Madam, - President McAleese's defence of her comments about the Mohammad cartoons is deeply worrying (The Irish Times, February 17th).
She claims her comments were legitimate because they were in line with the Government and the EU. In making this defence, the President misses the point - which is the abuse of her role in making contentious statements on behalf of all Irish people. It is not legitimate for her to make comments simply because they are in line with the views of governing bodies. She represents the people of Ireland in a non-political way and cannot claim to be able to represent all Irish people in a case such as this.
I suggest that the President should be offering an apology to the nation, or at least some indication that she understands the concerns raised, rather than defending her position. That so many of us disagree with her demonstrates the invalidity of her stance. - Yours, etc,
KEVIN NOLAN, Rathfarnham, Dublin 16.