Lady Liberty is reopened to freedom tourists (Roundup)

Jul 4, 2009, 18:20 GMT

New York - The first people in eight years to climb the narrow inner spiral up to the Statue of Liberty's crown were seven US immigrant soldiers who became US citizens under sparkling skies Saturday morning on US Independence Day.

Lady Liberty, which has greeted millions of immigrants to the US as they entered New York Harbour, flung open her skirts again following years of closure after the 2001 terrorist attacks.

'The idea of freedom is why I moved to this country, and this moment means more than I can ever describe with words,' Sameh Zaki, 26, a native of Egypt and US soldier, told New York's Daily News.

The re-opening coincides with the celebration of US Independence Day, which marks the adoption of the US declaration of independence from Britain in 1776.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar was on hand for the swearing-in ceremony of hundreds of new US citizens on Liberty Island - a ceremony repeated around the country and even in as far flung places as Iraq, where active duty military members of the US military from different countries were sworn in by Vice President Joe Biden.

Access to Liberty Island and the inside of the Statue of Liberty was totally prohibited after the September 11, 2001 attacks due to security concerns. US national park officials have gradually allowed more access, first to the island and later to the lower storeys of the statue.

But the climb up through Liberty's robe and into the crown has been banned for visitors until its re-opening on Saturday, when a select 280 people were, over the course of the day, to be allowed to climb the 354 stairs - 22 storeys - up the narrow spiral staircase.

   Only 30 people every hour were to be admitted for security reasons. Tickets, which were offered online in mid-June, have been sold out until next winter.

Among the first climbers was Aaron Weifinger, who along with his newly-minted fiancee grinned as he told CNN how he had proposed to her at the top of the crown. They wore matching green foam-rubber Liberty crowns that are popular with New York tourists.

'My great grandparents immigrated through Ellis Island' from Russia and Hungary, Weifinger told CNN.

To accommodate public interest in the statue, the park service will be offering an e-tour, and coverage on the social networks Twitter and Flickr.