SF's McGuinness To Shake Hands With Queen In Belfast

Northern Ireland's Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness will become the first member of the Sinn Fein party to meet Britain's Queen Elizabeth at a function in Belfast this week.

The former IRA commander-turned-peacemaker will shake the British monarch's hand at a charity reception hosted jointly by the Queen and Irish President Michael D Higgins.

The event will take place behind closed doors, but the Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams says he has no problem with photographs of the historic event being released to the media.

In the not so distant past, a meeting of this nature would have been unthinkable. Sinn Fein leaders have always boycotted royal visits to Ireland - and significantly were opposed to the Queen's historic visit to the Republic of Ireland last year.

In 1979, the IRA murdered the Queen's cousin, Lord Mountbatten.

But this week's handshake is seen as a significant gesture in the context of the peace process and the ending of conflict in Northern Ireland.

After a party meeting in Dublin last Friday, Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams said the handshake was "the right thing to do at the right time".

He said it was a "significant initiative, involving major political and symbolic challenges for Irish republicanism" but it reflected Sinn Fein's "genuine desire to embrace our unionist neighbors".

However, some analysts say that Sinn Fein were badly wrong-footed by the highly successful nature of the Queen's visit to the Republic last year, when they misjudged the mood of the Irish public.

The party is now riding high in the opinion polls, and is keen not to be seen as out of step on the issue.

The Queen is expected to spend two days in Northern Ireland as part of her Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

Democratic Unionist MP Jeffrey Donaldson said: "It's perhaps long overdue but nevertheless it is a good thing. It's part of the process of moving Northern Ireland forward, that we have respect for our traditions, our cultures and identities.

"This visit is very important to the unionist community, but beyond that, there are many people who will welcome the Queen's visit who are not unionist. It's important that Her Majesty feels welcomed in Northern Ireland, it's important that people recognise her position as the head of state and this is progress.

"There will be many victims of IRA terrorism who will find the encounter difficult, but the peace process is about tackling the difficult issues and making the difficult decisions."