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AN OIREACHTAS COMMITEE has heard from a group of children on their experiences during the pandemic, with one young girl saying she felt “shunned” by others.
LilyRose Wogan-Martin (12) from Dublin, said she was left with a “bitter taste in her mouth” when people shunned her and other children last year when the virus first began to spread.
She was speaking to the Oireachtas Committee on Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth today.
“I am not a vector,” LilyRose said.
“At the first lockdown we were all encouraged for our mental welfare to go walking with our families.
The fact other people shunned us and in many cases tried to walk in the middle of the road rather than pass us left a bitter taste in my mouth and made me want to stay in rather than go out.
“This week an Irish paper had a report on the research into children being vectors at the start of lockdown. I found it amazing that it took 15 months to discuss this and I was even more amazed that it was not prioritised sooner.”
LilyRose told the committee her grandmother died during the pandemic.
“On Mother’s Day my brother and I made a banner for my granny,” she said.
We waved and danced outside her window. Little did I know that that would be the last time I would see her as we were not allowed to see her in the hospital before she passed away.
“I’m sure there are many children in the same situation as me but that does not make it any easier.”
LilyRose said not only had her school life been disrupted by the lockdowns but they had also affected important occasions in her life.
She wondered whether her classmates will all be able to attend their confirmation which has been rescheduled for November when they are all in different secondary schools.
She also spoke of how there were only 10 people allowed at her grandmother’s funeral and 25 people in the church for her aunt’s funeral during the pandemic.
“I’m looking forward to getting vaccinated but most of all having all my family able to travel home so we can all be together and especially not to feel scared anymore,” she said.
“I think all children, even the very young who did not understand, deserve appreciation and respect for all the fear thrown at us and we would appreciate not to be forgotten by the same adults.”
‘Looking forward to getting back to normal life’
Conor James (11) from Dublin, told the committee that he missed not being able to hug his parents when they came home from work.
“My mum and dad are doctors, and my mum still works with Covid patients,” he said.
“We all know the pandemic was hard for health workers – but it was hard for their families too.
“The hospitals were very busy and overcrowded and stressful. I could not hug my parents when they came home from work.
Luckily, they both got their vaccine four months ago. Since then, I have been looking forward to getting back to normal life.
Conor told TDs and senators that there were some positives to Covid-19, especially how communities came together.
“People really supported each other during the pandemic,” he said.
“For example, because our childminder had to leave due to Covid-19 and school was cancelled, it was hard for my parents who still had to go to work every day.
“Other parents in our community and my aunt offered to help. I hope this community support continues long after the pandemic.”
But he also spoke of how he could not play basketball, his favourite sport, with others, as well as attend his orchestra practice, and how his sister missed swimming and gymnastics.
He said he hoped the government would support centres like The Ark, the National Concert Hall and other institutions involved in art and culture after the pandemic.
“Arts and culture are very important because they help boost creativity and confidence. It’s a way to express your feelings. It also is a way to get your head clear for a while,” he said.
“I love nothing more than playing my cello for my grandparents whether it’s over Zoom or in person.”
Olga Buckina (13) said loneliness “probably affected all children but to varying degrees”.
She said: “I love cycling with Orwell wheelers, Scouts with Dundrum 20th, The Ark Children’s Cultural Centre and my family (not necessarily in that order).
Those are the things that kept me going during the pandemic.
The teenager said for some children being at home so much during the pandemic their mental health “went way down”.
“Yet for others, it went way up. It depended,” she said.
“Some felt so alone at home that they had to rely on several hours’ FaceTime with their friends just to keep themselves sane. Other children would have felt really lonely in school, even though surrounded by other kids.
For them, being able to stay at home, during the pandemic was freeing. Loneliness probably affected all children, but to varying degrees.
She told the committee people told children not to worry.
“They tried to stop us worrying about getting the virus,” she said.
“Yet most of us were not worried about ourselves but about people who would get the virus or who would be affected by the virus.
“We are not small minded, narcissistic individuals and it is OK for us to be worried, but you need to take care of us and help those people badly affected by the virus.”
She said every child missed out on something – from going shopping, going out without a mask, confirmations, school tours and seeing their friends, to being able to see faces.
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Wow… who’d have thought charging c.400% tax on a product would incentivise a black economy in that product?
It was always going to happen with the continued increases in tax. Tax needs to be reduced but that wont happen so this will just get worse. Average levy on cigarettes in EU is 3.50. We charged 8 per box of 20. That’s just mental.
@John Duggan: The tax is because of health issues. If you didn’t know smoking is bad and ends up costing the state who have to provide public health care ..
@Alan Kenny: all in taxes and levies are more than €11 on an average €14 box of cigarettes. It’s not just mental, it’s egregious.
@Gavin Lynam: Do you have some figures on what smokers cost the health system, versus what they generate in taxes?
@Gavin Lynam: Obesity causes issues too, so maybe a 400% tax on all take away foods and restaurants then ? Like the way the sugar tax fixed so much.
@Gavin Lynam: i am pretty sure that you believe in fairies and dragons as well.
@Da Dell: And a tax on frozen food/pizzas in supermarkets and any product that contains any trace of unhealthiness. Also put a health levy on driving cause people are too lazy to walk which is costing the taxpayer in health costs.
So much for personal responsibility and personal freedom. These taxes do very little to improve peoples’ health. Irish people constantly think in terms of how much money they could generate but aren’t thinking about the education aspect. Education is the key to everything but we aren’t too fond of that here, clinging on to our traditional leaving cert and not teaching many real world skills or education.
@JusticeForJoe: Money isn’t the issue
@Larsen Cib: Still haven’t grown out of your superhero faze I see ..
@JusticeForJoe: smokers cost the state around 300 million more than they contribute in taxes every year.
@Alan Kenny: an the same will happen with wine an beer ,.
@Fakë Ăvatăř: do you have a source for that?
@Ian Kerrigan.: I compiled the data as part of a project about two years ago, the figure ranges between 3 to 4 hundred million a year going from 2010 to 2018, long and short of it is smoking is a drain on economy.
@Fakë Ăvatăř: utter b0ll0x
@Fakë Ăvatăř: that’s interesting because it’s been reported that smokers give over 30 million beyond what they cost the exchequer. So unless you can provide evidence I’m not going to believe you over economists on the matt Cooper show.
@Fakë Ăvatăř: During that period smokers contributed on average 1,200M each year in combined excise duties and tax. In other words, they paid for all of their own health costs and gave a further €800M for the health of others.
(Figures supplies by the Revenue Commissioners).
Nobody should be suprised… Tax anything that much and its basically an open invite to criminals in the black market…There is other ways but the tories we have in charge aren’t capable of thinking outside the box
Legalise and regulate. If it was legal there’d be none of these criminal enterprises. Oh wait…
@Mattress Dick: Unfortunately the biggest gangsters in the country are the ones regulating this industry, the main crime here is the tax is circa 80% of the purchase price.
@Mattress Dick: Yes you right, better to leave as is, as its easy to get and cheap plus added bonus of having access to nearly all ‘drugs’ from same source. If the Gov got involved they would just make a balls of it.
@Mark Malone: pretty much this.
@Mattress Dick: there you are again. Great support for the cause of legalisation. Dick says legal is better.
Pretending that the tax is for the health system is a joke. Today’s children are much better educated about the dangers and yet during the pandemic there has been an increase of young people smoking
@Ian James Burgess: unfortunately naive , not far thinking people do believe in these fairy tales.
The profits from tobacco smuggling are on par with those from drugs, but the penalties for getting caught are a laugh. Basically a smack on the back of the hand.
Why don’t they follow these drug finds back to make mass arrests. Seizing stuff at the ports is lazy and unimaginative.
They haven’t gone away, you know.
have your say