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SINN FÉIN PRESIDENT Gerry Adams has acknowledged that the planned meeting between the Northern Ireland Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness and Queen Elizabeth II will cause difficulties for republicans.
At a press conference announcing the decision of the Sinn Féin Ard Comhairle to effectively give McGuinness the green light to meet the English monarch next Wednesday at a luncheon in Belfast, Adams said that the decision was part of a process of “reconciliation”.
He acknowledged that the decision will “cause difficulty for Republicans and nationalists who have suffered at the hands of British forces in Ireland over many decades” but added that “this is a significant initiative involving major political and symbolic challenges for Irish republicans”.
“As the record of the peace process demonstrates Irish republicans have frequently been prepared to take bold and historic initiatives and risks for peace to break stalemates and find agreements,” he told the media.
The meeting at the Co-Operation Ireland event in the Northern Ireland capital next week will, according to Press Association’s Deric Henderson, be strictly private with no cameras allowed.
It marks the first time that a senior leader of the republican movement and a former member of the IRA has met with a reigning monarch and will by a symbolic first in the peace process set up by the Good Friday Agreement 14 years ago.
Adams said that the decision today reflected his party’s commitment to the peace process and to unite Ireland saying that it was Sinn Féin’s “genuine desire to embrace our unionist neighbours”.
“It reflects the equality and parity of esteem arrangements which are now in place,” he said adding that it was clear that there were “legacy issues” that had to be dealt with by the party.
He added: “I accept that this decision will cause genuine and understandable difficulties for some people, not least some of the victims of the British crown forces in Ireland.”
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God love you Gerry! The world has its problems- Jews and Palistinians, Syria, Iraq and all the other conflicts but you the republicans and mcguinness can’t get over yourselves.nBtw I thought you had nothing to do with the republican IRA.
“The Republican IRA”? The Republican Irish Republican army? :-/
No more whingeing about not taking seats in Westminster. The British crown has bowed her head to Ireland’s patriot dead and now she gets to meet one of Ireland’s living patriots on Irish soil. This must be a great moment for her, only her second time of asking McGuinness to attend dinner.
“Living patriots”
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.
@Declan Noonan,
Sad thing about Adams and McGuineess they think it’s all about them. Self centred pair of arses. Why give him the time of day. So what, whether he meets the Queen or not. Who cares, the Queen and all the other people will enjoy their day, to be McGuinness and Adams will spoil it if they are there. They love being the centre of attraction. MMMMeeeee!
Declan,
Sadly, they keep tripping up on themselves!
Sad thing about the entire story around this article,
SF, Queen of England, the British Government and ever normal decent person on the Island has moved on from the hatred of the conflict. Credit where credit is due…
The really sad part is reading comments from hate filled individuals (mostly older people i am guessing, other than the Queen) who have nothing better to do, than accept the current reality on this Island. They will never let their hate and venom go.
Name looks familiar Cal. Do a fair line in invective yerself as I recall. But anyway, this kind of symbolism seems to be important in peace-making & reconciliation. I’ll join you in wishing ‘em well.
Thx Michael … And genuinely, i mean it…and i know you do too
And yeah, it was a real b*tch finding another photo of me in front of the forbidden city to match my alter-ego ;) Its terrible when someone hacks your account and posts comments, pretending to be you.
At least i am back here in the flesh.
How have you been … Missed you all this time man.
Such attention seekers !!!!! 2 year olds have more cop on.
‘Such attention seekers’?? I have to disagree. Whether you like it or not this is a huge step in Irish history. Like just think about the history between our two countries that goes back hundreds of years. This deserve a lot of publicity because this is another big step forward for peace on our islands.
sorry Sam but its not a huge step in Irish History, to 90% of it is merely normal interactions between leaders, it may be huge for SF and their cohorts but not for the rest of us
@disgruntled citizen. How quickly people forget. It wasn’t SF who refused to invite British royalty to this for up to 90yrs, it was the Irish state who refused to invite, led by FF/FG and Labour.
Attention seekers ? How about Enda not going on the Vincent Brown show . Mcbab you talk some sh1te . I do however believe that Sinn Fein and McGuinness and Adams will shake hands with the Queen , especially after the fortitude she showed last year at the Garden of Remembrances in Dublin. It is time for this event to happen .
Well said. The shinners and ira people on here are coming across as such clowns. Ye are a joke. Grown men afraid of 86 year old granny!
@sam thank you for not putting a specific number of hundreds on that. That cheeses me right off
They help run Northern Ireland on behalf of her majesty. It should follow that they should meet with her. God save the Queen Gerry!
Yep, and the “help run” it in a way that totally contradicts the waffle they spout south of the border.
In this post I only chose to acknowledge ‘queen Gerry’. Long live the queen!
SF AKA as the IRA are still living back in 1916.
Thankfully, nobody else does.
Maybe, it would be time that SF AKA IRA moved into the 21st century.
It seems you are the only one living in the past here Marguerite. Even the DUP stopped that Sinn Féin/IRA nonsense in the early part of the 2000s. Who the hell are you to talk about other peoples opinions? Sinn Féin are the second most popular party in the 6 counties, and second most popular party in the 26 counties. You quite clearly do not know what you are talking about, but you think it sounds good by throwing antiquated slurs at genuine Republicans.
Signed
Proud Sinn Féin member.
Eh, Marguerite, Martin Mc Guinness is going to meet the Queen. How is that ‘living back in 1916′?
This is pretty momentous stuff and an important step forward for our country.
Antoin
To address some of your points:-
1. I am certainly not living in the past, every man and his dog knows that Adams & Mc Guinness were more than members of the IRA, but I admire them for the U turn they took with the Good Friday Agreement, never thought I would see it in my lifetime.
2. As far as I can see from what I wrote earlier I did not ” talk about other people opinions”.
3. It says a lot about the state of the politicial landscape in Ireland that SF are the second most popular party in NI and in the republic, says more about the alternative parties, doesn’t it?
3. You may believe that I do not know what I am ” talking about, but think it sounds good throwing antiquated slurs at genuine Republicians”, that is your opinion Antoin and aren’t we lucky that we both live in democratic countries and can make our opinions.
4. Good luck to you being a proud SF member
i dont get how SF aka the IRA are living back in 1916? i read the quote, had dinner came back and read it again and i still dont get they could be living back in 1916.
@Antoin. By being a proud Sinn Fein member you are associating yourself with a dark past and a disturbing connection with present day criminality. When Sinn Fein genuinely shake off this millstone then they will be a force to be reckoned with.
No David by being a proud member of Sinn Féin, I am associating myself with a movement that has stood up against aggressive imperialism for the best part of a century. I am associating myself with a party that are committed to an Ireland of equals, to a Socialist Republic.
To be frank I care little about what detractors or political opponents think. To be honest I have more respect for those who have outright hostility towards Republicanism, than those who take up the flag of condescension and say “Sinn Féin need to reject the past etc. etc.”
When every other political movement had sat on their hands and observed history from the proverbial armchair, Republicans made history happen, fought against injustice and demanded change. Should people have all just held hands with John Hume, sang a few songs and hoped for the best?
@ David Conroy
By being a proud member of almost any political party on this island you are associating yourself with a dark past.
Marguerite.
Aren’t you always on here, defending FF.
If I give you a fiver, will you dance a jig for Martin and Betty while they shake hands.
They have moved, they are the only political party north and south. They are fully engaged in the peace process. Would you be happier if they decided not to meet the Queen. Seems to me they’re dammed if they do and dammed if they don’t. I think you need to move on
AKA SF IRA FBI NASA KGB IFA FF LGBT NAMA ………
@ Antóin, that’s exactly what ye should have done. Then we wouldn’t have had to wait for over 2 decades for ‘sunningdale for slow learners’, and see over 3500 people die, and miss out on potentially billions of investment and tourism pounds and punts. But never mind, at least you feel you have a righteous calling. A very expensive handshake.
Donncha, do you even know the reason why the Republicans didn’t go in for Sunningdale, or are you just quoting a sound-bite from a British tabloid to sound good?
@Antoin and Noddy; I agree with you to a certain point but we missed the ” Elephant In The Room” and neither of you can deny the link to criminality to this present day with your Party.
David, I assume you are referring to FFg/FF… Please stop going off topic, we will get them another day. Today is a celebration for the Nationalists on the North who have suffered for decades. Not stupid self-serving establishment parties in the South. Let it go for today.
Oh Antoin. There are many ways to overcome oppression. Look at the fall of the Soviet block, particularly Poland & Czechoslovakia. How about Tunisia? Arguably militant opposition prolongs oppression & replicates it through the use of terror, summary “justice” & the persecution of alternative voices. There were many moments in the years of occupation when progress was frustrated by violent opposition. Thankfully the vast majority have recognised their energy is best directed towards peace-building. Because of the atrocities committed by all sides it’s gonna be a slow, delicate process. Would it help to stop excusing the use of violence? Hope it goes well on Wednesday…
Marguerite you honestly haven’t got a clue ! That comment brings nothing to the party what so ever :( fair play to mc Guinness for agreeing to meet with her , must have been a hard sell for him to his party , moving forward unlike yourself
I think it would be even better if Gerry you should go along with the President and shake her majesties hand.
Agreed, and I’m a *genuine* Irish republican and I have absolutely with anyone shaking hands with the queen.nnWhy do the IRA and their drones believe they have the rights over the word ‘republicans’ ????
Hope he doesn’t do a Mr Bean and loaf her by mistake.
Maybe the Queen might refuse to shake Martin’s hand. Have you thought about that?
No I haven’t thought about that because Martin was invited to the event, he could have decided not to go. The Queen was always going to the event… There is no logic in what you are saying,
I would love it. What a well deserved slap in his grotesque, terrorist face it would be.
I’m sure it will be very hard for the Queen to shake someones hand when she knows that person might have murdered her and all her family in cold blood if the opportunity arose only a few years earlier. I know I would find it very difficult to stomach.
Would n’t it be brilliant if her majesty refused the hand of her subject martin. But seriously she should refuse it: the blood on his hand will stain her gloves.
James Lawlor, It might also be very hard for someone to shake the Queen’s hand when that person knows that as Chief Commander of the crown forces many fatality’s were caused under her watch, such as Bloody Sunday in 1972. When the Queen awarded an OBE to the boss of the parachute regiment who killed 14 innocent civil rights protesters just 6 months after Bloody Sunday. Two sides to everything James.
“Her Majesty”? haha will you ever buy a bottle of cop on.
The Queen will do what she is told to, it is that simple.
Sam I’m not talking about sides I’m talking about people. Two people. Person 1. The Queen. Person 2. Martin Mc Guinness. Would person 1 have murdered in cold blood the grandchildren of person 2? I think not. Would person 2 have murdered in cold blood the grandchildren of person 1? Probably. Person 1 is going to need a strong stomach.
@Wolfgang Weisen
The sad thing about this is, the media, sinners think as usual, it’s all about them! This is not news. The Queen will shake his hand because she’s a better person and will rise above the childish, self centred narcissist that McGuinness is. He and many like him have hurt her, personally, hugely. But she will rise above it.
YES! before the usual start putting their pennys worth in, many were murdered on both sides. Nobody denies that.
I wonder would “Big Ian” ever kiss the Popes ring!!!
That’s a fair point, will Irish Unionists get over themselves to allow the Pope say mass in the North?
To be fair I would protest against the pope also. In fairness to Unionism they have made some overtures of respect of nationalist culture. Peter Robinson attending a GAA match was a big deal I think.
I think that that is too much of an ask for another 20 years. People down here forget how deeply engrained in Unionist culture, anti-Romanism is in large segments of the North, especially in the DUP vote. It is dying out thankfully, but welcoming the pope would still be a bridge too far for a Unionist leader.
This is getting silly. What the hell has the pope got to do with it. Judging by his part in the Vatican lead cover-up of clerical sex abuse over many years, I imagine he is little interested in Ireland. How many would welcome him anyway?
They can do all the handshaking they want, there’ll never be a united Ireland. Thankfully.
Hasn’t worked out too bad for the fatherland, eh Wolfie??
You lazy git, you don’t even make an effort in your trolling.
I know, Fagan’s, sometimes after a hard day of work I just can’t dedicate that much energy to it. I envy you having all that time to sit around online on the taxpayer’s pocket. If I had such freedom and nothing to spend my energy on, maybe I could be as good a commentator as the wonderful “Fagans” is?
Bit harsh Wolfgang. Mind you Fagan, reference to the fatherland a tad provocative, don’t you think. Calm calm…
got to hand it to the Shinners, they sure know how to maximise the publicity oppertunities
Some would say they’re very good at making things explode out of proportion.
People seem to forget the past very quickly. Both sides are/were as bad as each other. Keyboard warriors the lot if us, ask people up north who were treated like second class citizens if this is a big deal or not. nnPersonally, I think he should shake her hand to move forward the improve relations even more.
He should marry one of his daughters off to the red headed prince. Job done, complete harmony.
Why do you use a deeply derogatory term for a member of the Travelling Community to describe a democratically elected representative?
because he is a troll. its very 2 years ago.
Usual comments from the usual commentators. How come none of them are willing to admit that it has taken a fair bit of courage for MMcG to agree to meeting QEII. I see this as a positive move towards reconciling some of the differences between the two communities in the 6 counties.
Ah it’s not that hard. Just shake her hand, be polite, and try not to shoot her in the kneecaps.
Sinn Fein wants to embrace their unionist neighbors. But they will discriminate against them if they look for work. This party is so full of double speak they have their own dictionary…
Elaborate…
o’reilly, if you’re going to judge a party by the alleged actions of one of its members, then do you also accept that fine gael are corrupt, cowardly liars?
Come out of the woods Gerry and Grow Up! We’ve had enough of your guns and bombs!
What does that even mean? Did you even read the article or did you just enter “HATE SINN FÉIN” mode as soon as you seen a pic of Gerry. Ever hear of a thing called the Good Friday Agreement? you know that little document that brought peace to the island 14 years ago, a document Sinn Féin both negotiated and endorsed.
Antoin, Ephen hangs out with Alan Shatter and Jim mCallister at the weekend, pass no remarks on him ;)
Sinn Fein known they made a major gaffe last year when they refused to attend any function the queen was at so they decided to call an ard comhairle meeting or what i call the army council meeting to decide wheither martin mcguinness would shake the Queens hand,such rubbish they already had the decision made to shake the queens hand but more spin from the masters of spin.
Do Sinn Féin have volunteers who monitor this website and comment and/or do the thumbs thing, or are they paid staff? Anyone know?
No Jim, just concerned citizens who are not satisfied with how our country is being run and who have read a few history books while we were at it.
Good luck to Martin, an inspiring thing to happen, I hope it goes well. I look forward to the future and may I get to see a united Ireland in my life time, where there is a home for everyone and we all exist as true equals.
I’d assume, like every other political party in Ireland, they have a number of supporters who visit journal.ie regularly for politics based news and they award a thumbs up/down on statements they agree/disagree with. Its Internet 101, really? Can you keep up?…
Herr Weisen, your unwarranted racist comments are not needed here. Kummer dich an dein eigenes Land. We will have an united Ireland someday.
a loyal subject going to meet his queen ..whats all the fuss?
its a pity the queen can’t do an evra and make it look like mcguinness refused to shakr
What’s the sit-ye-ation Gerry shaking hands with the Queen of Northern Ireland. Oooooh! watch the thumbs down burning a hole in this one.
Its not even Gerry Adams meeting the British Queen you moron.
Antoin… Please read again and put a ? after Gerry and then an ! after NI it was a question as know too well who is shaking hands with The Queen of Northern Ireland.
It’s so easy to push the buttons when I don’t give a shit. As for the GFA, Some people in yhe north still hate each other and are still killing and maming s, piece of paper signed by the leaders of terrorism will not change that. The GFA just means that the main group will not be openly involved. Not that I give a shit.
I personally think an arm wrestle would be more appropriate. Winner gets to rule Norn Iron.
Two points in relation to this: 1) are Sinn Fein conditioning us all to them being, not such an awful junior partner in the next general election, by normalising relationships with the antithesis of all things republican and b) if they are, should we complain? When they renounced violence, we all embraced it as it brought an end to the troubles, but if we’re true democrats, then we shouldn’t have a problem with them being in government. I’m no Republican, patriotic yes, but I do see hypocrisy in abundance here.
“Red thumbs make baby Jesus cry.” – Reverand Ian Paisley, 1976.
Lovely! They should both have a grand time talking about the thousands of innocent Irish and British people they terrorised, victimised, and murdered in the name of liberty.
As cynical as I am, it’s great that we’ve come this far. Former IRA commander shaking hands with the head of the British monarchy.
Whatever side you’re on that says something.
The Queen to shake hands with another scoundrelnIt’s happened before you know; I recollect Mugabe, Chouscau, et al McGuinness is just another in a long line (arise Sir Martin!)
It’s not the 1st time she has met a member of the travelling community.
It’s a good thing that McGuinness and the Queen are meeting. The importance of symbolism should not be underestimated. The Queen lost a very close member of her family to the conflict, Mountbatten. I don’t know if Mr. McGuinness has but I’m sure he lost some close friends as well. They may have more in common than we think at a human level.
It is as big problem for Republicans alright; the oul’ dear will be tottering around, fidgeting,twittering, walking in circles, and drooling, and Marty,uber fiit, 200 push up squat thrusts every morning adrenalin junkie that he is, will be all like “C’mon, c’mon, hurry up, will ya?I haven’t got all day, MOVE! Jeeessssuuus, woman!I’m growing a f-kn beard here waiting for ya…”
Oh my
I got no less than ’20′ red thumbs; I wonder why? Was it a) from those peeved at my ageist but nonetheless facetious description of Elizabeth Windsor or b) from humourless Ra heads peeved at my facetious description of Dear Leader Marty or c) those suffering a bout of constipation that posits their interpretation of humour on a level not quite analogous to mine.”This is the Peace Process. You should listen more to what fine people like Mary McAlleese would say about this unique…yadda yadda”
I do hope it’s c) because peeps who get all dry and serious about things are the wans I love to wind up the most; they’re usually the sort that’d label their food when flat sharing, and use phrases like “Quite right” when reading some law and order bore in the Sindo…
FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT!!!
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