Madam, - I watched in sadness the television news reports of five honourable men from Rossport being returned to jail. Their next due date in court is September. They will by then have spent the summer in jail.
These men and their families are putting on a brave face, but they must be anxious to get back to the land, to their animals and to the beautiful sunsets of North Mayo.
What an extraordinary sacrifice they are making for the common good.
I also watched a TV programme some weeks ago in which the Taoiseach posed in his office under a picture of his proclaimed hero Padraig Pearse.
If Pearse was here today, would he be hobnobbing in the Fianna Fáil tent in Ballybrit during the Galway Races with oil company executives and developers, or would he be standing with these five men? - Is mise,
MARIE KEATING,
Freeport,
Bearna,
Co Galway.
Madam, - While the wealthy supporters of Fianna Fáil gather in Galway this week, five men from Mayo are facing a far bleaker time in prison.
The harsh reality of the 26 counties today is a two-tier society where those without political influence are exploited, ignored and deprived of justice.
How many of those who dine on salmon and sip chilled wine in the Fianna Fáil hospitality tents have faced or are now facing tribunals? While the wealthy parade around in their finery and puff out their chests because they mingle with Ministers, a far more sinister relationship between financial power and politics is now emerging. How many donations have been made by wealthy businessmen to the political parties or to individual Ministers?
It is a national scandal that five men are still in prison over a questionable relationship between politicians and a multinational oil company. - Yours, etc,
JOE LYNCH,
Ballinacurra Weston,
Limerick.