Archive (1372 life histories found)

The move to retirement was an easy one for me. I did not have to cope with the shock of breaking away from an employer or a job after 30 or 40 years of unbroken service. When retirement came, even if its arrival was slightly unexpected, I was down to…

When the time came for me to leave Rwanda I began to realise how much it meant to me. I was satisfied that I had done the job I was sent out to do. During my time calm and confidence had returned to the Kigali office, Trocaire's profile had been…

The genocide story is unavoidable, but when you do get past it Rwanda has much to offer the tourist. With a population density of over 400 per sq km, Rwanda is the most densely populated country in Africa, so you will never be far away from lots of…

This contentious Report, endorsed by the government, was commissioned following the killing of about half a dozen genocide survivors in Gikongoro province, in the south of Rwanda, in October/November 2003. Most of those killed were scheduled to…

During my time in Kosovo I frequently travelled to Skopje at weekends. I enjoyed long quiet walks along the banks of the Vardar River. Sometimes on a Saturday morning I sat for hours at an outdoor cafﾐﾩ in the centre of the city, drinking coffee…

As a follow up to the Kosovo crisis of 1999 Trocaire established a Balkans Programme, which was implemented by local NGOs in Albania, Kosovo and Serbia. In 2002, having failed to find a local person who would be welcome in both Kosovo and Serbia,…

When Monica, Fergal and Mags came for a visit I hired out a car and met them at Skopje airport. Before going on to Kosovo we decided to have a look around Macedonia. Since independence in 1991 Macedonia has been in a dispute with Greece over its…

In both Pristina and Prizren I worked with Albanians and US staff. We had no contact with Serbs; they lived in small enclaves protected by KFOR. When a man walking down the main street of Pristina was suspected of being a Serb he was pounced on by a…

In August 1999 I got an unexpected phone call from Mary Healy in Trocaire. She was looking for someone to help clear - up a backlog of work, and Majda had suggested that she contact me. At the end of a two - hour meeting with Mary, in Trocaire's…

Following my experience in Korogwe I was interested in learning a bit more about funding and managing projects in developing countries. I was looking for a part - time course, and got in contact with the Development Studies Centre in UCD. When I…