Thugs fail to tarnish successful royal visit

QUEEN Elizabeth’s visit to Ireland has been a huge success but some ignorant groups have tried to tarnish the visit with dispicable protests.

In my opinion, the Royal visit was a moment of history and a completion of the healing process of the Irish people.

The symbolic power of the Queen’s visit to Croke Park and The Garden of Remembrance is immeasurable and invaluable.

The sight of the Queen and the President standing together, heads bowed, observing a minute of silence for the men who lost their lives fighting for Irish freedom will live with me forever. It will define this generation and mark a huge gesture of peace and reconciliation between Ireland and Britain.

This week, I also witnessed minor incidents of violence during mindless, ignorant protests by people craving trouble and media attention.

I almost had to laugh when I saw a man holding a sign saying, “Britain out of Ireland“, as he stood there, scarf over his face in a Manchester United jersey. These protests got little air-time on television and the people involved should be quite embarrassed of their actions.

They were pathetic. This sort of thuggery isn’t a representation of the people’s views, it is a minority of largely young males who enjoy a good scuffle with gardaí, no matter what the reason.

Given half a chance, they will cause trouble, but this time they did not overshadow the enormity of the Queen’s state visit and did not hinder the strides made toward peace and reconciliation between Britain and Ireland.

Justin Kelly

Edenderry

Co Offaly