Letters: Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael should apologise to Irish people for Civil War

Both the Taoiseach and Tánaiste are quick to ask Sinn Féin to apologise for their past, so now might be a good time for Fianna Fáil to apologise for starting that Civil War by rejecting the democratic vote of the majority in our first Dáil and plunging a people weary from the independence struggle into internecine war. Fine Gael, then Cumann na Gael, might apologise for the judicial executions of many republicans, men and boys, not afforded a day in court.

Sinn Féin is not the sole holder of Irish pain and war. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael should lead by example, not selective slicing of history.

John Cuffe, Co Meath

Horrors of Bakhmut prove we need a formula for peace

Bakhmut has become a ghost city. We cannot imagine a world where cruelty and barbarity are the norms.

Perhaps this is not only a hideous and devastating conflict that saps the human and natural resources of Russia and western nations alike, but the most savage since atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and since the Holocaust.

It is sad that antisemitism, Islamophobia, xenophobia and anti-immigrant hatred are still surging in our midst. It is time to formulate a peace formula and extinguish the flames of hatred and violence.

Dr Munjed Farid Al Qutob, London

Leaving Cert brings back memories of a great honour

As the Leaving Cert once again looms on the horizon, I am reminded of my long-ago school days. I did so well in the Leaving that I was invited to return and do it again the following year.

Tom Gilsenan, Beaumont, Dublin 9

Repeal vote has changed the moral ethos of our country

Today is the fifth anniversary of the public vote to repeal the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution, with the Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy Act 2018 becoming operational on January 1, 2019.

In the ensuing years of legalisation, 30,000 pregnancies have been terminated in Ireland. The numbers have increased year by year, yet the State does not ask why so many women sought abortion or promote any positive alternatives or help of any kind. Why?

We are being led to believe abortion is liberating and empowers women, but in truth it affects the life of the woman in ways she cannot anticipate and changes the moral and cultural ethos of our country.

Mary Fallon, Lecarrow, Co Roscommon

Relegation might be wake-up call Wexford hurling needs

I have just finished reading Martin Breheny’s column regarding the current travails of the Wexford hurlers (‘Why Wexford exiting Leinster is a ridiculous proposition’, Irish Independent, May 23).

Mr Breheny is of the opinion that relegation for the Yellowbellies would be of no benefit to hurling or to Wexford, and one presumes by extension the Wexford hurling supporters.

The good news on this front is that only a very small number of people would be inconvenienced as the attendance for the Westmeath game played in Wexford Park on a fine sunny day was only 2,500. The Westmeath support notwithstanding, this was an abject turnout for a championship match, and one wonders how that apathy towards the home team played a part in the overall performance.

Fair play to Westmeath, and maybe this can be a wake-up call for the Wexford people. To call them supporters would be stretching things.

John Slattery, Newport, Tipperary

Munster fans – beware logic of always backing O’Gara

As Munster fans prepare to support their team in the URC final, I wonder if those among them who were rooting for La Rochelle against Leinster last weekend in the Champions Cup Final have thought through the logic of their position.

Hypothetically, the French rugby authorities might, some years hence, decide to appoint Ronan O’Gara as manager of the French national side (or, at least, include him in the coaching team).

If that happened, would Munster fans then feel obliged to support France, rather than Ireland, in the Six Nations?

Brian Cosgrove, Cornelscourt, Dublin