Rossport Five put the spotlight on real issue
In conversation with friends and acquaintances on the rights and wrongs of the issue, it appears that because the men have 'broken the law' many people will quell their own curiosity into the broader issues of the Corrib gas field project.
As a nation we are very selective in our attitudes to law-breaking.
Does the name Rosa Parks ring a bell with anyone?
She broke the laws of the state of Alabama when she refused one day to stand and give a white man her seat in a crowded bus.
We all hail the memories of many people lawbreakers who stood up for justice.
In some cases they managed to change laws and had long-term positive effects on their societies. Let me see now to name just a few Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, Oscar Schindler.
And women, too we need look no further than Constance Markievicz, first woman MP in Europe, who hailed from just up the road here in Lisadell.
There is nothing new in my assertion that what is legally right is not always morally right.
However, sometimes it suits us to remain in our comfort zones and then it becomes convenient to dismiss the case of the Rossport Five by saying: "but they broke the law!"
In years to come, our taxpayers' money could be used to establish yet another tribunal this time to find out how our natural resources could have been sold off to a multinational company without a penny in royalties going to the Irish state.
No doubt there will be cries of indignation from all quarters then, but not one of us can say we weren't aware of this scandal in 2005, when five brave men broke the law in order to draw our attention to the whole scandalous affair. Wake up, Ireland!
Maria O'Malley
'Sliabh na mBan'
Carney
Co Sligo
