Irish Defence Forces veterans’ charity, ONE (Óglaigh Náisiúnta Na Éireann, the Organisation of National Ex-Service Personnel) has called on the Government to place veterans at the heart of discussions surrounding the future use of the General Post Office (GPO).
The call comes ahead of the appointment of an interdepartmental committee to explore future uses of the GPO which is to be taken over by the Office of Public Works following a handover by An Post.
The charity, which provides housing and mental health services to Defence Forces veterans, believes that the establishment of a National Veterans Centre in the GPO would assist in the provision of key services to the Irish veteran community in Ireland and serve as a form of national recognition to Irish veterans.
It is estimated that there are more than 100,000 veterans in Ireland from across the various branches of the Defence Forces.
Speaking about the importance of the GPO to veterans, CEO of ONE, Cormac Kirwan said:
“The GPO was the birthplace of Oglaigh Na hEireann serving as the headquarters of the Irish Volunteers during the 1916 Rising.
“This is a rare opportunity to place veterans at the heart of our public consciousness by giving them pride of place in one of our most recognised public buildings.
“With the establishment of an Office of Veteran Affairs outlined in the Programme for Government coupled with a National Veterans Centre in the GPO, we could begin to fully harness the potential of Ireland’s national veteran community right at the heart of Dublin’s City Centre while ensuring access to services for vulnerable veterans.”
ONE currently provides professional mental health support to veterans of the Defence Forces through their network of Veteran Support Officers (VSO) alongside the provision of accommodation for homeless veterans.
The charity operates a nationwide network of 35 Branches and 15 Veteran Support Centres (VSC) alongside four veterans homes in Dublin, Athlone, Cobh, and Letterkenny with a fifth home to be established in Cork City by 2028.