Family’s passionate call to have death cert of 1916 hero changed
A campaign has been launched by the grandnephews of New Ross 1916 rebel Michael O’Hanrahan to have the death certificates of Irish rebel heroes who were killed in 1916 to be changed to truly reflect that they were executed.
O’Hanrahan’s grandnephew Pierce addressed a crowd at The Tholsel on Thursday calling for a ‘ crusade’ to change his ancestor’s death certificate. The certificate states in the cause of death section that O’Hanrahan’s death was probably due to a gunshot wound.
Mr O’Hanrahan produced a copy of a page from a document of the era which had the names of the men who were executed on it with a large x written across the page.
‘ These deaths had never been registered and the eight were not registered until April 14, 2000.’
He recalled how former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern was called on to have the deaths registerd when some of the 1916 dead’s remains were moved from Mountjoy to be reinterred.
‘We want to try to start something. I would like to start a campaign. It’s disgusting. The death certificate needs to be amended to state what did happen that he was executed on the command of the British hierarchy.’
Mr O’Hanrahan called on the councillors to petition the Taoiseach and to write to government ministers to have the death certificates amended.
‘It should come from New Ross. That’s where the campaign should start. This was his home and this is what we would like to happen,’ he said.
New Ross Municipal Cathaoirleach Cllr Michael Sheehan said the O’Hanrahan’s had the full support of the council.
Cllr Sheehan said: ‘We will definitely work with you on this initiative. It’s hugely important that the initiative starts here. It’s absolutely disgraceful that this would be maliciously put down on the certificates.’