Unveiling
The tower was unveiled after an 11 am service on 11 November 1998 by President Mary McAleese of Ireland, HM Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and King Albert II of Belgium.
In her speech, President McAleese said:
| “ | Today's ceremony at the Peace Park was not just another journey down a well-travelled path. For much of the past eighty years, the very idea of such a ceremony would probably have been unthinkable. Those whom we commemorate here were doubly tragic. They fell victim to a war against oppression in Europe. Their memory too fell victim to a war for independence at home in Ireland. |
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—Mary McAleese |
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Speaking at the official re-opening of the newly structured park on 7 June 2004, the Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern commented that honouring the spirit of all Irish people killed in the First World War can teach how to advance the Northern Ireland peace process, adding:
| “ | All those untold human stories that we lost in the first World War and more recently in the conflict in Northern Ireland, must be remembered. And, in remembering, they must not be told for nothing. They must not be told to deepen divisions. They must be told to inspire us to overcome them. | ” |
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—Dermot Ahern |
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Read more about this topic: Island Of Ireland Peace Park