Welcoming the queen, not Obama

THE visits by Queen Elizabeth II and President Barack Obama as respective heads of state of Britain and the United States pose a challenge for peace activists to distinguish between genuine efforts to promote peace and justice.

While some Irish people have reservations about the visit of Queen Elizabeth, speaking on my own behalf I welcome this visit because I believe it is timely and a very genuine effort to promote peace between Britain and Ireland and within Ireland itself. The queen is also not a decision-maker in matters of British Government policy. She is a ceremonial head of state and as such represents the British people more than the British government.

The visit by US President Barack Obama falls into a more complex category. His election was widely welcomed across the world. While his policies of ending the Iraq war and promising to end the Afghan war are to be welcomed, his failure to close Guantanamo prison or to unequivocally end all forms of torture are regrettable.