By Brian Quigley
It has been warm at night recently – for this time of year anyway – warm enough to still sleep with the windows open. On one such night last week I was awoken by sounds filtering in from outside – a dog barking in the distance, the wind rattling the gate, cars passing. The cars passing reminded me of childhood and being afraid of hearing cars in the night, afraid that it was a robber looking for a house to hit and that he’d stop at ours, or after a certain incident almost exactly 40 years ago afraid that I would be kidnapped.
The incident I refer to was the kidnapping at the start of October 1975 of Dutch businessman, Dr Tieda Herrema by Eddie Gallagher and Marion Coyle. Herrema ran a wire factory, Ferenka, in Limerick and employed more than 1,400 people. The kidnappers demanded the release of three republican prisoners, amongst them Rose Dugdale who had been imprisoned for her part in the Beit Art Robbery at Russborough House, Co Wicklow.
I doubt it was this slight Wicklow connection to the incident that made an impression on me at the time, more likely it was the fact that there was extensive coverage of the combined Garda/Army search for Herrema on all news bulletins for nearly six weeks. Either way being kidnapped was a real fear for six-year-old me at the time and for a while afterwards.
Reading about the story now at a remove of forty years it appears to have received global coverage and was a huge concern for the government at the time, who even after the incident was thankfully resolved with the safe recovery of Dr Herrema, feared it would have a negative impact on foreign direct investment into our fragile economy, one of the key drivers of our recovery at the time following the 1970s oil crisis. Some things never change!
The kidnappers and their victim were eventually traced to a council house in Monasterevin, Co Kildare after an 18 day search, and a stand-off for a further 18 days ensued as the release of Dr Herrema was negotiated.
Dr Tieda Herrema
Dr Herrema and his wife Elisabeth left Ireland soon afterwards but held no lasting malice towards the kidnappers, whom Dr Herrema later said were young people who had made a mistake. Very gracious indeed. He was made a Freeman of the City of Limerick after his ordeal, and Elisabeth and himself were awarded honorary Irish citizenship. I was surprised to find out when researching this piece that Dr Herrema is still alive. Now 94, he donated his personal papers to the University of Limerick in 2005.
We all have incidents in our formative years that have a significant effect on us, be they good, bad or both. Time, and confronting the aftermath and consequences of these incidents is the way forward. I eventually was able to turn a fear of hearing cars in the night to a source of entertainment – as I got a bit older and really interested in cars, I’d try to guess the make and model of cars heard in the night from the sound of the approaching or departing engine.
Dr Herrema got on with his life and showed compassion and forgiveness. The Taoiseach at the time Liam Cosgrove, himself also still alive now aged 95, weathered the media and economy-threatening storm that accompanied this incident and the country was able to keep progressing. It’s how you react to adversity that builds character.
