More news in brief
Archbishop of Dublin and Primate of Ireland Diarmuid Martin has said he is "hurt and ashamed" by the actions of priests who have damaged the lives of others, especially vulnerable children, and the image of all priests, writes John Downes.
However, speaking at a Holy Thursday service at St Mary's Pro Cathedral in Dublin yesterday, he said he was also hurt and angered but not disheartened by those who use such "betrayal" to attack the priesthood and the church "indiscriminately".
"Certainly, the circumstances of our ministry today are different to what we expected when we were in the seminary. They are different to the circumstances of 10 years ago," Archbishop Martin said.
However, he noted the emergence of a "new and more mature" relationship between the clergy and the laity, as evidenced in the responses of parish pastoral councils, which had gone "way beyond my own expectations".
Woman's body to be flown home
The body of an Irish immigration reform campaigner killed in an apartment fire in Manhattan is expected to be returned to Ireland tomorrow morning, writes Seán O'Driscoll.
Joanne Doherty (30), originally from Co Leitrim, was killed in her home on Manhattan's upper west side. Firefighters said the fire started in the basement of the building on Tuesday of last week and spread rapidly. Ms Doherty had initially survived, but was taken off a life support machine on Saturday.
A group of friends from New York's Irish community will also be returning to her burial at a church near Carrick-on-Shannon.
Ms Doherty was a well-known supporter of the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform (ILIR) and had attended several ILIR rallies, including one in Washington DC last month as part of a push for a new immigration bill.
She attended rallies along with her father, Cyril, who was the superintendent in the building where she lived.
Rulings against EU ads welcomed
Broadcasting Complaints Commission rulings against radio advertisements from the European Commission in Ireland have been welcomed as "a victory for equality and democracy" by former MEP Patricia McKenna of the Green Party, writes Deaglán de Bréadún.
In a series of rulings, the commission upheld submissions from Ms McKenna and leading Eurosceptic campaigner Anthony Coughlan, about the content of "Europe Direct" information advertisements organised by the European Commission Representation in Ireland.
The commission ruled that six of the nine ads "advocated and promoted EU membership and therefore, were directed towards a political end. Such advertising is prohibited."
Ms McKenna said: "If the European Commission was allowed to do that, it could use huge amounts of its unlimited resources to influence voters in a future referendum on the EU constitution."