The Government is to provide £150,000 towards the cost of a first World War memorial in Belgium for all the Irish who died in the conflict. It is intended that over the next 10 months, a round tower and a park, symbolising the four provinces, will be constructed at Messines. Announcing the funding yesterday, the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, said the Government had agreed to provide the money for the Soldiers and Sailors Trust after his meeting with members of the Journey of Reconciliation Trust, including Mr Glen Barr, a Derry-based loyalist, and the former Fine Gael TD, Mr Paddy Harte.
The money for the Messines project will be used to support the erection of an "Island of Ireland First World War Memorial", commemorating the 36th Ulster Division and the 16th Irish Division in June 1917.
The tower will be modelled on Newgrange, the neolithic burial site in Co Meath, and designed so that sunlight will enter the building at 11 a.m. on Armistice Day, November 11th.
"The memorial will not only remember the sacrifices of those from all parts of Ireland and from all political and religious traditions who fought and fell in the war, it will also serve as a powerful symbol of reconciliation in the present day," the Taoiseach said.
Political controversies and divisions of the past must be transcended in favour of common humanity. There needed to be room for the contribution of all traditions and recognition that there are many different ways in which fine people try to serve their country, he said.