Latest news with #ÓglaighNáisiúntanahÉireann
RTÉ News
04-07-2025
- Health
- RTÉ News
Charity urges Irish Ukraine war veterans to avail of support
An Irish veterans charity is calling on former Defence Forces members who fought in Ukraine to come forward for support. Óglaigh Náisiúnta na hÉireann (ONE) has said that they are helping seven former Irish soldiers who fought in Ukraine. The charity believes there are more veterans out there who may need support. "What we have found is pride is a huge inhibitor of individuals looking for help. In an awful lot of cases, through second to third hand, we're made aware of an individual who is suffering," said Cormac Kirwan, CEO of ONE. He said he would encourage any individual, who is aware of a veteran of the Defence Forces who is struggling, to reach out. "We've six professional veteran support officers that are full-time counsellors and psychotherapists," he said. One Irish man who fought in Ukraine said he has noticed a huge difference in his mental health since engaging with ONE. Peter, not his real name, was a special forces operative with the Ukrainian Army from February 2022 to January 2023. "I went into the situation knowing the full risks involved. I didn't go over there naively," Peter told RTÉ News. He added: "I knew when I left Ireland, I knew there was a very good chance I was not going to come back alive. I made sure I was aware of that decision before I left Ireland." While escaping major physical injuries, Peter struggled internally when he got home two years ago. "[I] had to come home at some stage… preferably not in a box. One of the weirdest things when I came home was like 'I'm safe. I'm safe. I know I'm not going to be targeted today'," he said. Even though his GP said they believed he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, he refused help. "So, what did I do? I was still in combat mode. I avoided everyone. Didn't go out. Didn't socialise," he said. A friend put him in contact with ONE. He eventually decided to reach out to them for help which he said has been transformative for him. "One of the biggest disconnects you have when you come back is that everyone is a civilian. "They haven't been to war. They haven't seen what you've seen. They haven't done what you've done. Once you start talking to ex-military, you are able to connect and resonate with each other," he said. "When you come back, you try and find purpose in life. You come back to Ireland, you try and work a job, you're socialising at the weekends and doing all the simple things that people take for granted," he added. "But you're not going in, doing missions, going into combat or liberating towns, saving comrades, retrieving bodies, as grim as it might be. "At least you are doing something pretty important and making a significant difference. When you come home you realise that's lacking," the former Defence Forces member said. "It was the greatest sense of purpose I had while I was over there," Peter said. ONE support officer Audra Larkin said it is common for someone to find re-integration difficult when re-entering communities and families after war. "We see things like disrupted sleep patterns, PTSD, isolation, disconnection from friends, families, communities," she said. Ms Larkin said that ONE can offer veterans a shared language and that can help them adapt. "The ONE is a veterans organisation and they are veterans of the Defence Forces as well as the Ukrainian army, so the language is very similar. "We can engage them in that language that they find difficult to be understood in the civilian world," Ms Larkin said. "So just for them to reach out, they will be treated without any judgement in a confidential manner and it's a professional service," she added.
RTÉ News
04-05-2025
- Business
- RTÉ News
Call for GPO to be redeveloped into national veterans centre
A charity which helps Irish veterans is calling for the GPO to be redeveloped into a national veterans centre. Óglaigh Náisiúnta na hÉireann (ONE) said the proposed reimagining of the iconic building provides an opportunity to honour and assist the more than 100,000 veterans on the island of Ireland. Last year a group tasked with finding ways to improve Dublin city centre recommended that the GPO be redeveloped as a major public building with a greater public function. It is one of a number of recommendations to revitalise O'Connell Street contained in the report of the Dublin City Centre Taskforce. Historian at UCD, Mary McAuliffe said the GPO building stands as a powerful symbol of Ireland's struggle for independence as it served as headquarters of the leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising and where the Proclamation of the Irish Republic was first read. "It was the Irish volunteers and Cumann na mBan who fought in here in 1916, who then become the Republicans who then fight during the war of independence - split in the Civil War - but a lot of them go into the national army which is the precursor of today's Irish army," she said. Cormac Kirwan, CEO of Óglaigh Náisiúnta na hÉireann said the building resonates hugely within the veteran community. He said establishing a Veterans Centre in the heart of Dublin would serve both a practical and symbolic purpose, and could raise awareness about issues veterans face. ONE is the only charity providing housing and mental health support for Irish Defence Forces veterans. It has four residential homes in Athlone, Cobh, Dublin, and Letterkenny which, it says, helps address the increasing challenge of homelessness among veterans. "There is approximately 1% that are struggling due to a variety of different reasons. Reasons that would be associated with service at home and abroad but also reasons you'd have within a normal community. One stop shop "What we're really advocating for is that a National Veterans Support Bureau would be the one stop shop - the central hub where the information would come down from the Office of Veterans Affairs and then be disseminated out. "But it would also be an opportunity for veterans within the Dublin region or veterans that need to get advice in certain areas, that they could come in here and get appropriate advice on whatever area they need." The GPO is soon to be managed by the Office of Public Works after An Post moved its HQ elsewhere. The minster responsible, Kevin Boxer Moran said he would be happy to discuss ideas with ONE as no decision has been made on what the building could be used for. Ms McAuliffe said the GPO could accommodate a National Veterans Centre and more. "I think we also need to keep the exhibition of 1916 because it is a destination site for so many people... celebrating our revolutionary history. This is a huge site," she said.
