REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT A RECEPTION AT ÁRAS AN UACHTARÁIN TUESDAY 17th SEPTEMBER, 2002
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT A RECEPTION AT ÁRAS AN UACHTARÁIN TUESDAY 17th SEPTEMBER, 2002
Is cúis mhór áthais dom fáilte a chur romhaibh go léir chuig Áras an Uachtaráin inniu.
Both Martin and I are very happy to have this opportunity to welcome you here today to Áras an Uachtaráin – a very special and heartfelt Céad Míle Fáilte to each and every one of you. I think of today as a day of celebration, a day to express gratitude for the crucial work you do in building links of peace and friendship between communities throughout Ireland, North and South.
At a time when so much of our attention is drawn towards the ups and downs of political negotiations, it is easy to forget the parallel and intricate web of daily activities of local groups and people on the ground who are continually and relentlessly building bridges the length and breadth of this island. Across those bridges fresh, open attitudes travel, old presumptions are left behind, opportunities for friendship flourish and the prospect of a peaceful, contented, respectful future takes hold in hearts and minds, inspiring more and more people to do their little bit. Your ability to open your hearts and your minds and give of your time is why your contribution to peace has made a difference. Your work has involved many cross-community and cross-border exchanges of many different shapes and sizes. You have been instrumental in giving individuals and communities a chance to witness for themselves the huge benefits that derive from living and working together in a cooperative environment rather than one drained by conflict and contempt.
The true measure of our success as a modern country – as a self-confident and mature people – with an openness to others – and a willingness to embrace diversity – is in our ability to let the past go, yet recognize the different traditions and cultures that today make up this country – accept that each has a right to their heritage – and that theirs is also part of ours – each shaping the other subtly and sometimes crudely – and each an integral part of our shared history and heritage. Today a huge collective political and community effort has been invested in a future characterized by respectful friendships and effective mutually beneficial partnerships between those who share this island. Making friends takes effort but the easiest bridge is the one made in a handshake between strangers – it is the simplest pathway to friendship.
Your visit here today will help nurture that spirit of friendly co-operation. People look at the world very differently in some important respects, whether in terms of history, politics, faith or ambition but they also acknowledge that they share in common many values, perspectives and problems and importantly, solutions.
There are still mountains of doubt and prejudice to be removed. That work calls for champions, to speak out in places where the bitter word is spoken, to set standards high, to close off the arteries which feed hatred. You are those champions, working tirelessly making your contribution to peace. Peace building is infinitely more difficult than demolishing hope with hatred and the challenge to our generation is to internalise deeply the work of peace and to make us its champions.
None of us has the power to change what is past but we do have the power to use today well to shape a better future. This generation has stewardship of the Peace Process, another embryonic gift, half grown, in need of the most assiduous nurturing, but holding the promise of a glorious Ireland and a blessed generation yet to come - one which will know for the very first time what it is like to live in a place where peace reigns and where neighbours who previously ignored each other or set their faces against each other, now work hand in hand for the good of all. If we nurture the seed of peace well we will for the first time have our true strength, our true potential, revealed to us.
Peace and peacemaking are soft words but hard work. Today is a way of paying tribute to all of your faith in our future, for the hard work and commitment you bring to securing a vibrant and healthy civic life the length and breadth of this island. No community can ever take for granted that it will have good civic leaders, good community builders, people who care enough to do the hard slog that decent, happy lives rest on. We are lucky to have you and grateful for all you have done. I hope today will be a memorable occasion for all of you – a chance to meet others, to exchange experiences and views. Most of all I hope that you will enjoy yourselves and maybe make a new friend or two.
I would like to thank our MC today Eugene Downes, Mona McMahon who entertained us so beautifully in the entrance hall as you arrived, and in this room the wonderfully talented Teadai String Quartet. My thanks also to John Gould, Civil Defence Officer for his expert assistance.
Go n-éirí go geal libh. Go raibh maith agaibh go léir.