THE PARENTS of murdered Swiss teenager Manuela Riedo have said they will never forgive her killer and hope that he spends the rest of his life behind bars.
Hans-Peter and Arlette Riedo launched a foundation yesterday in memory of their 17-year-old daughter who was murdered in October 2007, just three days after arriving in Galway city for a language course.
Gerald Barry (29), of Rosan Glas, Rahoon, Galway, was given the mandatory life sentence last month for her murder.
The Manuela Reido Foundation aims to raise awareness among teenagers of the dangers of rape and sexual assault while also providing support for the victims and their families.
The Chieftains, The Dubliners, The Wolfe Tones and the Kilfenora Céilí Band are among those who have been confirmed for a concert which is planned to take place in the Swiss capital Berne on July 25th to raise money for the foundation.
Mr Riedo said neither he nor his wife had been aware of Barry’s long list of previous convictions and both were shocked to find out about his crimes, which included six years for violent disorder arising out of a man losing his life in a fracas in Eyre Square in 1996.
“We can’t describe him as a person, there is no word for this man. He has to answer to God. He must take the same pain that he caused to us and our family. He must accept this pain,” he said.
He said claims before sentencing that Barry was himself a victim of a terribly dysfunctional family were no excuse for his behaviour.
“My father also had a bad childhood, but he never became a criminal or a murderer. There is no excuse and there is no understanding.
“After 10 or 15 convictions, you cannot rehabilitate, you cannot make them better. When he [Barry] came out of jail he could have made a better life for himself, but he chose the bad way and it led to the death of Manuela.”
The foundation was set up by Basle-based Irish publican Brendan McGuinness who said he did not expect it to heal the couple’s pain because of the loss of their only child, but he hoped it would give them a reason to continue living without their daughter.
He said Irish people were “deeply affected” by the realisation that Barry had been free to kill Ms Riedo.
“Manuela was entitled to walk the streets of Ireland without having to encounter a beast like this. She paid with her life for his crimes,” he said.
Also attending yesterday’s launch was the chief executive of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre Ellen O’Malley-Dunlop.
“I have no doubt that many, many people will be helped and facilitated on the road to recovery and many will be helped through education and prevention projects as a result of the foundation in Manuela’s name,” she said.
Dubliners’ fiddler player John Sheehan hoped the concert would be a chance to show a better side of the Irish people.
“From out of bad things, can come some good. We want to show some solidarity with the Swiss people and the Riedo family for what happened in our so-called Ireland of the welcomes.”
Wolfe Tones singer Brian Warfield described the concert as a possible “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to see so many big Irish acts on the same stage. “What happened Manuela brought shame on the Irish people and we want to get the good name of our country back again.”
The Manuela Riedo Foundation’s web address is www.manuela-riedo-foundation.ch and the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre contact number is 1800 778888.