REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT OF IRELAND, MARY MCALEESE AT THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF WALES MONDAY
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT OF IRELAND, MARY MCALEESE AT THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF WALES MONDAY, 2 DECEMBER 2002
Llywydd Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru (President of the National Library of Wales)
Llyfrgellydd Cenedlaethol Cymru (National Librarian of Wales)
Anwyll gyfeillion (Dear friends)
‘Sé onóir mór dom bheith in Aberystwyth inniu. Guím dea-ghuí dhíbh go léir.
Listening to the exquisite sound of the harp echo through this splendid gallery the words of Bobi Jones come to mind - from the poem entitled ‘A poem of Praise’
“Roof, floor and wall were founded
On cherishing the joy of song”
(translated from the Welsh by Joseph P. Clancy)
This is a country which cherishes music deeply and so on my behalf and yours, I thank and congratulate Dr Eibhlis Farrell, who composed the work ‘An Cruit Draíochta’ - the Magic Harp - and Clodagh Haughton who played it so beautifully.
Here in Aberystwyth, a name that is synonymous in Ireland with the cultural and artistic achievements of Wales and in particular gathered as we are in the National Library of Wales, it is worth reminding ourselves that the Irish and the Welsh share the great distinction of being custodians of Europe’s oldest unbroken literary tradition. Two exquisite, ancient languages rescued from the jaws of oblivion are our respective gateways to deep cultural reservoirs from which have been drawn our writers and poets, our politics and our people.
Today we meet as two modern, dynamic nations each with its unique temperament and characteristics born of different heritages, different histories but we do not meet as strangers for between Wales and the island of Ireland there have been vigorous exchanges of people and trade from prehistoric times. Your epic saga The Mabinogion characterises some of those exchanges as less than cordial but it was of course along this route that Christianity came to Ireland and it has long been rumoured of course that our great national apostle was in fact a Welshman. Given some of the other possible places of his birth I think we are very content to think of him as a fellow Celt.
The Great Famine of the 1840's, brought many Irishmen and Irishwomen to Wales and the roots they put down here created strong bonds between their adopted and native homelands. Today we travel to and fro in much happier circumstances as tourists, business acquaintances or students, in fact several hundred Irish students are currently studying here in Aberystwyth.
Today, the context of our relationship has been transformed. We share membership of the European Union, and the British Irish Council; Welsh devolution has recalibrated our mutual official contacts; the Peace Process is driven by an historically close consensus-oriented rapport between the Irish and British Governments and of course it is being driven forward by a very popular Welshman Paul Murphy; we both are driving forward our claims to be technologically sophisticated, globally oriented and high achieving modern societies; these things and more have all had a refreshing and challenging impact on our perceptions of ourselves - of what it is to be Welsh, Irish, British, European - and on the connections with each other.
Ireland itself has of course been the economic success story ‘par excellence’ of the European Union. Once a third world country and within living memory, it is now the world’s leading exporter of computer software and one of the fastest growing economies in the world. We have reversed the tide of emigration that drained us for a century and a half, released the greatest natural resource we have - the genius of our own people - through education and training and we look to our neighbours with a confident new vision for a shared future of partnership and prosperity. The sea which divides us is today little more than a busy highway linking near neighbours with much in common and much to learn about, and from, each other.
History records the successes and failures of every generation. The Irish and Welsh have had their share of both. But today we are both in self-assertive mode, brimming with a newfound confidence and faith in the future. We know each other well, better than many of us think or give credit for and we in this privileged generation have a wonderful opportunity to build on that store of shared memories. There is a saying in the Irish language - two shortens the road. With our gifts of language, music, poetry and our determination to be small nations with big voices in Europe and the world, we the Irish and the Welsh have the potential to make the next phase of our journey - the best yet.
Today, in these splendid surroundings, I feel very privileged to be so immersed in your rich cultural heritage and I have no doubt that one day the history books in this place will recall that in the 21st century our two ancient nations travelled together on the road to a world without margins, without tragic spectators, a world of widespread prosperity and the fullest social inclusion in the history of humankind.
Go raibh maith agaibh go léir
Diolch yn fawr iawn