REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT 12 JULY 2010 GARDEN PARTY ÁRAS AN UACHTARÁIN MONDAY 12TH JULY 2010
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT 12 JULY 2010 GARDEN PARTY ÁRAS AN UACHTARÁIN MONDAY 12TH JULY 2010
Dia dhíbh go léir, agus céad míle fáilte romhaibh. Good evening everybody, and on behalf of Martin, myself and all the Áras staff, welcome to Áras an Uachtaráin as we commemorate those history changing events of 12th of July 1690 in a house that itself mirrors so much of Ireland’s often chaotic and divisive history. Today though we belong to the generation that has set its face towards a happier future - a future of peace, mutual respect and good neighbourliness. And so we do something which other generations would have found very difficult - we gather together the children of Williamites and Jacobites to enjoy each others company and culture.
As it happens this year marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Douglas Hyde, first President of Ireland. By coincidence he died on July 12th as if to underline the many ways in which he confounded the dangerously neat preconceptions and complacently tidy categories that we can so easily collate in our minds. Hyde was to some minds but not to his own, a paradox, a contradiction – a Protestant and an Irish nationalist, a son of the Anglo-Irish manse he made the personal choice to champion Irish language and culture out of the deep love he acquired for them in the welcoming little homesteads of Roscommon. He was a man of peace, a man of intellectual curiosity and a man who believed passionately in this island’s potential if it could escape the agonising raw wounds bestowed on us by history.
He once said “Hatred is a negative passion; it is powerful - a very powerful destroyer; but it is useless for building up. Love, on the other hand, is like faith; it can move mountains, and faith, we have mountains to move.” We are the generation which has seen those mountains move from the darkness of a culture of conflict to the opening chapters of a culture of consensus. Within Northern Ireland the two traditions are working together in government. Within the island of Ireland the two jurisdictions are cooperating in a fresh new spirit of partnership. At political and community level many people are giving courageous example of how to build good neighbourly and mutually respectful relations. It is still very much a work in progress - a noble and humanly uplifting work, not achievable overnight but achievable by increments. I hope that on this day, in this house we are quietly nudging that work forward together.
And to make the day memorable we have a great musical showcase drawn from all traditions and backgrounds. I would like to thank our singers Iarla O Lionard who is accompanied today by Graham Henderson and from Ulster, Jackie Boyce and our flautists Michael Clarkson and Marcus Ó Murchú. No stranger to the Áras, I understand that Chris Kenevey has been keeping the piano-playing going. We are joined too by Abbey Theatre actor, Michael McElhatton. We are also delighted to thank the Belfast-based award-winning 1st Old Boys Association Silver Band who were founded in 1946 and continue to make wonderful music more than sixty years later.
In the House itself you will have had an opportunity to see some exhibits on the life and work of Douglas Hyde. I wish to thank our friends in Roscommon County Council who have generously shared that exhibition with us – in particular, the County Librarian Richie Farrell and Deirdre O’Gara of the Douglas Hyde Interpretative Centre in Portahard.
I would also like to say thank you to our friends in the Civil Defence, the Gardaí, the tour guides and the staff here at the Áras who have all worked so hard to make today a success. And finally I would like to thank you, our guests, for making today so special. I am grateful to each of you for accepting our invitation, for making the journey today and for the part you play each day in building a more positive future for everyone on this island.
Enjoy the day, enjoy each other’s company and have a safe journey home with a store of memories and maybe a new friend or two. Go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir.