MEETINGFRENCH PRESIDENT Nicolas Sarkozy is to hold a round-table meeting on Monday with representatives from groups that campaigned for and against the Lisbon Treaty in last month's referendum.
The meeting will take place at the French embassy on Ailesbury Road in Dublin on Monday afternoon. Mr Sarkozy will leave for Dublin airport after the event which is scheduled to last for one hour.
According to Government and French sources, discussions took place this week regarding the possibility of Mr Sarkozy meeting with Opposition leaders at Government Buildings during his visit on Monday but these plans were later abandoned. A decision was then taken to invite party leaders to the meeting at the embassy.
The French embassy sent out invitations to the event, during which each attendee will make a 2-3 minute presentation, on Thursday. The invite list was drawn up collaboratively "between Dublin, Paris and the French embassy", a source said.
An initial list drawn up by the French embassy and Government officials was then sent to Paris for validation. This was later subject to revisions. Sinn Féin MEP Mary Lou McDonald was invited but is on holiday overseas and unable to return in time for the meeting. Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams will attend in her place.
Libertas chair Declan Ganley yesterday confirmed he has accepted an invitation to attend the meeting. "I will be asking that [Mr Sarkozy] accept that the Irish people have rejected the Lisbon Treaty," Mr Ganley said. "Libertas will not participate in any debate on the Lisbon Treaty on Monday - that debate ended when the people of Ireland voted No."
Others confirmed to attend include IFA president Padraig Walshe, director general of Ibec Turlough O'Sullivan, Ictu general secretary David Begg, and former leader of Fine Gael Alan Dukes.
Those invited from the No camp include former Green Party MEP Patricia McKenna who campaigned against the treaty with the People's Movement, Richard Boyd-Barrett of the People Before Profit Alliance and Dr Andy Storey from development organisation Afri.
Veteran Eurosceptic Anthony Couglan of National Platform was invited but is unable to attend due to a prior engagement. Maurice Hayes, chair of the National Forum on Europe, is also unable to attend. Also on the guest list are Prof Brigid Laffan of the Alliance for Europe, former president of the European Parliament Pat Cox, Peadar Ó Broin, a researcher at the Irish Institute of European Affairs and author of the Consolidated Version of the Treaties, and Senator Shane Ross who voted against the treaty. The National Youth Council was also invited to send a representative.
Roger Cole from the Peace and Neutrality Alliance and Socialist Party leader Joe Higgins, both of whom campaigned for a No vote in the June 12th referendum, complained yesterday that they had not been invited to meet with the French president at the embassy.
Mr Higgins said the Government should have insisted on an "open and honest" exchange between Mr Sarkozy and campaigners from both sides at the Forum on Europe.