
| Centre is refuge to troubles
survivors by Alan Irwin,
Irish News 13-11-2000 |
On Friday a west Belfast trauma
group will head for Ballycastle for its second visit to the Corrymeela centre. The Victims
and Survivors Trust (Vast) are taking 52 people for the weekend stay — around double
the number who visited in January.
It is a clear indication of the increasing worth which the group places on
Corrymeela’s benefits. Vast chairman Brendan Loughlin explained that the Falls
Road-based project aims to tackle social isolation and establish contact programmes
through mutual understanding.
"We believe that one of the ways of resolving the conflict is through dialogue.
Another way is through understanding other people’s viewpoint," he said.
Mr Loughlin acknowledged that, as the group is based in west Belfast, most of the people
it deals with are those injured by the state.
Catholics from the Falls, he added, are at the bottom of the so-called ‘hierarchy of
victims’.
"We run activities such as taking people away to Corrymeela. for respite and
education classes," he said. "Personally, I have become a much more relaxed
person. For about five years I was completely hyper."
The Falls Road man lists his own personal exposure to the conflict in Northern Ireland.
He was burnt out of his home in 1969; his father has been shot three times by security
forces and he was injured by the British army in 1977.
His nephew, west Belfast teenager Damien Walsh, was killed by loyalist paramilitaries in
March 1993.
It was on the fifth anniversary of his death that Vast was set up as a cross community
group to help people who have been traumatised by the conflict.
Vast development worker Clare Morrison is also a member of the Corrymeela community.
"When I came to Vast I thought it would be useful to introduce them to the centre at
Ballycastle."
Mr. Loughlin found it a rewarding experience.
"Because of the atmosphere you feel you can talk to people, and it gets you out of
west Belfast," he said.
On other occasions he has taken part in cross comrnunity programmes at the Ballycastle
base. He believes in dialogue.
"It’s good for people to understand the other side.
They begin to realise you are a human being." |
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