Archbishop voices horror at killing

THE Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Desmond Connell, last night issued a statement expressing his "horror" at the killing of Mr Joseph Dwyer.

"The fact that Joseph was already dying and that his last words showed a greater concern for others than for himself is not what makes this killing terrible", Dr Connell said. "But it shows us the humanity of the man and forces us to reflect even more on the evils which occur when people take it on themselves to judge and punish, rather than trust this complex duty to the law.

"I am aware of the anguish and anger felt by people who have witnessed the drugs epidemic destroy their communities", said Dr Connell. "I share that anguish, particularly that of parents and families who have lost a loved one to drugs, and I support every call for urgent action to deal with a problem now almost beyond control.

"But there are better ways of dealing with the drugs epidemic and to rid the community of the scourge of drugs.

"For example, the Archdiocese of Dublin, through its social care agency, Crosscare, has already started pilot drug awareness and leader training programmes in a number of Dublin parishes. These programmes aim to give people the skills necessary to combat the very real drug problem in their communities in ways that are non violent but effective."