Filipinos Attacked In Castlewellan Forest Park
rd June) xa0resulted in one Filipino male receiving stitches at the A and E department of the Downe Hospital.
A police spokesperson said that around 7.30pm an argument had started over the siting of tents and a Filipino man had received an injury to his ear when an altercation began. The spokesperson added that the police did not see this as a hate crime and that the police did not have to escort the Filipino group from the Forest Park or the camp site.
Hamilton Welcomes Age NI To Stormont
STRANGFORD DUP MLA Simon Hamilton has welcomed Age NI to an event at Stormont where it showcased its services for the elderly to MLAs. Age NI also launched their new Agenda for Later Life document.
Commenting after the launch, Simon Hamilton said, “It was great to be able to host Age NI’s visit to Stormont where they were able to showcase their work to MLAs from across Northern Ireland.xa0 Age NI aren’t just a charity with an interest in older people.xa0 They engage in a wide range of activities and enterprises like advice work, care services, supporting local groups, campaigning and making products, all aimed at assisting older people.xa0 They also produce a number of leaflets and documents which can help older people and these are accessible form my advice centres.
“Our aging population certainly poses a challenge for us all in the future.xa0 At present there are over 340,000 older people in Northern Ireland, accounting for nearly 20% of the population and rising all the time.xa0 DFP figures show that the number of pensioners aged 85 or over in Northern Ireland has increased by almost a quarter in seven years with 28,700 people aged 85 or over in Northern Ireland today.xa0 Whilst this aging population is positive and reflects advances in health services, pensioner poverty is on the rise and issues like fuel poverty and care are particularly problematic.
“The Northern Ireland Assembly has already done much for older people including introducing the Lone Pensioners Allowance, free public transport for the over 60s and the creation of an Older Persons Commissioner.xa0 It is imperative – given the challenges posed by an aging population that MLAs continue to focus on this important and valued sector of our society”, he added.
]]>Morgan Milk Down Minor 'A' Football Championship 2011
MORGAN MILK DOWN MINOR “A” FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP 2011
Group A
Cill Chua (Kilcoo
Barca!
A Session In BARCA!!!xa0By Kevin Rooney
WITH quite vocal Manchester United fans in the corner bartering away at a Liverpool supporter you might well think yours truly was back home. Instead, I was in Paddy Flaherty’s Irish Bar in Barcelona on the second night of a stag weekend.
I presume the United ones saw the Liverpool supporter as an easy target with an audience of a large pool of Catalans in the rest of the bar.xa0The Man U supporters did not xa0fancy the challenge of rousing their Catalan cousins much like the team itself as it later transpired.
Hankook Rally Motors On In Mourne
Hankook MSA Northern Ireland Stage Rally Championship continued with the Modern Tyre Service Mourne Rally on Saturday 4th June.
Current Northern Ireland Rally Championship leader Kenny McKinstry led the field away from the Modern Tyres HQ in Newry followed by his nearest rival on the NI Championship points table, George Robinson, at number two with front running Group N contender Neil McCance at three and the reigning NI Rally Champion Stuart Biggerstaff at four.
Ballynoe Politics Student Visits West Bank
PETER McCormick is an undergraduate at Queen’s University in Belfast who lives near Ballynoe near Downpatrick and is working with Down News for the summer holidays on work experience to gain a further insight into the media and local politics. He is considering a career in journalism. This year he visited the troubled West Bank in the Middle East. Below Peter gives a short description of his experience there, one that will remain with him for the rest of his life.
“Last May I travelled to the West Bank in the occupied territories of Israel, and given the history of conflict present in the region, I was interested to see and understand the causes and effects of the ongoing violence for myself. I study politics and international conflict at Queen’s University Belfast and wanted to get to know what it was like to live in a conflict zone.
