Fine Gael is to hold a special commemoration to mark the 100th anniversary of the founding of Sinn Féin tomorrow, in the latest attempt by a party in the Republic to recapture its republican roots.
Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny is to host a public meeting at the Mansion House in Dublin tomorrow to pay tribute to Arthur Griffith, who founded Sinn Féin in 1905.
He was also the founder of Cumann na nGaedheal, the precursor of Fine Gael, which merged with Sinn Féin in 1905 before re-emerging following the Civil War in 1923.
Mr Kenny said that the founding of Sinn Féin in 1905 was "a historic event for our party and our country". He said it was "both Fine Gael's duty and pleasure to celebrate the founding of this nationalist movement which sought freedom by political means".
"To honour the political memory of Arthur Griffith and to enhance the political awareness of young people on our island, it is vital that we rediscover and celebrate the true, inclusive Sinn Féin."
He said some of the party and its ethos had been hijacked by a certain section of Irish nationalism to achieve its own narrow ends.
The commemoration is the latest attempt by a traditional party to reclaim its republican heritage, and follows the announcement last month by Taoiseach Bertie Ahern that the State would reinstate military parades to mark the 1916 Easter Rising.
Fine Gael began its campaign on recapturing its republican legacy last month with the establishment of the Collins 22 Society by some members of the party, which is dedicated to preserving the memory of Michael Collins.
Arthur Griffith, one of the first TDs to be elected for Sinn Féin in 1918, engaged in the Treaty negotiations of 1921 and took the pro-Treaty side afterwards.
He became president of the second Dáil in January 1922 after Eamon de Valera stepped down in protest over the Treaty.
He died in office in August 1922, aged 51, following a stroke, 10 days before Michael Collins was shot dead at Béal na mBláth.