Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness Will Shake Hands With The Queen Next Week In Historic Ceremony

Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness Will Shake Hands With The Queen

Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness will meet the Queen next week and shake hands in an historic first for the Northern Ireland peace process, the party has confirmed.

Sinn Fein previously said it had yet to be presented with a "doable proposition" over such an encounter.

Sinn Fein's leadership met in Dublin on Friday morning to make a decision on the invitation

Now Co-operation Ireland has announced it is to host an event for the Queen and the President of Ireland next Wednesday to celebrate the arts and culture across the island, the Press Association reported.

It said: "We are inviting the first mnister and deputy first minister to join us."

Sinn Fein's leadership met in Dublin on Friday morning to make a decision on the invitation.

A venue for the event has yet to be confirmed.

It had been believed that plans for a 20,000-strong celebration of the Queen's reign, to be held at Stormont during the Queen's two day visit, made it more difficult for republicans to hold a meeting there.

But an engagement involving not only the Queen, but also Ireland's head of state, presented a much more acceptable backdrop for Sinn Fein.

Co-operation Ireland works to build bridges between divided communities on the island.

It said: "Co-operation Ireland is organising an event in Belfast next Wednesday, 27 June, bringing together the joint patrons and a small number of guests to recognise and celebrate the transformational strength of the arts and culture across the community in Northern Ireland and throughout Ireland."

Earlier Sinn Fein deputy leader Mary Lou McDonald, a TD in the Irish Republic, said any handshake would not be considered part of Jubilee celebrations.

"I'm very conscious that this is a big ask of republicans," she said.

Mrs McDonald said she was expecting a reasoned debate at the ard chomhairle meeting in Dublin and added that Mr McGuinness was conscious of the views of a million unionists in Northern Ireland and their affinity with the monarch.

"Members will be conscious of a number of things, on the one hand the huge significance of Martin McGuinness meeting an English monarch, aware of the context that the country is still partitioned and that many Sinn Fein people and those in the broader republican family have had bad experiences and suffered grievously at the hands of British rule," she told RTE Radio.

Earlier the Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond had encouraged the discussions which led to the historic decision.

Mr Salmond, who is leading the campaign for Scottish independence, said: "We are generally supportive of people coming together.

"I don't want to intrude into party matters of other political parties."

Mr Salmond joined Mr McGuinness at the British-Irish Council in Stirling today, alongside Stormont First Minister Peter Robinson, Scottish Secretary Michael Moore, Republic of Ireland Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones and the heads of the administrations of the Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey.

Mr Salmond added: "The contribution both the First Minister and the Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland make to these meetings is immense and positive.

"It is a key example of people working together."

Close

What's Hot