Latest news with #NPHIreland
BreakingNews.ie
5 days ago
- Health
- BreakingNews.ie
Organisation which employs Gena Heraty 'shocked' over kidnapping
The Chairperson of the Board of Trustees for NPH Ireland, the organisation which employs aid worker Gena Heraty, has spoken of the shock at the abduction of Ms Heraty and seven others, including a three year old child. Jessica Mullins told RTÉ radio's Morning Ireland that everybody at NPH was 'really disheartened' at what had happened. Advertisement 'Gena is so highly regarded within the communities that she works for and does such amazing work that it really is shocking that this unfortunate series of events is after occurring.' Ms Mullins said that Ms Heraty would be 'putting on a brave face', not just for herself, but for everybody else and would probably be 'trying to negotiate her way out. 'But no doubt there's also an element of fear there'. Ms Heraty had great resilience, she said. Testament to that was the fact that she had spent over 30 years in Haiti despite the increasing volatility. Advertisement 'It would be a tough environment to work in and to grow up in. It's rife with poverty, civil unrest. It just shows her resilience. She has showed up every day regardless of how volatile or how tough things get on the ground over in Haiti.' 'For Gena I would think this isn't a job, it's a vocation and like one of her colleagues said to us yesterday it's her true mission in life and she really is an amazing person and just serves with love and compassion and dignity and she's probably one of the most selfless people I've ever met.' Meanwhile, Infectious diseases expert Dr Louise Ivers, Executive Director of the Centre for Global Health, has spoken of the deep commitment of abducted aid worker Gena Heraty to the people of Haiti. 'I've known Gena since 2008 and we've remained quite friendly over time. Everything you've been reading about Gena over the last few days is true. She's an absolutely fantastic person. She's a kind person. She's completely committed to the children and young people who she takes care of there in Haiti. She's just an absolute delight. A lovely, lovely woman,' she told Newstalk Breakfast. Advertisement 'When you think of aid worker, you tend to have a picture of somebody who's come in, they're doing important work, but it's temporary, you know, they're kind of the foreigner, they drop in, they are responding to a specific crisis, and then usually they're leaving. 'Gena has been there for over 30 years. She's part of the community, she's fluent in Haitian Creole, she's a well-known entity around, she is really part of the fabric of the organisation and the area where she's living, so it's really a little bit of a different perspective in my mind. 'I don't know how she would describe herself, if that's the word she would use, but she's just a really, really important person in the community and doing tremendous work, work that is hard and working with young people and children that can be sometimes very difficult to take care of in difficult circumstances but committed nonetheless to it. 'But one of the challenges in Haiti Is that it's such a relentlessly challenging place and for many people that is paralysing because it seems like it's just too difficult to make any progress there. But if you have the attitude of one positive thing, I think it can help you see a path forward and so that's what I see in Gena, you know, always kind of looking for that one thing that she can do or one good thing that has happened in the day. Advertisement Dr Ivers said that Ms Heraty was more than an aid worker, she was a mother to the children in the orphanage. 'She's committed to that place and to the community and to especially the children with disabilities in her house that she cares for, she's a mother to them. She's not naive. She knows the situation. "Everybody there knows the situation and it takes a tremendous amount of resolve and commitment to doing the right thing and doing a good thing. So I really admire her tremendously and I am worried about her and hope that grace will be shown to her and her colleagues, and that they will be released safely.'
Irish Times
5 days ago
- Irish Times
Kidnapped Irish woman Gena Heraty will be ‘trying to negotiate her way out', says employer
Gena Heraty, the Irish aid worker who was kidnapped in Haiti , is probably 'trying to negotiate her way out' and will be 'putting on a brave face', according to the organisation which employs her. Ms Heraty, a missionary who is director of the Sainte-Hélène orphanage run by Nos Petits Frères et Soeurs (NPFS, Our Little Brothers and Sisters) in Kenscoff, was taken with seven others, including a three-year-old child, on Sunday, about 10km outside the capital, Port-au-Prince. The Co Mayo woman, who has lived in Haiti since 1993, oversees the running of the orphanage and is the co-ordinator of its special needs programme. The Irish Times learned on Tuesday that two people representing NPFS had spoken to the gang leader holding Ms Heraty via intermediaries and were awaiting further contact. READ MORE Jessica Mullins, chairwoman of the board of trustees for NPH Ireland, the charity's Irish branch, said while Ms Heraty had great resilience, there's 'no doubt there's also an element of fear there'. She said Ms Heraty would be 'putting on a brave face', not just for herself, but for everybody else and would probably be 'trying to negotiate her way out'. 'It would be a tough environment to work in and to grow up in,' Ms Mullins told RTÉ's Morning Ireland. 'It's rife with poverty, civil unrest. It just shows her resilience. She has showed up every day regardless of how volatile or how tough things get on the ground over in Haiti.' Work in Haiti 'isn't a job' for Ms Heraty, 'it's a vocation', she said. 'It's her true mission in life and she really is an amazing person and just serves with love and compassion and dignity. She's probably one of the most selfless people I've ever met.' Executive director of the centre for global health, Dr Louise Ivers, agreed with this character assessment of Ms Heraty, saying she was 'completely committed' to the children and young people who she takes care of in Haiti. 'She's committed to that place and to the community and to especially the children with disabilities in her house that she cares for, she's a mother to them. She's not naive. She knows the situation. 'Everybody there knows the situation and it takes a tremendous amount of resolve and commitment to doing the right thing and doing a good thing,' infectious diseases expert Dr Ivers told Newstalk Breakfast. 'Gena has been there for over 30 years. She's part of the community, she's fluent in Haitian Creole, she's a well-known entity around, she is really part of the fabric of the organisation and the area where she's living.' Hait is a 'relentlessly challenging' and 'very, very dangerous place', said Dr Ivers, adding there had been 350 reported kidnappings in the country so far this year. 'There's been thousands of people killed by gangs, by the police, by security forces and by vigilante groups who have taken to just trying to defend their own communities themselves.' On Tuesday, Tánaiste Simon Harris raised Ms Heraty's case with the EU's high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, Kaja Kallas. Arising from the conversation, an EU diplomat in Haiti will be the point of contact in the case. Mr Harris added he had been in constant contact with the Heraty family and would continue to provide them with supports. Furthermore, 'different avenues at both political and diplomat level continue to be exhausted' in a bid to free the hostages. The abduction has come during a period of deep crisis for Haiti, where law and order has collapsed and crime gangs, rather than the government, have control of vast parts of the country. It is believed the gang who led the kidnapping are associates - and come under the control and protection of - the Viv Ansanm group in the town of Kenscoff. Viv Ansanm, which means Live Together, was one of two major crime syndicates in Haiti sanctioned by the United Nations last month, with the EU having since amended its Haiti sanctions list to include the two groups. A coalition of multiple gangs, Viv Ansanm is intent on taking control of Haiti, with the US declaring them a terrorist group and a threat to US national security.
RTÉ News
5 days ago
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Gena Heraty a 'tough, resilient' person, says charity
NPH Ireland, the Irish branch of the charity which kidnapped Irish missionary Gena Heraty has been working with in Haiti, has described her as a tough and very resilient person, adding that her work there is a vocation. Ms Heraty, a native of Westport in Co Mayo who is in her mid-50s, oversees the Sainte-Helene orphanage in the commune of Kenscoff, about 10km southeast of the capital Port-au-Prince. She and seven others are still in captivity in Haiti after being kidnapped at the weekend. One of those taken along with her is a three-year-old child. The Irish Government has raised the case with the EU's high representative for foreign affairs Kaja Kallas. Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, NPH Ireland Chairperson Jessica Mullins said everyone was shocked and disheartened at what has happened, adding that Ms Heraty is highly regarded in the communities she works for. "Gena is tough, so she will definitely be putting on a brave face, I think for everybody else, because it wasn't just Gena that was taken," she said. "No doubt Gena is trying to put on a brave face for everyone, and also probably herself trying to negotiate her way out. But no doubt there's also an element of fear there". Ms Mullins explained Ms Heraty has spent over 30 years in Haiti, which she said was rife with poverty and unrest and has become more volatile over the last number of years. "It would be a tough environment to work in and to grow up in... but it just shows her resilience. She has showed up every day, regardless of how volatile or how tough things get on the ground over". "For Gena I would think this isn't a job, it's a vocation," Ms Mullins said, adding that "it's her true mission in life". "She really is an amazing person and just serves with love and compassion and dignity, and she's probably one of the most selfless people I've ever met". The people of Haiti are amazing and kind, Ms Mullins said, adding that it was a shame that there are gangs now tarnishing the potential that the country has. "It's a potential that Gena sees, believes in, and it's why she's based kind of immersed in the community over there, and works so tirelessly at what she does".
Irish Times
6 days ago
- Irish Times
Irish woman kidnapped in Haiti ‘dedicated her life to supporting the most vulnerable'
An Irish woman kidnapped in Haiti has 'dedicated her life to supporting the most vulnerable' there, Tánaiste Simon Harris has said. The Government is in close contact with authorities in Haiti and 'will continue to leave no stone unturned to ensure' Gena Heraty is released, he said on Monday. Ms Heraty was among eight people kidnapped from the Sainte-Hélène orphanage in the commune of Kenscoff, about 10km southeast of the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince, on Sunday. The Co Mayo woman, who has lived in Haiti since 1993, oversees the running of the orphanage and is the co-ordinator of its special needs programme. READ MORE The facility is operated by the humanitarian organisation Nos Petits Frères et Soeurs (NPFS, Our Little Brothers and Sisters). NPH Ireland, the charity's Irish branch, confirmed eight people were kidnapped – seven employees, including Ms Heraty, and a child. It is understood the child is three years old. 'Our thoughts are with the eight individuals, and we remain hopeful for their safe return,' a statement on behalf of the organisation said. No demands or ransom requests have been made. Originally from Westport, Ms Heraty graduated from the University of Limerick with a degree in business studies in 1991. She joined lay missionary group Viatores Christi, based in Dublin, and began working with the Simon Community. She was introduced to the French charity NPFS and began working at the orphanage in Haiti. Writing about her work for The Irish Times in 2007 , she said: 'Once I saw those kids, I knew I had to help them.' Haiti 'is often so brutal. The challenge is to take the pain and see what you can do to relieve it – your own pain and the pain of Haiti. We can't change Haiti,' she wrote. In a statement, Viatores Christi said Ms Heraty has dedicated her life 'to children and adults with disabilities through her leadership of NPFS's special needs programme'. The organisation praised her 'commitment, compassion and steady presence', saying she has 'made a lasting difference' to many families in the region. 'We are thinking of Gena, her family and colleagues, and the adults and children in her care,' the statement added. Ms Heraty was named Humanitarian of the Year at the Irish Red Cross Humanitarian Awards in 2019. Announcing her win at the time, the judges said she was 'known all over Haiti for challenging prejudice against people with physical and intellectual disabilities'. Ms Heraty has won numerous other awards including the Oireachtas Human Dignity Award, the UL Alumni Award for Outstanding Contribution to Humanity, the Michael Davitt International Award at the Mayo People of the Year Awards and a People of the Year Award. In November 2013, she survived a brutal assault at the orphanage complex that left one of her colleagues dead. Two men, one armed with a hammer, attempted to rob the centre. Ms Heraty was punched and hit a number of times with the hammer before retreating to a nearby bedroom to protect some of the children. When her colleague Edward Major tried to intervene, the attackers turned on him, striking several times with the hammer. He died of his injuries. Ms Heraty, who described the attack as 'absolutely brutal', eventually managed to get away from her attackers after some of the children came to her rescue. In an interview with The Irish Times in 2022, she said she had no intention of leaving Haiti despite escalating gang violence, water shortages and the threat of being kidnapped. 'The children are why I'm still here. We're in this together,' she said at the time.
Irish Times
6 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Times
Tánaiste says ‘no stone unturned' in efforts to locate Irish woman kidnapped in Haiti
Every effort is being made to locate an Irish woman who was kidnapped alongside seven others in Haiti, the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs has said. Irish missionary Gena Heraty was among those kidnapped on Sunday from the Sainte-Hélène orphanage in the commune of Kenscoff, about 10km southeast of the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince. Ms Heraty oversees the orphanage that is run by the humanitarian organisation Nos Petits Frères et Soeurs (Our Little Brothers and Sisters). NPH Ireland, the charity's Irish branch, confirmed seven employees, including Ms Heraty, and a child were taken. It is understood the child is three years old. READ MORE Tánaiste Simon Harris described the kidnapping as 'deeply worrying' and said it is 'imperative' the hostages are released immediately. Ms Heraty, from Westport in Co Mayo, moved to Haiti in 1993. Mr Harris said she had 'dedicated her life to supporting the most vulnerable' in Haiti. He spoke to her family on Monday and assured them 'all is being done' to ensure her release. 'We will continue to leave no stone unturned to ensure Gena and her colleagues are released.' He said his department is in close contact with local authorities and Nos Petits Frères et Soeurs. No demands or ransom requests have yet been made. A number of potential options are being examined by Irish officials to help secure Ms Heraty's release. These include negotiations with the criminal gang through local intermediaries, including charities. This is considered by far the most realistic option, sources said. Another option being examined is requesting help from the UN security force on the ground in Haiti, including a possible rescue mission. The Department of Foreign Affairs may also decide to send an Emergency Consular Assistance Team (Ecat) to the region. These teams typically comprise experienced diplomats backed up by Defence Forces troops who work with local authorities to secure the release of Irish citizens. They have previously been deployed to assist Irish people in Afghanistan, Sudan and Iraq. The efforts are being led by officials in the US embassy in Washington DC, along with staff in Dublin.
