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Kilkenny Borough Council is to hold a simple 1916 Commemoration on Easter Saturday, April 15th, in order to facilitate members of the public who will attend the National Parade in Dublin on Easter Sunday. A representative of each of the parties on the Borough Council will make the arrangements for the public ceremony which will be held in a public venue which is yet to be decided. Cllr. Seán Ó hArgáin, who proposed the ceremony originally, welcomed the all-party consensus on the issue. Speaking at Monday night’s Borough Council meeting, he outlined his suggestions for the ceremony. “I would suggest that a representative of the local Army would attend, and that the 1916 Proclamation be read in both our National languages. The National flag would be hoisted by the Mayor of Kilkenny, and an ecumenical prayer said. This could be followed by refreshments in City Hall for those members of the public who attend, as well as a possible talk on 1916 and its aftermath in Kilkenny. In particular, I believe the contribution of Peter De Loughry, later a Cumann na nGael T.D. for Kilkenny, who was arrested after the rising and famously made the key with which Éamonn De Valera escaped from Lincoln jail, and others including Tom Treacy should be celebrated.” I am also calling now for the erection of an appropriate Peace Statue in the town’s Peace Park where such commemorations can take place in the future. Funding is available for such projects under the ‘Percent for Arts’ scheme arising out of the River Nore scheme, and would give a focal point for the park. This should also be the venue for a long overdue public ceremony on Remembrance Day to commemorate the hundreds of Kilkenny people who gave their lives in World conflicts”. Cllr. Ó hArgáin concluded by inviting suggestions from the public for the 1916 ceremony, saying he was very heartened by the public’s reaction to his proposal.
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