Whatever you say - say nothing!

The grief of losing a member of the family in the Troubles has been described as "indescribable".

The fears, anguish and also the hopes of Protestants living along the Border through the Troubles are expressed in a new DVD which accompanies a ground-breaking report 'Whatever you say, say nothing, The views and experiences of Border Protestants' just launched.

The report and DVD was commissioned by the Hard Gospel Project for the Church of Ireland Diocese of Clogher,
The report was launched at the Clogher Diocesan Synod last week.
Some of the issues raised included the tensions along the border. For example, the vote for hunger striker, Bobby Sands in the 1981 Westminster election in Fermanagh and South Tyrone was one example of an issue which hung between the two communities, and, according to the report's author, David Gardiner, this continues to hamper efforts to build sustainable trust and co-operation.

The accompanying DVD reveals more of the thoughts of some of the people living along the Border and how they have faced up to the changes in society through the transition from the Troubles to peace.

Joy Graham is one of nine people featured on the DVD.
Living near the Donegal border at Belleek, she had a brother murdered in the Troubles.

"We are only now finding our identity as Protestants. It really is a new beginning since peace and you feel you can be an important part of the community and you would not be criticised for taking part in community events any more."

She felt the church could have been more supportive during the Troubles.
"It(church) became a place of solace to speak with like minded people. A lot of the time clergy were afraid to say what they thought," she says, adding that she feels the church has got stronger in recent times.

"For anyone directly involved (in the Troubles) in Fermanagh it has had a major impact on your lives. I think Roman Catholics and other Protestants have no idea what it has been like to grow up through the Troubles and lost a member of your family and suffered the terrible anguish and grief. It's undescribable."
Joy added: "No-one deserves to die just because he wore a uniform."
She acknowledged that society must move on but says the events of the past must take their place in history.

Some of the people spoke about the problems of simply getting to church on a Sunday during the dark days of the violent Troubles.

Pauline Carson said that because roads were blown up, many parishioners could not drive to their own church across the Border.

"We had to make a detour of 20 miles or walk across fields. But congregation numbers did not fall," she said stoically.

The border church was an important part of many Protestant people's lives.
Eithne McCord, who lives a mile from the Monaghan border at Aughnacloy, said: "It is only now we can look back and begin to speak out. There was absolute terror living along the border. Protestant people unfortunately keep themselves to themselves so the church played an important part in their lives. It was not just an expression of faith but of their own identity. It was an opportunity to mix with their neighbours."

She says it's a role for the church to listen to people's stories and offer help.

Alan Madill who also grew up in a border environment, described the violence in the border areas "as near to ethnic cleansing as you would get. It was a siege mentality. A lot of people were so fearful"

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