Opinion

Editorial: Jubilee letter a positive step

WHEN Martin McGuinness shook hands with Queen Elizabeth in June 2012, he said he hoped their meeting could help define "a new relationship between Britain and Ireland and between the Irish people themselves".

The queen was at that time visiting Northern Ireland as part of diamond jubilee celebrations, marking her 60th year on the throne.

A year earlier she had become the first British monarch to visit the Republic, in a ground-breaking visit which saw her lay a wreath at the Garden of Remembrance and address the islands' troubled history in a widely-praised speech.

Mr McGuinness, a former IRA commander, said he was symbolically "offering the hand of friendship to unionists through the person of Queen Elizabeth for which many unionists have a deep affinity".

Ten years on, as the platinum jubilee is marked, Michelle O'Neill has written to the queen to acknowledge the "historic moment" and her service to British people over 70 years.

The Sinn Féin vice-president, who was with Mr McGuinness for the meeting in 2012, also praised her "significant contribution to the advancement of peace and reconciliation between the different traditions on our island, and between our two islands during those years of the peace process".

She said as incoming first minister, she would attempt to "renew the spirit of co-operation between those of us in the world of politics and public life from different traditions, and also the people and communities we proudly represent".

Meanwhile, Sinn Féin's newly-elected lord mayor of Belfast, Tina Black, this week indicated that she will be attending some events to mark the jubilee.

She said the "challenges we face in this city are largely shared, and I think the only way to overcome those challenges is together".

While there will undoubtedly be scepticism among some unionists at such statements, the sentiments expressed by all three politicians are to be welcomed.

Although the violence of the Troubles has thankfully now been consigned to the past, there is much work still to be done to heal wounds and build a truly shared society.

The Brexit vote continues to be a destabilising force and poses a real threat to the improved relationships that Martin McGuinness spoke of.

But as the largest party now on both sides of the border, Sinn Féin has a particular responsibility to demonstrate leadership and Ms O'Neill's letter to Queen Elizabeth is certainly another positive step.