A leading Derry politician has said that all acts of remembrance should be respected.

A number of remembrance events were held in Derry yesterday for those killed in the two world wars.

However, the issue of wearing a poppy during the remembrance period was again brought into focus over the weekend after Derry footballer James McClean revealed the reasons why he would not wear a poppy.

The Creggan man was condemned by many people when he refused to wear a poppy while playing for Sunderland last year.

The issue arose again at the weekend when players in England were asked to wear a poppy on their shirts.

However, McClean, who now plays for Wigan Athletic in the English Championship, wrote a letter to the club’s owner, Dave Whelan, explaining why he had chosen not to wear a poppy during his club’s game against Bolton on Friday night.

In the letter, which was published on the club’s website on Friday, the 25 year-old Derry man said he had ‘complete respect’ for those who fought and died in the two world wars, many of whom, he said, were Irish-born.

He said he would wear a poppy if it was only a symbol for those who died in the world wars.

“But the poppy is used to remember victims of other conflicts since 1945 and this is where the problem starts for me,” McClean’s letter states.

“For people from the North of Ireland such as myself, and especially those in Derry, scene of the 1972 Bloody Sunday massacre, the poppy has come to mean something different.

“Please understand Mr McClean, that when you come from Creggan like myself or the Bogside, Brandywell or the majority of places in Derry, every person still lives in the shadow of one of the darkest days in Ireland’s history – even if like me you were born 20 years after the event, it is just a part of who we are, ingrained into us from birth.

“Mr Whelan, for me to wear a poppy would be as much a gesture of disrespect for the innocent people who lost their lives in the Troubles – and Bloody Sunday especially – as I have in the past been accused of disrespecting the victims of WWI and WWII.”

In relation to James McClean’s letter, Foyle SDLP MLA Pat Ramsey said it was right that the sacrifice of those killed during wars should be remembered at this time.

“It is wrong, however, for anyone to dictate to any individual how they should pay their respects to the war dead,” he added.

“For some it may be a public display, for others its’ an extremely private act.

“It is not for me or anyone else to judge. We must all show respect for the rights and views of others. That’s what those who gave their lives fought for.”

McClean’s letter, not surprisingly, attracted a lot of attention on social media over the weekend.

While there were those who criticised his decision, the majority of contributers said they respected the decision and the way in which he made his reasons public.

Speaking yesterday, SDLP Foyle Assemblyman Pat Ramsey described many of comments on social media towards James McClean over the weekend as disgraceful.

“Rather than attack his character or make vile threats and slurs against him, we should all respect James’ decision and support the tribute he has paid to those who died in both world wars,” he said.

“I support his decision, just as I would have supported his decision had he chosen to wear a poppy.

“Respect for all political traditions is the basis of lasting peace in the North. That should be the approach of everyone to acts of remembrance.”

The British Legion yesterday took part in a parade to the war memorial at the Diamond before wreaths were laid at the cenotaph.

A memorial for those killed in the First and Second World Wars was then held at St Columb’s Cathedral.

A number of other events are taking place at the cathedral this week as part of the remembrance period.

Meanhile, a special programme on soldiers from Derry and Donegal who fought and died in World War One will be screened on RTE One this evening.

In the Nationwide programme, to be broadcast at 7pm, reporter Helen Mark visits Derry to hear the stories of those from the Protestant Fountain Estate and from the nationalist Bogside who died in the Great War.

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