LOCAL REACTION:THE PEOPLE of Mauritius are stunned and speechless at the murder of Michaela Harte on their island, Mauritian minister for foreign affairs Dr Arvin Boolell said yesterday.
He said the prime minister, Dr Navin Ramgoolam, had personally seen to it that everything possible was done for Ms Harte’s family as they returned her body to Ireland.
“We want you to know that you have our prayers,” Dr Boolell said. “We have strong affinities with Ireland. Our best people have graduated from Ireland. The prime minister studied in Ireland. I studied in Ireland and Ireland is part of us,” he said.
Dr Boolell said the director of tourism in Mauritius would travel to Ireland for Ms Harte’s funeral.
“The whole country of Mauritius has been stunned. The people are in a state of shock,” he said. “We’ve put a lot of premium on our hospitality and our friendship and on the tourism sector which to us is very much one of the pillars of our economy.”
He said the rule of law was taken very seriously in Mauritius and he wanted to give a firm assurance “on behalf of our prime minister, of the Mauritian community, of the commissioner of police that the culprits will be brought to justice and that justice will take its own course . . .”
He was speaking on RTÉ Radio's News at One.
Earlier, Irish Ambassador in South Africa, Brendan McMahon, said the Legends Hotel staff were “stunned” by the death and had organised a memorial service yesterday afternoon to express solidarity with Ms Harte’s husband and family. “How could this happen here? . . . They are just totally shocked and stunned that something like this could happen,” Mr McMahon said.
