Irish president to meet Bloody Sunday relatives

The Irish president will meet relatives of those killed and injured on Bloody Sunday as part of the next step of her three-day visit to Northern Ireland.

Catherine Connolly is in Londonderry for the second day of the visit, where has been meeting a range of local groups and politicians at the Guildhall where she was given a civic reception.

She was welcomed by the Lord Lieutenant for the County Borough of Londonderry Ian Crowe and Sinn Féin Mayor Ruairí McHugh.

She met a range of community and voluntary organisations as well as members of Derry City and Strabane District Council.

After her speech in the Guildhall, the President will have a private meeting with 50 relatives of those killed and injured on Bloody Sunday in 1972.

Friday marked the 54th anniversary of the shootings, which were carried out by the Army's Parachute Regiment.

Connolly told the invited audience at the Guildhall that she was conscious of recent judgements [relating to Bloody Sunday] and that "justice was still awaited".

She also referred to the city's role in modern history and said an injustice in Derry was "the same as an injustice in Gaza" and Sudan.

"Derry has shown us the path from conflict to peace", playing a "pivotal role" in the civil rights movement and the Good Friday Agreement.

"We remain indebted to your very own, the late John Hume, whose Nobel peace prize is displayed here, the late David Trimble with whom he shared that prize, the late Martin McGuinness and all those women and men who helped realise peace," she said.

She also praised the work of reconciliation taking place on the ground in Derry and said: "You are an absolute example to all of us."

But the Democratic Unionist Party MP Gregory Campbell, who was in the audience, criticised the speech and accused the president of being "one-sided and imbalanced".

He said she had not referenced Londonderry once or referred to the exodus of Protestants from the mainly-nationalist west bank of the Foyle during the Troubles due to IRA violence.

Connolly will also visit a number of community initiatives across the city during the day, including the Apprentice Boys of Derry Siege of Derry Museum.

During a speech at Ulster University's Belfast campus on Wednesday, Connolly said Northern Ireland "represents a beacon of light to the world in how decades-long conflict can be resolved and reconciliation fostered and continued".

Her three-day visit will end with another engagement to a youth organisation on Friday.

The trip fulfils a commitment made in her inauguration address that her first official visit would be to Northern Ireland.

Born in Galway and raised in a social housing estate in Galway city, Connolly was the ninth of 14 children.

She studied for a degree in psychology with German, before taking a job as a clinical psychologist with a County Galway health board.

But she turned down a permanent post and instead began night classes to study for a law degree.

She qualified as a barrister in 1991.

The mother of two was in her early 40s when she entered elected politics in 1999.

Connolly served 17 years as councillor in Galway, including a one-year term as mayor of her native city.

However, she criticised Labour for not supporting her bid to run alongside Micahel D Higgins in the 2007 general election and she left the party in the aftermath of that dispute.

The 68-year-old, from Galway, has been a TD (member of the Irish parliament) since 2016

Standing as an independent, she made two failed attempts to get elected to the Dáil (Irish Parliament) before finally winning a seat in 2016.

Connolly then became the first ever woman elected to chair debates in the Dáil when she secured the post of Leas-Cheann Comhairle (Deputy Speaker) in 2020.

It was a surprise win in which she managed to unite opposition parties against the sitting government's candidate.

She united them again with her presidential bid, securing the support of Sinn Féin, the Social Democrats, People Before Profit and her own former party, Labour.

Outside politics, Connolly is a passionate Irish speaker and a keen sportswoman who ran marathons and played badminton competitively in her younger years.