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I was born in
Craigavon in 1979. I have 3 brothers. My home town is about 95
miles away from Belfast. Growing up in that environment, in
Ireland, isn't the same as it appears to be on television or in
the newspapers, it is a lot more peaceful. There is the odd
shooting or bombing but if you live in the countryside you are
actually well away from the trouble. The Peace Process to me is
going very slowly, but everyone has got to see that there is at
least a Peace Process going on. Some want to slow it down and some
want to speed it up, but as I say, everyone is glad there is
something actually being done. Student days here in Durham, there
is actually a lot more trouble over here than I expected. Back at
home in Ireland we have very little rape attacks, muggings or
stabbings. Over here in England I've heard of a lot of rape
attacks and stabbings, in England they get very little media
coverage. For example, a couple of weeks ago, I heard here that
there were 3 people stabbed to death in Liverpool and I was
talking to my parents on the telephone about it, they never heard
of it on the television. Still if there's a shooting in Ireland,
even if there's no one hurt or no one was injured, it's on the
news across Britain. So I've been quite surprised about the amount
of violence that there is in England.
When I was at
school up until I was 16 years old, I grew up in a Catholic
community. I lived in what was almost 100% catholic community.
There were about 5 Protestant families in it. They all got on very
well with everyone, there were only the odd families that were
against Protestants, against Unionists. But after the age of 16 I
moved house to a different village, Loughbrickland Village is 50%
Protestant and 50% Catholic and the countryside around it is 70%
Protestant and 30% Catholic. Because of this everyone gets on
better and there is very little violence around that area because
everyone knows that if they get involved in trouble, big trouble
comes back to them as well. After leaving the catholic school, I
went to college where it was mixed religions and lots of mixed
races at it. This helped a lot with communication and helped make
friends, a lot a people didn't bother about differing religions
and differing beliefs and after a while, you realise everyone has
actually got quite the same belief. It is just one person in every
thousand who seems to spoil it for everybody.
After
leaving school I studied Leisure and Tourism. Now that I've moved
over to England I'm studying Leisure Management, a HND course
which lasts for two years. I am studying it because with the Peace
Process in Ireland, if there is peace in Ireland, there will be a
lot of job opportunities in the leisure and tourism field. For
example, two or three years ago when there was a cease-fire from
the IRA office and from the UVF, during the summer there was a
tourism boom as they called it. Tourists came from all over the
world. I hope to get the qualifications I'm searching for, and
then move back over to Ireland to ,hopefully, a peaceful
environment.
What is special for this Christmas, I
think, is the effort everyone is making towards peace from all
political parties, from the British government and the Irish
government, from small parties in Northern Ireland, for example
from Shin Fein and the Ulster Unionists, the effort that is coming
from everyone I think is giving confidence to everyone else,
setting an example to everyone. Hopefully, it will make everyone
make a bigger effort towards having peace at Christmas and then
that way, it will be a lot more enjoyable for everyone. I was
about 15 or 16 before the first cease-fire. I went to a boxing
club in my village and then the boxing club was closed down and I
thought what will I do next, but then with the cease-fire I was
allowed to go to a close town, Newry. Because of the cease-fire, I
was allowed out into town and my parents had very little to worry
about because I'd be safe. The whole country is still a lot more
peaceful and relaxed. Long may it last. |
