Archives dating from the period 1922-1939 are to be opened by Pope Benedict on the
18th of September 2006.

"Giving new insight into what the Catholic Church knew and
did as Europe saw the rise of Nazism in Germany and the
Spainish Civil War"

The files are known as the Secret Archives and files of its
Secretariat of State for the Pontificate of Pius X1.

Reuters/ Irish Times :- (1-07-06).

www.ireland.com

Googled the Holy See, (as one does) to see if more info can be had on
Benedict's criteria for choosing this specific time-frame, such as-
have the archives up until 1922 been opened before and this is part of a synthesis
of release, or why the abrupt stop at 1939?

Reading history in a linear fashion rather than as something which often
involves mass-movement or community consciousness would tend to
point to this era being crucial.

The period preceeding 1922 would hold an unlimited fascination in terms of
labour movement and the assasination of such figures as Rosa luxemburg
(Jan 1919). The Spainish Civil war is mentioned also in the hopeful
analysis of that specific time encapsulation, the assasination of Lorca
comes to mind. The 17 year period of file and archive release necessarily reduces
the reading of the archive within a specific narrow framework which does
not account for the build-up to facism which would definitely preceed the
watermark indicated. The archives would contain some fascinating
documentation of that period in world history but are they part of an ongoing
cycle of release or are they an isolated example of a criteria of choice with regard to
the Shoah?

informations on the secret archives are to be had on the Vatican website
www.vatican.ca
http://asv.vatican.va/home_en.htm
http://asv.vaticanva/en/studi_stud,htm

In terms of bureaucracy and official secrets, many governments
wd have a specific period of time during which state papers are sealed
and released. The opening of the secret archive in an Independent
State such as Vatican city would probably have a different criteria
for selecting and approving the dates for release of such documentations.

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Politicians from several political ideologies gathered at the gates of Leinster House on Tuesday 27th June to meet campaigners from Dublin and Mayo who wished to draw attention to a new leaflet on the issue of the Corrib Gas scheme.

Joe Higgins from the Socialist Party, Mary Lou McDonald and Arthur Morgan from Sinn Féin, and Dan Boyle, Eamonn Ryan and John Gormley from the Green Party, were joined by Independent TD Jerry Cowley as they met some of wives of men who were imprisoned last year for protesting against the government-backed scheme to install a dangerous, experimental pipeline scheme through a residential area in north west Mayo.

Mary Corduff, Maureen McGrath and Caitlín Úi Sheighin travelled to Dublin from Rossport to give interviews and pose for pictures to raise the profile of the campaign's new leaflet, aimed at informing voters in next year's election of the facts surrounding the contentious Corrib scheme.

Although Joe Costello of the Labour Party was also present, it's not clear whether Labour would allow work on Shell's project to continue in the event of a Fine Gael-Labour coalition government. read full story / add a comment

Just after returning from watching Ken Loach's Palm D'or reaping drama The Wind That Shakes The Barley and like most feel slightly compelled to add one or two words to the flurry of type and hype that has accompanied the movies release on these shores. The Wind That Shakes The Barley is a typical Loach movie betraying many of the core techniques of his previous outtings. Again he relies on plunging a shallowly crafted personal relationship, this time between two brothers, into a set of tragic circumstances. These circumstances provide an emotional cover for his overly didactic political approach to popularising alternative historical mythologies that challenge the authors of a victors' history. This time the contested historicity is the rabid nationalism of the Irish text book, that sweeps aside socialist and labour based movements in the process of consolidation of the free state. read full story / add a comment

Residents say goodbye to life as they knew it in Fatima Mansions read full story / add a comment

An estimated 40,000 people attended! read full story / add a comment

Six Iranian men have been on hunger strike in front of the Danish Parliament building since 19 June.

The men have demanded of the Danish Government and refugee authorities that no more Iranians be deported back to their homeland. They also want a review of the cases of asylum-seekers who have been refused refugee status.

Four Iranian women are also endorsing the protest. The women cannot go on hunger strike or otherwise protest in front of the parliament building, as they have to stay in the notorious Sandholm refugee camp to take care of their children, who are said to suffer greatly under deplorable conditions, in close confinement with adults.

Please read the press release, issued on behalf of the hunger strikers by Danish supporters, below. read full story / add a comment