METRO FREE Monday, October 19, 2009 Save your office up to on Sandwich Platters! Save your office up to on Sandwich Platters! TURN TO PAGE 7 FOR DETAILS HELP METRO HELP THE ENVIRONMENT. RECYCLE THIS NEWSPAPER TODAY INSIDE TODAY See Page 14 See Page 12-13 Marian Quinn on her new movie based in Dublin PLUS Whats on TV tonight Pages 14-15 THE parents of freed Irish aid worker Sharon Commins were last night preparing to wel- come their daughter home. The 32-year-old is expected to return from Sudan in the next 24 hours after more than three months in cap- tivity with her Ugandan colleague Hilda Kawuki, 42. Miss Commins father Mark said the family could not wait to greet her when she touched down on home soil in a Government jet. We are absolutely thrilled. Im dying to see her... and give her a big hug, Mr Commins said. Its really been hell this last 100 days theres a sense that we were captured as well. In a news conference in Darfur, Miss Commins thanked the Sudanese people for their support. The general public of Sudan who have prayed for us and who have supported us through this difficult time, thank you for your patience. This took a long time to secure but you kept us on the agenda, she said. Thank you for staying strong and keeping this issue alive for us, she added. Miss Commins said she hoped aid volunteers would keep up their efforts in the troubled region. I hope that humanitarian workers will continue with their good work that the communities and everyone appreciates. Mr Commins said it was a great comfort to see his daughter on television. We couldnt be more proud of her shed been held captive for so long but she went out there and was so articulate. The Dublin aid worker was in Darfur with the human- itarian organisation Goal when she and Miss Kawuki were snatched by an armed gang in Kutum on July 3. The Department of Foreign Affairs said it had not paid a ransom to end the captivity understood to be one of the longest running of any foreign aid staff in the war- torn region. BY JEANANNE CRAIG Our Sharons coming home Dubliner Sharon Commins, right, and her Ugandan colleague, Hilda Kawuki, who were abducted while working for Irish aid agency Goal, speak at a press conference in northern Darfur following their release after more than three months in captivity Picture: AP Cult filmmaker Kevin Smith talks to Metro index.html2.html3.html4.html5.html6.html7.html8.html9.html10.html11.html12.html13.html14.html15.html16.html17.html18.html19.html20.html21.html22.html23.html