Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla Parker Bowles, are set to visit Ireland in May. Charles has chosen to include Mullaghmore in County Sligo, because that is where his great-uncle Lord Louis Mountbatten was killed during an IRA bombing in 1972.
As politicians and dignitaries line up to shake the prince's hand, republican and anti-war groups will also be gathering - in protest. Des Dalton, president of Republican Sinn Féin told the Irish news website, The Journal.ie that he hopes the protests are at least as big as those held during the visit of Queen Elizabeth II in 2011. "We've made it clear that representatives of the British state are not welcome in Ireland and that statement continues," he said.
However, according to Irish Times, Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams has said he hopes the visit will be "an occasion to promote reconciliation, respect and understanding."
Jim Roche of the anti-war movement told The Journal.ie that his group will also stage protests. "Prince Charles is a big fan of the Saudi Arabian regime," Roche said. "We would want to bring attention to that."
Éirígí, had the largest turnout during the protests in 2011, according to The Journal.ie, and the group is waiting to see what the prince's itinerary looks like before deciding if protests are in order. "It's not on the same level as, say, when you had the British Queen here because she was coming on a formal State visit as the head of State and chief of the British military," spokesperson Brian Leeson said, according to The Journal.ie. "A lot of this comes down to the nature of the trip."
"I am conscious that Prince Charles is the symbolic head of the British Army's Parachute Regiment and the grievous wrong they have done including to the people of Derry and Ballymurphy where I grew up," Adams told Irish Times. "However I am also conscious that the British Royal family have also been directly affected by the actions of republicans."
