Dr. Maurice Manning:

I think the important thing is that with the 1916 commemorations, there were not separate agendas or if there were, they were not allowed to take hold. There was no attempt to hijack it and no party tried to use it for political purposes. These commemorations were not part of a continuing debate but were part of history for most people. This was history that people were trying to understand. There is a significant educational process involved. There is a lull of sorts at the moment but when events start again, that will change. There is already engagement with the papers and there is a wealth of material still to be released. A lot is planned and I hope it will have the same impact on people.