First
Lady praises courage of North's women
From IRISH TIMES December 14th, 2000
By ROISIN INGLE
Working with the women of Northern Ireland was "one of the greatest privileges of my lifetime" the US First Lady told a conference in Belfast yesterday.
Newly elected Senator Hillary Clinton received a standing ovation from around
500 women as she took to the stage of the Grand Opera House in Belfast's
Great Victoria Street shortly after 11 a.m. The conference, Women Raising
their Voices for the New Northern Ireland, was organised by the Northern
Ireland Voluntary Trust to mark its 21st year. Her trip to Belfast marked
a particularly heartfelt and bittersweet time for her family, she said.
"We have been delighted and honoured, challenged and perplexed by our work on your behalf. Nothing has given us greater joy than to be a small, small part of such a great historic change as you have brought about." "Building peace anywhere is never easy and there are always people who are the self-appointed doom-sayers, who would rather throw up their hands than roll up their sleeves," she said. "There always come times when it is just easier to go back . . . But none of us can afford to let that happen. All of our problems are of our own making and so our solutions are of our own making as well." She said this was one of those "special moments" when there was a chance to defy generations of hatred. "And that is why I have come to Belfast, filled with hope and certitude that this moment will be seized."
Mrs Clinton praised the daily "acts of courage" of women in Northern Ireland
and mentioned plans for a parliamentary get-together next year of women
parliamentarians from Ireland, Northern Ireland and the UK. The First Lady
was joined on stage by Mrs Cherie Blair, wife of the British Prime Minister,
Mrs Daphne Trimble, wife of First Minister Mr David Trimble, ICTU president
Ms Inez McCormack, chairman of the Civic Forum Mr Chris Gibson, Ms Mary
Black of the NIVT and community worker Ms Kathleen Feenan. The invited audience
included former US ambassador to Ireland, Ms Jean Kennedy Smith, her nephew,
Congressman Patrick Kennedy, Congressman Peter King, the US Secretary for
Education, Mr Richard Riley, and Ms Pat Hume, wife of the SDLP leader. Chelsea
Clinton did not arrive as expected. Mrs Trimble welcomed the Clintons, saying
they came at a difficult time in the peace process when "murder still walks the streets". She hoped the visit would help secure a "just and peaceful future which is the birthright of every citizen of Northern Ireland . . . the women sitting here today are ready to play their full part in that future".
Ms Feenan of Belfast's Women's Information Group said Mrs Clinton was a
champion for women's issues around the world. Ms McCormack congratulated
her friend on her electoral victory and said she hoped Mrs Clinton would
continue her association with the Vital Voices campaign to include more
women in political life. Mrs Clinton later announced that political and
media experts would be coming to the North next year to provide training
to those involved in Vital Voices. There was a warm tribute from Ms Blair,
who said Mrs Clinton had done much to encourage women all over the world.
"And your commitment to women here in Northern Ireland has been outstanding,"
she said during the closing address. Earlier, Mrs Clinton promised to continue
to build on the relationship she had built with the women of Northern Ireland.
"I will always be there as a friend and an advocate and a partner as you continue the hard, hard work of peace and reconciliation. There isn't any more important work to be done." |
