President Mary McAleese risked embarrassing the Queen, Gerry Adams admitted Sinn Fein needed to stop attracting ‘headbangers’, and Mother Theresa asked Aer Lingus to fly her to Ireland for free.
They’re some of the revelations made in historical State papers released today.
According to confidential files made public today, British government officials were worried Queen Elizabeth would be left red-faced if President Mary McAleese personally attended a service remembering the victims of the Omagh bombing in 1998, as the Monarch would not be making an appearance herself.
An Irish diplomat was summoned to London to see if a compromise could be reached between the two governments.
The Omagh bombing on 15 August 1998, in which 29 people died, was the single deadliest incident of the Troubles.
When a memorial service for the victims was announced for the week after the bombing, both taoiseach Bertie Ahern and president Mary McAleese indicated they would attend.
In the end President McAleese and the Taoiseach Bertie Ahern both did attend.
Other State papers released from the National Archives today and reported in the Irish Examiner claim Gerry Adam’s admitted during a meeting with the Irish Ambassador to the US in 2001, that Sinn Fein needed to move away from violence and stop ‘attracting headbangers’.
In 1993 the government considered an older age limit of 21 when it was decriminalising homosexuality.
While according to the Irish Independent Mother Theresa wrote to Aer Lingus asking for free flights so she could make a personal visit to Ireland, however the Department of Foreign Affairs ultimately decided not to get involved as it was a ‘private trip’, and noted the pro-life movement may have been arranging her programme.
