'Nonsense' - army veteran aggrieved with state's response to honouring Ballyhaunis soldier

A Senator and army veteran is angry at what he sees as a lack of co-operation by the Department of Defence in honouring a Ballyhaunis soldier killed in Lebanon 25 years ago.

Senator Gerard Craughwell is frustrated that the Department is not making Army band and tents available for a July 20th commemoration event in Ballyhaunis and is particularly incensed at a demand for EUR6.5 million in insurance indemnification from the organisers of the event during which a monument will be unveiled to Private Kedian near his homeplace at Moneymore outside Ballyhaunis.

Senator Craughwell, who has also vented his frustrations in the Seanad, told the Western People: “My office undertook to issue the invitations, we invited the Tánaiste as well as the chief of staff among others. We requested a band, an honour guard and tentage. The first communication I got in response was that we would have to indemnify the Minister to the sum of EUR6.5 million.” 

“This is bureaucratic nonsense,” said Senator Craughwell. “Private Kedian gave his life to save those of his comrades. It’s the gravest insult to a brave colleague. The state has failed to honour Private Kedian and we are being put through the hoops in our efforts to honour him.”

Senator Craughwell said the Department of Defence has also told him the Army will supply a bugle player and a drummer in response to his request for a band. “They responded that a full band is not required to fulfil this engagement...With respect to tentage, there has been no decision yet.” Likewise, said the Senator, there has been no response to an invitation sent in May to the government minister in charge of defence – Tánaiste Micheál Martin.

The July 20th commemoration event was organised by neighbours and former comrades of Private Kedian, with a EUR10,000 grant from Mayo County Council paying for the monument.

Craughwell also thinks it’s “deeply regrettable” that a medal of valour is unlikely to be presented posthumously to Private Kedian’s family, despite efforts at the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence to override normal procedures and arrange the presentation for July 20.

Whatever happens, Craughwell expects a large turnout of Army veterans to travel to Ballyhaunis for the event on July 20. Members of the First Infantry Battalion in Galway, in which Private Kedian served, have been attending an annual mass in Ballyhaunis every year since 1999, he pointed out.

In response to a query from the Western People the Department of Defence said it “has received correspondence from Senator Craughwell in relation to the forthcoming commemorative event for the late Private Billy Kedian in Ballyhaunis on July 20th. The Department is currently considering Senator Craughwell’s correspondence and will be in contact with the Senator shortly.”