A chara, – At a recent meeting of the executive committee of the 1916-1921 Club a motion was unanimously passed protesting at the coming planned state visit of Queen Elizabeth to the Republic of Ireland.
This club was founded in the 1940s by veterans of the 1916 Rising and the War of Independence to honour and remember those who died for Irish freedom and all those who worked for its achievement. Some of our founder members had immediate relatives executed during the War of Independence. The British government had no legitimate authority to execute young Irishmen after the Irish people had voted by a big majority in the 1918 general election for an independent parliament to legislate for Ireland. In the subsequent period, 1918-1921, English rule in Ireland was illegal and all executions, murders, imprisonments, burnings of houses and other heinous acts carried out by British troops in Ireland were unlawful. The Irish people who suffered never received an apology from any British government or monarch for these evil crimes.
The members of this club think that the queen’s state visit to the Republic of Ireland is premature. The Queen of England is head of the British forces which still occupy our six north-easterly counties.
Republicans, who comprise our club, think that there are two venues on the queen’s tour that are very insensitive. They feel that the visit of the British monarch to the Garden of Remembrance, without any announcement of regret, is pure hypocrisy.
GAA officials expect that the visit of the Queen of England to Croke Park will be welcomed by all those “who play, administer and support our games”. Many members of the 1916-1921 Club have played, supported and promoted Gaelic games but they also remember that on Bloody Sunday British troops mowed down fourteen unarmed civilians in Croke Park, including Mick Hogan from Grangemockler. They also recall that British troops killed more than 100 other GAA players throughout Ireland during the War of Independence. These young fellows were recruited into the Irish Republican Army through membership of their local GAA clubs and top GAA officials at the time were well aware of that.
We are told that this visit will cost at least €10 million. The 1916-1921 Club is aghast at the spending of such a large amount of money at a time when the finances of this country have hit a record low. How much more beneficial it would be if this money were spent on providing better treatment and care for our boys and girls who suffer from cystic fibrosis? – Is mise,