'VOICE TO VOICELESS' General Election candidate defends asking if special needs children should be ‘micro-chipped’ after Nora Quoirin deathINDEPENDENT Cllr Sharon Keogan has defended asking if disabled children should be micro-chipped after the death of Nora Quoirin.
Nora, 15, was found dead following an intense and high-profile ten-day search around the Malaysian jungle resort of Dusun in August after she vanished from the house where she and her family were staying.
The young teen suffered from learning difficulties.
Following her death, Ms Keogan who is a candidate for the forthcoming General Election posted on Facebook with a picture of Nora enquiring whether children with special needs should be micro-chipped.
Two posts have appeared on social media - however the election candidate has claimed that one has been edited.
The post said: "This was a tragic end for this family but should children with special needs who have poor ability to communicate be micro-chipped with GPS? Please discuss!"
She then added: "This has been asked of me by a parent of a Teenager with no verbal skills! What do you think?"
'HE WAS DISTRAUGHT'Speaking on the Micheal Reade Show on LMFM this morning, Ms Keogan was asked by listeners as to why she wanted to discuss the matter.
In response she said: "I was approached by a father who has a son just turning to be out of his teens to a young adult.
"Following the incident of what happened to Nora he was distraught, he wanted to find ways of how he could protect his son.
'FRIEND ASKED ME TO DISCUSS'"I would have known this man and this boy from a very young age and I would have been part of supporting the family for getting services for the young man and he just put himself in the shoes of Nora's parents and he was distraught because his son would have gone missing on a number of occasions.
"He basically asked me if I would discuss the issue in relation to GPS and some sort of GPS system - that if this child did ever happen to be on vacation and did go missing that he would be able to find that child.
"He asked me to discuss it and maybe open a conversation on it.
'IT WAS RESPECTFUL'"I have always been a voice for those who are voiceless and I did that and you can see some of the comments on it, it was respectful.
"I didn't make any comment on it whatsoever, I didn't agree with it or disagree with it because I am not going to make judgement on it for any parent who has a child who is non-verbal.
"I admire those parents with children with abilities and disabilities. I've great admiration for them.
"At the end of the day we have to walk in their shoes to understand the struggles of their daily life that they have in coping with and dealing with very special children.
GPS SYSTEMS"He wanted me to open the dialogue. There are a number of GPS systems out there for children who are non-verbal.
"Parents actually would have become knowledgeable about them because of the post.
"Another woman contacted me where her mother had dementia and her mother kept walking out in the middle of the night and she also got information from the post as well.
The Meath Cllr was then asked "Do you believe micro-chipping people with a GPS warrants consideration?"
'NO IDEA OF STRUGGLE'She then said: "No, I do not believe that. They are your words Micheal."
She was then asked: "Do you believe it does not warrant consideration?"
To which she said: "I believe it is up to the individual person - how they choose a system.
"I don't have a child with special needs. I have no idea of the struggles they face every single day."
'DISCUSSION THAT WARRANTS CONSIDERATION'Ms Keogan was then further quizzed by Micheal Reade as he said: "When I think you ask the public to discuss something under your name as a public representative, you're starting a discussion that warrants consideration."
She continued: "Is that not what I'm meant to do? Am I not supposed to give a voice to the voiceless?
"I think anything that makes our children safer warrants consideration."
PARENTS UPSETReade then continued to explain how her post caused some parents of disabled children to be upset.
He said: "Do you believe it was appropriate?
"I think this girl's family, friends, anyone that knew her might have found that difficult to look at because it implies that if Nora Quoiron had of been micro-chipped with GPS she might be alive."
'VOICE FOR THE VOICELESS'The Independent Cllr replied: "Maybe that's how the parent who reached out to me took it. That's exactly why he contacted me.
"I can't help if I've upset people. I'm a voice for the voiceless.
"I haven't upset any parents have I?"
'I'M SORRY'"They're taking that post there [the second post] and not this post here. Take the post that was originally posted.
"I would never ever set out to upset any human being in my life. If I cannot help someone in life I would certainly not go out to upset them.
"I have basically used my position to verbalise a distraught father who wanted the issue discussed in a public forum and used me as a vessel to do that.
"I'm sorry if that has upset people but it certainly wasn't my intention to do that."
NEW FB POSTIn a new post on Facebook today, Cllr Keoghan wrote: "In August 2019, a father of a child with special needs who is non verbal, contacted me to ask if I would post a topic for discussion on my facebook page.
"He was distraught following the disappearance of Nora Quoirin, as his child goes missing regularly.
"He asked if I would open a dialogue to a wider audience in light of what had happened to Nora.
"He asked if I would post the following question on my page "should children with special needs who have poor ability to communicate be microchipped with GPS?"
'EDITED VERSION'"Unfortunately, this week an edited version of the post from 6 months ago emerged and was shared on social media. The post was taken out of context.
"I understand this is a very sensitive subject and I am sorry if the post has caused offence.
"My intention was to support a member of the community who asked for my help.
"I have supported this family and their child since he was 3 years of age. I would never do anything to intentionally offend.
"Anyone who knows me and my work knows that I work hard for the community and will always give a voice to people who ask me to."
https://www.thesun.ie/news/5040249/independent-sharon-keogan-slammed-disabled-children-microchipped/
