President to meet Bloody Sunday families on day two of NI visit

By Claudia Savage, Press Association

President Catherine Connolly is to continue her three-day official visit to Northern Ireland with a number of engagements in Co Derry.

Ms Connolly will address a civic reception at the Guildhall, where she will be greeted by the Lord Lieutenant for the County Borough of Derry Ian Crowe and Derry City Mayor Ruairi McHugh.

In the afternoon, the president will visit the Museum of Free Derry, where she will view the exhibition on Bloody Sunday.

Last Friday marked the 54th anniversary of Bloody Sunday.

Ms Connolly will meet with some 50 family members of those who were killed and injured in 1972.

Over the course of the day, the president will also visit a number of community initiatives across Derry.

The president’s three-day visit to Northern Ireland marks the first official visit of President Connolly’s presidency and fulfils a commitment made in her inauguration address that her first official visit would be to Northern Ireland, where she would meet with people from all communities and celebrate the rich heritage and traditions of all who live there.

On Wednesday, the president commenced her official visit with a number of engagements in Belfast, including a meeting with First Minister Michelle O’Neill and Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly at Stormont Castle, an address at Ulster University, and a number of community engagements.

The visit will conclude with a further engagement in Derry on Friday.