President to speak of ‘complex legacies’ at Dáil commemoration
State must face ‘most difficult’ part of decade of centenaries ‘with sympathy and empathy’
President Michael D Higgins will tell an audience including the Taoiseach and descendants of those elected to the first Dáil that the country is entering “the most difficult part of our decade of centenaries”. Photograph: Brenda Fitzsimons
President Michael D Higgins will urge people not to be afraid to “face the past” as they commemorate the most difficult centenaries of Irish history, including the War of Independence and the Civil War.
In a speech on Monday marking the 100th anniversary of the inaugural public meeting of Dáil Éireann, Mr Higgins will say that the country must acknowledge this troubled history including “all of the violence and cruelties released from pent-up exclusions, deprivations and humiliations”.