RECOGNITION
One of the founding members of the Anglesborough IFA branch was this year awarded an Honorary Life Membership to the organisation. Sean Hanley from Anglesborough was one of just two Limerick natives to be recognised in this way, along with Josie Ahern from Croagh, near Rathkeale.
While today the IFA is recognised as a professional representative body of farmers with a fairly loud voice at the political table, farmers have had to protest long and hard over the years to ‘get a seat at the table’. Mr Hanley was one of those who contributed to that cause, and he and his wife Mary sat down with The Avondhu to remember the many stands farmers had to make in order to be formally recognised.
Along with figures like Bill Fogarty, John McGrath and John Glavin, Sean was one of the founding members of the Anglesborough IFA branch circa 60 years ago.
In the early days there were about 40 members, an active group. Back then, the IFA was not granted the recognition it is today, and Sean recalls having acid thrown on his coat at an early blockade in Limerick city.
“We were blockading Limerick city, and someone threw acid from the railway bridge overhead and my coat got burned. That was more than 50 years ago; at that time, the IFA wasn’t being recognised, and you had people jailed like Paddy Lane for protesting.”
The late Mr Lane was prosecuted for obstructing cattle deliveries to a factory at Rathkeale, Co. Limerick, in 1967 and subsequently jailed for three weeks.
Sean’s first involvement in activism was to go to Dublin to support Rickard Deasy in Dublin, when he was a member of Macra na Feirme. In 1966 Mr Deasy had organised a 30,000-man walking protest from all over the country to Dáil Éireann, followed by a 20-day sit-in protest in Dublin. The action culminated in the IFA being officially recognised by the Irish government.
Of course, back then, and even sometimes today, the men were only able to leave the work at home and go to protests with the support of their wives’ from home. Sean’s wife, Mary stresses the social aspect of being a member of the IFA, remembering dress dances and social events, but also points out that the women are just as hard at work as the men in a farming life, keeping the show on the road when they were away.
This kind of support is necessary when someone needs to take off in the middle of the night as some of the men had to do during action against South American meat imports. They got the tip-off at 11pm the night before that meat was being imported into Shillelagh, Co. Wicklow. They were on the road for 4am and at the plant stores when 1,500 tonnes was brought in - a far cry from the 500 tonnes that had been claimed.
However, there were some ‘Irish’ moments through the years too as it was discovered - after some years, mind you - that a Limerick venue used to stage IFA events in regularly, served South American beef at some of their functions - all the while the association was doing its best to promote Irish beef!
NOT AFRAID TO ‘ROCK THE BOAT’
It’s clear that while the work get recognition for Irish farming was (and still is) important, sobering, and a lot of hard work, there was a lot of fun involved too. Life-long friendships were made between the members and, without getting into too much detail, some of what the men got up to wasn’t exactly above board - but what harm, when it got the job done?
What’s more, the Limerick branch were “one of the best represented and most active”:
“We were always coming up with proposals to send up to HQ. Once we put forward a motion of no confidence against the president. With about 100 people we lost by one vote. It was grand though - all we wanted to do was to make a wake-up call! The Limerick IFA weren’t afraid to rock the boat.”
Mary says that the energy and fun that Sean and his colleagues had was important too.
“After the IFA meetings he’d come home every night after a row, usually after taking on the chairman!”
Sean says he hopes that today such radical protest action isn’t required - however if he had to, he’d do it all again and believes that it’s important for farmers, particularly young farmers, to get involved with organisations like the IFA. Listening to his stories and talking about recent events in rural Ireland and farming, it’s not hard to agree that a loud and educated voice is necessary to represent the farming body.
Sean was granted an IFA Honorary Life Membership in 2020, but it could only be recognised earlier this year at the first in-person IFA AGM in two years. Sean Lavery, Chair of the Limerick IFA branch, said that Mr Hanley’s campaigning for farmers has “been outstanding over the years”.
“He was very much involved in supporting several farmers who had gotten into financial difficulties and was able to organise support at county level to find a solution for those farmers.”
“Whenever there was an IFA national protest in Dublin for dairy, beef or pig farmers Sean and the Anglesborough branch was always well represented”.
Sean finished his conversation with The Avondhu by paying credit to the local community, whom he said the IFA were always grateful for their support.
“Today, the IFA has as much strength as any union, and accountability too.”