because she is dishonest", claiming she hated Northern Ireland. He further accused her of breaching diplomatic protocol and of being hostile to the PSNI.

Then, last week, the president's statement in which she represented Ireland as a country which "abhorred" the publication of the cartoons of the prophet Mohammed was criticised by some people who said she did not speak for them.

Finally, there has been some questioning of her decision to address the Jeddah Economic Forum, where women were required to arrive through a separate entrance to sit, unseen, behind a perspex screen.

The criticism by Paisley was utterly without foundation, and foreign affairs minister Dermot Ahern was quite right to tell the DUP leader that his complaints were "unacceptable, unwarranted and untrue".

Clearly, there is more substance to questions about the president's comments on the publication of the cartoons and her addressing of the Jeddah Economic Forum.

On the latter issue, the Labour Party was careful not to criticise the president directly in its statement last Monday, turning its fire instead on the government which, it said, makes all arrangements for state visits of this nature.

Its deputy leader, Liz McManus, said the arrangements for this meeting "were offensive not just to the majority of Irish women but to the majority of Irish citizens", adding:

"Democrats all over the world have a duty to stand with Saudi women and demand an end to these discriminatory practices".

The president has strongly defended her position on both issues arising from her visit to the Middle East.

She pointed out that the view she expressed in relation to the cartoons was absolutely in line with the government's. She also said that, while people at home were entitled to look askance at cultures where women are repressed, "what we do not want is a world where, because we are so very, very different, we decide never to talk to one another".

Whether or not one agrees with the president on these issues, it is a positive thing that she is at the centre of such debate. Of course, the role of president is circumscribed, but we cannot wish for a return to the days when our head of state was effectively a prisoner in Aras an Uachtarain, limited to the role of national host or hostess.

In her eight-and-a-half years in the role, McAleese has carried out her responsibilities with warmth and dignity. She is popular with the public and, as the Taoiseach has pointed out, no one has done more to reach out to all communities in the North.

There have been occasional controversies, but the president has maximised the impact of her office, while always remaining above politics.

Recent events must not be allowed to obscure that fact.