Sinn Féin President Mary Lou McDonald headed a Sinn Féin leadership delegation which met African National Congress (ANC) leader Cyril Ramaphosa today. 

Speaking after the bilateral meeting in London, the Sinn Féin President said:

“I led a Sinn Féin leadership delegation today, including our National Party Chairperson Declan Kearney MLA, and Chris Hazzard MP, which met with ANC leader Cyril Ramaphosa in recognition of the deep and historic links between our two Parties.

“Sinn Féin has a long history of fraternal relations and solidarity with the ANC, and this was a welcome and important opportunity to meet its Party President.

“Cyril Ramaphosa has a very deep personal investment in the Irish peace process.

“We provided him with a detailed briefing on the political crisis in the north, the threat to the Good Friday Agreement, as well as the repercussions posed by Brexit for the entire island.

“In particular, we discussed the need for international political and diplomatic support for Irish unity, and the relevance of South Africa’s transition to national democracy for managing future constitutional change in Ireland.

“We also had useful discussions on areas of mutual cooperation between our Parties, particularly on issues of progressive international solidarity. 

“We agreed to continue engaging at a party leadership level on how Sinn Féin and the ANC can continue to work constructively together in the future.”