PLANS to light up a key landmark for the centenary of Northern Ireland have been called off after Sinn Fein objected.

Belfast City Hall was to be illuminated in green and blue tonight as part of a programme of events. However, the lights plan has now been cancelled after Sinn Fein blocked it, with their Councillor Ciaran Beattie saying calling the partition of Ireland "nothing to celebrate".

Beattie said the lights plan was "entirely political and triumphalist", adding: "It would have an adverse impact on those from an Irish nationalist background in the city."

Brian Kingston of the DUP told the News Letter that the illumination had the backing of unionists, the Alliance Party and the Green Party.

And he's accused Sinn Fein of showing "no respect for the unionist identity nor the democratic wishes of the council or the people of Northern Ireland".

The light-up scheme was not part of the official programme and gained last-minute approval yesterday. Sinn Fein has objected to the manner in which the decision was made on procedural grounds.

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In a statement, Belfast City Council said: "The decision to illuminate City Hall was subject to a call in this morning.

"An initial legal opinion indicates the call in has merit. As a result of this the illumination will not be proceeding."

The row has emerged hours after Boris Johnson attended a cross-community church service in Armagh alongside dignitaries including Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney and Paul Givan, first minister of Northern Ireland. While the Queen had been scheduled to attend, this was cancelled on medical advice. Irish president Michael D Higgins refused his invitation.

Johnson called the event "very moving" and described Northern Ireland as "an incredible part of the country which has got an amazing future".

He added: "I am a passionate unionist and, of course, I believe the future is within the United Kingdom."

While the leaders of four of Northern Ireland's biggest parties were in attendance at St Patrick's Cathedral, Sinn Fein did not attend and its vice president Michelle O'Neill tweeted "make partition history".

 

 

The National:

SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said the event was "very clearly no celebration of partition" but "a reflection of the events that have happened over the past 100 years".

He said he felt partition was "coming to an end" and said: "If we want to create a shared island, we have to be prepared to share rooms with people who disagree with us."

DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said Sinn Fein had "misjudged the moment" by staying away and stated: "It's not about politics, it's not about one side gloating or in any way seeking to be overbearing on the other, but actually all of us coming together to reflect on the journey that we have been on, difficult, painful that it has been at times but also a journey in which I hope we have learned a lot of things.

"I hope we have learned lessons from today, that we will reflect upon in the future and when we're given the opportunity to stand shoulder to shoulder to reflect, to speak of hope, that in the future we will do it together."

Meanwhile, Alliance Party leader Naomi Long said the service was a "an opportunity for us to come together and to look forward with hope to the future, to look at the kind of gracious acts that we need to do if we're going to reconcile a broken and hurting community and a broken and hurting people on this island."

She went on: "Peace-building requires risks, reconciliation requires risks, the church leaders took risks, I commend them for that and I'm glad I was able to be part of it today."