THE Republic's arts minister has urged unionists not to feel threatened by next year's Easter Rising commemorations.
Cavan-Monaghan TD Heather Humphreys, who regularly attends Orange Order events south of the border, said the events surrounding the 1916 centenary were designed to be inclusive and enjoyed by everyone.
A Presbyterian who was reared on a Co Monaghan farm six miles from the border, the Fine Gael TD calls herself both a "proud Irish republican" and "proud Ulster Protestant".
She attends Orange Order events in her home village of Drum, describing them as part of her heritage.
Next year's programme of events to commemorate the centenary of the Easter Rising will include a parade down Dublin's O'Connell Street, as well as a series of cultural initiatives involving art, music, poetry and language.
Children are to be asked to write their own version of the 1916 Proclamation to reflect their values, while every school in the State will have a tricolour delivered and children taught what the flag stands for.
The year of events will include a cross-border element, with plans to mark the 18th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement and all-Ireland drama and essay writing competitions for schoolchildren.
Ms Humphreys said next year's commemorations should be looked at in the context of the decade of anniversaries, which included marking the signing of the Ulster Covenant and the Battle of the Somme.
The minister said she wanted next year's events to be "inclusive and respectful".
"In terms of the wider community I want people to come on board and as well as commemorating the events of 1916 I want people to reflect on the past 100 years, to take stock and see where we've come as a people while looking to the future," she told The Irish News during a visit to Belfast last week.
The Cavan-Monaghan TD said there would be solemn elements to the commemoration but that there also be a focus on the Republic's achievements, which included being one of the few countries in Europe that has maintained continuous democracy over the past century.
"That itself is a tremendous achievement," she said.
Asked if unionists would feel threatened by the government-sponsored commemoration, she said: "I don't think there's any reason why anybody should be threatened by it."
Discussing her own association with the Orange Order in Co Monaghan, she said she would attend annual "local community events" organised by a the lodge in Drum – though not every year.
"If I'm free I go up and meet my neighbours and I enjoy listening to the bands playing – it's part of my tradition and heritage," she said.
"I think as minister for heritage which I am it's important that we respect all the different traditions and we should be proud of our heritage because it's part of what we are and it's important that we remember that."
Asked whether she felt elements of Orangeism were sectarian, the minister replied: "I was never brought up like that.
"I believe you should be proud of where you came from. The most important thing as that you have respect."
