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Gli orangisti di Portadown potrebbero finire in tribunale

Orangemen face prosecution for Drumcree ‘march’

Orange Order: protesta a DrumcreeTHE Portadown Orangemen who allegedly breached a Parades Commission ruling at Drumcree on Wednesday night may face prosecution.

Residents claim around 30 Orangemen walked to the edge of Ballyoran estate after the PSNI failed to turn up to police the twice-weekly protest.

Orangemen vigorously denied they had breached the Parades Commission determination when they walked beyond the agreed stop-point at the bottom of Drumcree Hill.

However in a statement, the Garvaghy Road Residents Coalition (GRRC) called for the Orangemen to be prosecuted. They said, “The PSNI were aware of the Orange protest march and deliberately chose to ignore it, with both the PSNI and the Order hoping to draw nationalist residents into physical confrontation – there must be prosecutions as was the case over a recent nationalist parade in Lurgan.”

Police, who have been heavily criticised by both sides over their failure to police the protest, confirmed a full investigation is under way.

Area Commander Chief Inspector Anthony McNally, said, “We are working to establish whether the Parades Commission’s determination was breached and I am appealing to anyone in the area on Wednesday night to contact us so that we can take the investigation further. We were in the area on Wednesday and spoke to parade organisers and made them aware of our intentions to investigate this incident thoroughly and robustly.

“There is no doubt that this is an emotive issue in Portadown and the community can rest assured that we will do our utmost to bring anyone who has broken the law before the courts. Unfortunately we were delayed in attending the parade, but everyone has a responsibility to uphold the law and anyone who breaks the law must be held accountable.”

Residents claim the “protest parade” continued past Drumcree Bridge to the edge of Ballyoran estate at Drumcree Road. They said the police did not arrive until they telephoned them, with one resident stating, “We were frightened out of our wits when we saw the parade of about 30 men in Orange sashes.”

However, an exclusive interview with the Portadown Times, a Portadown District Officer insisted there was no breach. He said, “When we got down to the bridge at about 7.40pm, and were surprised that there was no police presence. We had absolutely no intention of breaking the law. A few of the members walked towards the Drumcree Road to see if there was any sign of the police.

“A police car eventually appeared, but raced away from the scene. We didn’t go anywhere near the Ballyoran estate, then we turned and went back up the hill, by which time the police had finally arrived and we told them we were puzzled that no police were there at the appointed time. They knew that the protest was taking place, having been fully briefed by ourselves and by the Parades Commission.”

Portadown District Master Darryl Hewitt was not at Wednesday’s protest as he was out of the country for a few days – he had left it to his fellow officers to organise the event, the second in the series of Wednesday night parades.

GRRC official Breandan Mac Cionnaith claimed that the “parade” went to the very edge of Ballyoran estate before turning back, adding the PSNI “had deliberately ignored the protest, with the result that about 30 members of Portadown LOL No. 1 were able to make their way through and actually blocked traffic.”

Sinn Fein Councillor Paul Duffy claimed that the Orangemen had deliberately flouted the law “by attempting this illegal parade, and only when the PSNI arrived as they approached Ballyoran estate did they decide to turn back.” He added that since the current District Master (Darryl Hewitt) had taken up office, “nationalists have seen nothing but provocation, intimidation and the deliberate raising of tension.”

However, Upper Bann MP David Simpson described the incident as ” further evidence of the continued failure of the Parades Commission to deal with the dispute and of the need for the long term-resolution to the situation.”

He added, “Only this week I again wrote to the Parades Commission repeating the need for it to finally fulfil its responsibilities and help put a process of engagement in place – something it has utterly failed to do thus far. As for these ‘collusion’ claims, there is no doubt that collusion exists. But it is the ongoing collusion between the commission and the GRRC in which the commission acts as the GRRC’s guarantor.”

John O’Dowd MLA insisted that the police didn’t really need to be there “for these futile protests”. He added, “The Orange Order knows the law, and shouldn’t be going beyond the point decided by the Parades Commission. The PSNI resources are stretched and they have better things to do in the area – like fighting crime – than standing at the bottom of Drumcree Hill stopping an illegal parade.”

The controversy comes a week after Darryl Hewitt had a private meeting with Parades Commission chairman Peter Osborne to try and set up the long-awaited face-to-face talks between the Portadown District and the GRRC.

Mr Mac Cionnaith added, “The action certainly won’t help those efforts. But we don’t rule talks out completely.”

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René Querin

Di professione grafico e web designer, sono appassionato di trekking e innamorato dell'Irlanda e della sua storia. Insieme ad Andrea Varacalli ho creato e gestisco Les Enfants Terribles.

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