President is a symbol of unity

FOUR political parties wisely see nothing wrong with granting Mary McAleese a further term as president.

She has herself stated that she has objectives still to pursue. As a native of the real Ulster she is a powerful symbol of unity, understands better than most the complexities of the problems to be overcome there and has proved what a magnanimous lady she is.

Despite maltreatment of her incapacitated brother and much hardship inflicted on her father’s business as a publican, the family were saved from a massacre by a loyalist gang because they happened to be at Mass.