Monday, March 28, 2011

Bishop of Derry appeals to government to support elderly Irish Diaspora

The Bishop of Derry Dr Seamus Hegarty has urged the new Irish government to do its best to help elderly members of the Irish Diaspora all over the world.  

Bishop Hegarty,  chairperson of the Irish Catholic Bishop's Council for emigrants, urged the new government to particularly look after elderly Irish people living in Britain who may have fallen on hard times.  

Bishop Hegarty made his call in a week when the Irish Chaplaincy in Britain revealed that that over the past three years, over 1,000 Irish emigrants have been buried in unmarked plots in London. 

He said, “For a multitude of reasons some Irish emigrants still find themselves isolated, vulnerable and alone.  We must continue to support the elderly members of the Irish emigrant community in Britain and elsewhere.” 

“Earlier this year we learned that some Irish people were still been buried in communal plots in London without loved ones to comfort them at the time of their passing or to care for their remains.  I gratefully acknowledge the work of the Irish chaplaincy in Britain in highlighting this issue and their ongoing work and the work of other organisations in reaching out to the elderly Irish community.”

Bishop Hegarty also revealed that the plight of the Irish economy was constantly in his daily prayers and he hoped that, “many Irish young people who have been forced to join the haemorrhage of emigration from Ireland' might soon be able to return to the country and find work.”