Fáilte For Queen's Dublin Visit

As details of the first reigning Monarch's visit to the Irish Republic emerged yesterday, polarized division has emerged.

The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) has welcomed the planned trip by the Queen to Dublin's Croke Park, during her landmark state visit to Ireland in May.

"In the best traditions of our Association, we will extend a warm welcome to Croke Park - a Céad Míle Fáilte - to Queen Elizabeth (pictured here on an NI visit last year by Brian McCalden) and the Duke of Edinburgh, accompanied by the President and Dr McAleese," a statement from the organisation read.

That's in spite of the location's history, which saw the modern day 82,000-seater stadium previously being the scene of a massacre of 14 civilians by British soldiers in 1920 during the Irish War of Independence.

The Queen's visit to such reminders of Britain's troubled past with Ireland has been hailed as deeply symbolic of the how progress has been made.

The GAA also said it hoped such promotion of Gaelic games would encourage greater participation from the unionist community.

"We are confident that this historic visit to Croke Park will be welcomed by those who play, administer and support our games, at home and abroad - including of course throughout Britain," the statement added.

"We hope also that it will encourage a greater interest and participation in our games by our fellow Irishmen and women of the Unionist tradition."

It has also emerged that Her Majesty will visit Dublin's Garden of Remembrance - which honours all those who fought for Irish freedom - including IRA men.

The Queen will attend events at Trinity College Dublin, the National War Memorial Gardens in Islandbridge to commemorate British War Dead from across all of Ireland as just some of the events on a busy itinerary from 17 May to 20 May with a visit to the Taoiseach at Government Buildings also included with a speech at a state dinner at Dublin Castle.

There are also plans for the Queen and the Duke to visit the Irish National Stud in Kildare, as well as Cashel, in County Tipperary, home to the popular tourist destination of the Rock of Cashel, and Cork.

However, violent politics and grief are never too far away.

The Queen suffered personal loss when an IRA bomb blast killed her cousin Lord Louis Mountbatten on his boat in Ireland in 1979.

Commenting, Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams said the party was "aware of the offence the visit will cause to many Irish citizens".

He said: "Sinn Fein wants to see the normalisation of relationships between our two nations and republicans have been in the leadership of this process, but that can only be based on mutual respect and equality and on the ending of the partition of Ireland," he added, previously voicing his opinion that the trip was 'too early" in the Peace Process.

Deputy Sinn Fein Leader Mary Lou McDonald called for any demonstrations to be democratic, peaceful and respectful.

Ms McDonald said Sinn Fein would be having events around the visit but members would not be getting involved in confrontation on the streets.

"People have a perfect right to protest but it needs to be peaceable, democratic," Ms McDonald said.

However, the anti-British socialist group éirígí's Chairperson, Brian Leeson, has said that the visit is designed to "rub salt in the wounds of the victims of British violence in Ireland".

"The itinerary appears to have been deliberately designed to cause maximum offence to the victims of British state-sponsored violence in Ireland.

"Elizabeth Windsor is to begin her state visit on May 17th, the 37th anniversary to the day of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings [carried out by the loyalist paramilitary terror group, the UVF]."

He also fumed over "her intention to visit the Garden of Remembrance on Parnell Square" which was branded "provocative in the extreme".

"For as long as the British occupation of the Six Counties continues the prospect of a British head of state attending a ceremony at the Garden of Remembrance is as insulting as it is provocative," he continued.

"We in éirígí are committed to opposing this visit in as robust a manner as possible.

"We are calling on the people across Ireland to get involved in the campaign of opposition to this visit.

"In particular to the young people of Dublin we are appealing. A city which we hope will greet the British monarch with protest and defiance."

See: Queen Honours NI Cadets

(BMcC/GK)