Events from the year 1984 in Ireland. Incumbents President: Patrick Hillery Taoiseach: Garret FitzGerald (FG) Tánaiste: Dick Spring (Lab) Minister for Finance: Alan Dukes (FG) Chief Justice: Tom O'Higgins Dáil: 24th Seanad: 17th Events 1 January – The Department of Posts and Telegraphs split into An Post and Telecom Éireann. Galway City began celebrations marking its mayoral status granted by King Richard III in 1484. 10 January – Seán MacEntee, founder member of Fianna Fáil and former Tánaiste, died aged 94. He was the last surviving member of the First Dáil. 31 January – Ann Lovett, aged 15, died after giving birth to a boy in a grotto in Granard, County Longford. Reporting on the incident on The Gay Byrne Show uncovered many stories from listeners of rape, abortion and sexual abuse. 14 March – Sinn Féin MP Gerry Adams was shot and wounded in Belfast. 29 March – The Licensed Vintners Association voted to abolish the Holy Hour in pubs and hotels in Dublin and Cork which close for one hour between 2.30 pm and 3.30 pm. The Hour was introduced during the 1920s by Minister for Justice Kevin O’Higgins. 2 May – The New Ireland Forum, convened to address the war in Northern Ireland, published its report presenting three possibilities for discussion: a unitary Irish state, a federal/confederal state, and joint sovereignty. Visit by Ronald Reagan 1 June – United States President Ronald Reagan arrived at Shannon Airport to begin a state visit. 2 June – Reagan was at Galway, Ballyporeen (his ancestral home), and the Phoenix Park in Dublin. 3 June – Ten thousand people protested outside Reagan's state banquet in Dublin Castle. 4 June – Reagan addressed a joint session of the houses of the Oireachtas. 18 June – European Parliament elections were held in Ireland and Northern Ireland. 13 July – The Ford Motor Company assembly plant in Cork closed; the closure of the Dunlop tyre factory in the same city had been announced previously and the Verolme Cork Dockyard was closed as a shipbuilder at the end of the year. 14 July – The Columban missionary Niall O'Brien, who was imprisoned in the Philippines, was released. 17 July – Some workers in Dunnes Stores in Henry Street, Dublin refused to handle South African produce as a protest against apartheid. 23 July – The Dublin Area Rapid Transit (DART) rail service between Howth and Bray