It is hoped the Higher Bridges centre, currently under construction, will allow part of the building to incorporate a “Clinton International Peace Centre”.

    A well-placed source in Washington told the Impartial Reporter this week: “Yes, there is a proposal that Mr. Clinton will visit Enniskillen when he goes to Ireland in May. He is in India this week, so the confirmation of his exact itinerary in Ireland is not in yet. He is interested in the Higher Bridges Project, but I can go no further at this stage.”

    Delicate negotiations are ongoing to see what involvement local people feel would be appropriate for Clinton.

    In his two terms as US president, Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary, came to Ireland in 1995, 1998 and 2000; but none of the three visits involved a trip to Fermanagh, where his ancestral roots are thought to be. He originally comes from the Cassidy clan with relatives in Rosslea.

    Mr. Clinton will spend four days in Ireland in May, firstly going to Dublin. Among his engagements in Northern Ireland will be a trip to Derry, with Enniskillen pencilled in for Wednesday morning, May 23. His visit to Ireland will conclude the next day when an honorary degree will be conferred on him at Queen’s University, Belfast, for his contribution to the peace process.

    The visit to the Higher Bridge Centre will be a major boost for the project. The building is on the site of the former Reading Rooms, demolished by the IRA bomb on Remembrance Sunday, 1987 which killed 11 people and injured 63.

    For a number of years, the rubble was a constant reminder of the tragedy, but efforts have secured funding for projects which will transform the east end of Enniskillen physically and will have a major impact on the town and county generally.