Letters to the Editor, April 23rd: On Pope Francis, trans rights, Pakistan's Indus river, and space tourism

Irish Times

23-04-2025

Sir, – The death of
Pope Francis
after a challenging illness is a sad time for all who admired him and his radical papacy.
For divorced and remarried practicing Catholics it is gratifying and a gift to have marriage recognised and blessed by a person's birth faith. This is something that would not have happened under previous popes.
Pope Francis was courageous and was happier to encourage and hug rather than to point the finger and scowl. – Yours, etc,
THOMAS MORRIS GORMALLY,
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Rathangan.
Sir, – Despite the great sadness of Pope Francis's death, it is a great relief to observe so many facets of the media acclaim a world leader who spoke out for the disenfranchised, the disabled and the impoverished, and who understood and campaigned from a climate change perspective, and was deeply committed to mitigating the horrors of 'man's inhumanity to man'.
With great personal humility, little sense of self and a compassionate insight on the vulnerability of humanity, he laid comprehensive foundations for making the Catholic Church Great Again.
Would that others note his blueprint! – Yours, etc,
MICHAEL GANNON,
Kilkenny.
Sir, – While I'm certain the pilgrims in St Peter's Square were delighted to see the Holy Father on Sunday morning and to receive his blessing, it's impossible not to be haunted by the feeling that, had he been dissuaded from exerting himself, he might still be with us.
One is reminded uncomfortably of the late Queen Elizabeth, so much frailer than we had ever seen her, accepting the credentials of Liz Truss as prime minister, shortly before her majesty died. Now her heir, King Charles, is soldiering on despite his health problems.
Do we expect too much of people in these positions, so that they feel unable to take a well-earned rest when it's called for? – Yours, etc,
PAUL GRIFFIN,
Merseyside,
UK.
Trans rights in Ireland
Sir, – Under the heading 'UK ruling on biological sex' three letters published in The Irish Times were supportive of the UK's decision do define a woman (or man) as being the biological sex at birth (
Letters
, April 19th).
Your correspondents cite issues with ladies' Gaelic football changing rooms, single-sex spaces and lesbian clubs and bars. But none of them point to a basic truth: trans women pose almost no threat to women.
People have been able to self-identify as trans in Ireland since 2015 (when Gender Recognition Certificates were introduced). Since then, there have been no recorded incidents of assault by trans women on women in single space areas in Ireland.
If Ireland were to replicate the UK's decision, trans women will be expected to use the male toilets. It's not hard to imagine how a female-presenting trans woman would face increased danger in that situation. For almost no increase in security for women, the trans community would be made to feel even more vulnerable and marginalised.
In addition, will masculine-looking women be challenged in women's toilets, simply based on appearance? Will we require some form of door check on those using public facilities? How will they perform the check? Will processes be standardised across all public single-sex spaces?
In short if we were to go down this path, we will create increased danger, confusion, division and resentment, all for little or no benefit to women's safety.
I have little doubt that the decision in the UK will increase the pressure to reopen the debate on trans rights here. We need our public representatives to prepare themselves and be determined to defend the equality we have created in Ireland. – Yours, etc,
RICHARD KAVANAGH,
Wicklow.
Impressive space mission
Sir, – The opinion piece written by columnist Liz Carolan was disappointing ('
Katy Perry's 11 minutes as an astronaut were a waste of space. It could have been so much more
', Opinion, April 19th).
Whatever one might think of space tourism, this was a promotional flight designed to show that space flight is not (quite) as dangerous as before. If
Katy Perry
returned excited and kissing the ground, it was perhaps because the crew was under no illusion that a failed parachute deployment might well have spelt death.
Oprah Winfrey
revealed that her friend Gayle King was 'absolutely terrified' by the prospect. Last week's helicopter crash in New York should be a reminder that technology can still catch us out with fatal results.
The six women on the Blue Origin flight included an aerospace engineer, an astrophysicist, a TV editor/producer, a singer/songwriter, a film producer and an aviation executive/helicopter pilot. They were a diverse group that included a 70 year old.
My granddaughters were impressed, which is all the proof I need that the mission was a success. – Yours, etc,
GEORGE REYNOLDS,
Blessington,
Co Wicklow.
Tech giants bow to Trump
Sir, – Huge amounts have been written off the valuations of the tech giants, whose chief executives have flocked to support US president Donald Trump ('
The silence of the CEOs in the face of Donald Trump's tariff chaos
', Economy, April 21st).
Why are these chief executives not protesting vociferously about the
Trump tariffs
that are causing market chaos? The same charge could have been levelled at British leaders of the business community during the
Brexit
campaign. There were few manifestations of protest about this self-inflicted damage being wrought on the UK economy.
Our society has become much more intolerant and woe betide the person who does not conform to the views of those who have become so powerful.
There is a new ruthlessness in this, of a kind we used to associate with totalitarian dictators.
Informed discussion and civilised exchanges on procedures and policies are unfortunately not the norm any more. – Yours, etc,
EITHNE O'CALLAGHAN,
Ballsbridge,
Dublin 4.
A lifeline under threat
Sir, – I write to you not only as a general practitioner living in Ireland, but as a son of Sindh, a historic province in southern Pakistan where one of the world's oldest Indus Valley civilisations once thrived.
I watch in anguish as my homeland rises in a wave of protests and sit-ins in a desperate call to save the Indus river – the lifeline of our culture, economy and existence.
The Pakistani federal government, alongside Punjab province and supported by the military establishment, has launched a controversial plan to construct six large canals under the 'Green Pakistan Initiative'.
These canals would divert water from the already depleted Indus to arid lands in Punjab's Cholistan desert. This is not a small technical project. For Sindh, it is an existential threat.
The Indus is not just a river, it is the only source of fresh water for Sindh's people and the foundation of our agriculture, drinking water and ecosystem. Without it, life becomes impossible.
The scale of devastation this canal project could unleash is hard to overstate: mass displacement, collapse of farming communities, disease and famine. If allowed to proceed, this plan may not just damage Sindh, it risks triggering a slow, systematic genocide through economical and ecological destruction, where an entire nation is denied the means to survive in its own homeland.
What is remarkable – and largely unseen in Pakistan's history – is the scale and unity of the response. Lawyers have launched indefinite sit-ins, professors have closed colleges, farmers and students have joined the streets. This is not a political movement, it is a civil, social, and cultural uprising. And yet, the federal authorities remain unmoved.
We Sindhis are not asking for charity or conflict. We are demanding fairness, sustainability and the basic right to exist. The world must understand: this is not merely a water dispute. It is a question of life and death. A nation without its river is a nation condemned. – Yours, etc,
Dr MUHAMMAD MATARO
HINGORJO,
Limerick.
Aviation industry and climate
Sir, – Dr Ola Lokken Nordrum's refers to the media offering free PR to high-emission industries by encouraging carbon-intensive air travel, and that this must be addressed 'if we are serious about climate action' (
Letters
, April 22nd).
But the media is not the only culprit. Our Government contributes to the profits of the aviation industry and encourages people to frequently fly by providing approximately €600 million each year to that industry in the form of exemption from tax on jet kerosene. I receive no tax exemption on my fuel if I drive to Cork but I do if I fly!
In addition, in 2009-2014 Ireland had an air travel tax (passenger charge) but it was abolished to support the aviation industry. Furthermore, we impose a zero VAT rate on tickets.
If we are serious about climate action, these issues must also be addressed. – Yours, etc,
PAUL O'SHEA,
Shankill,
Dublin 18.
Worthwhile career choice
Sir, – Brian Mooney gives too narrow a perspective in answering your correspondent's question: '
My son wants to study sustainability but has no idea what course to choose. Can you help
?' (Education, April 20th).
In his reply, he talks mainly about agriculture, which indeed the letter writer highlights as one of their son's strongest subjects, but agriculture is more than farming and food.
Nor is sustainability a new idea. Forestry, based on the ideal of sustained yield, was well developed in 19th century Germany, following centuries of overexploitation. Today, our forests and their harvested wood products are critically important in the battle against climate change because they capture and store carbon as well as substitute for steel and concrete.
I can think of few more worthwhile careers. – Yours, etc,
DR CORMAC O'CARROLL,
Salzburg,
Austria.
Bearing witness
Sir, – Primo Levi, survivor of Auschwitz, taught us that the act of bearing witness is not just a moral obligation, but a warning. He wrote: 'It happened; therefore it can happen again.' His words were not meant to serve one people alone, but to protect humanity from the spiral of dehumanisation and indifference that enabled the Holocaust.
Today, as we witness the suffering of civilians in
Gaza
– trapped, bombarded, displaced – we echo Levi not to compare tragedies, but to recognise patterns of violence that must never be normalised. To speak out against the suffering of Palestinians is not to deny Jewish suffering; it is to affirm our shared humanity.
And yet, in invoking Levi's name to call for an end to collective punishment and state violence, many are accused of anti-Semitism. This is a cruel irony.
To bear witness to the horrors of the Gaza ghetto is not an act of hate – it is an act of conscience.
We cannot allow moral clarity to be distorted by political defensiveness. If 'never again' is to mean anything, it must apply to all people. Levi's legacy belongs not to any one nation, but to all who choose to see clearly, speak bravely, and defend the dignity of every human life. – Yours, etc,
DECLAN DOYLE,
Kilkenny.
Dublin now and then
Sir, – I grew up in the Dublin of the 1960s travelling daily across the city from Drumcondra to Sandymount for school over 10 years.
Viewed from the top of the bus some of the older buildings en route had a certain charm. However, there was large-scale dereliction, 'tooth gaps' on streets and poor quality housing . All resulting in a grim city.
Since then the quality of architectural design has improved immeasurably with great examples of public and private housing.
Una Mullally in her column sees the city through a prism of ugliness ('
Why are most new housing schemes in Dublin so terrible?
', Opinion, April 14th). However, I agree with your correspondent (
Letters
, April 17th) and am not buying into Ms Mullally's opinion. - Yours, etc,
KIERAN GALLAGHER,
Architect,
Rathgar,
Dublin 6.
Bank holiday reading treat
Sir, – I would like to thank Miriam Lord whose intelligence and wit kept us going during the unruly first term of the new Dáil.
Her end-of-term '
Easter awards
' were a welcome bank holiday treat after the long political Lent we have endured (April 19th). I particularly liked the 'Best Leo Varadkar tribute act' that went to US vice-president JD Vance for his 'very Leo' novelty shamrock socks.
I look forward, as always, to more of Ms Lord's Dáil reports. Silk purses come to mind. – Yours, etc,
CHRIS FITZPATRICK,
Dublin 6.
Truth standing on its head
Sir, – How does he do it? I refer to the cartoon by Martyn Turner regarding Jesus the Palestinian (
April 18th
). He is perhaps the most famous person in the world and unfortunately the Palestinian people are the most persecuted people in the world today, and the victims of mass murder.
GK Chesterton has defined paradox as 'truth standing on its head to attract attention'. So often these cartoons display such paradox. Congratulations Mr Turner on your astute artwork. – Yours, etc,
KATHLEEN FORDE,
Dublin 9.
'Clean rotten'
A chara, – May I add to
Frank McNally
's Hiberno-English intensifying adjectives ('pure') the word 'clean' meaning extremely or thoroughly, as in the expression 'clean rotten'. – Le meas,
CAOIMHÍN Ó SEANÁIN,
Béal Feirste.