UK: PORTADOWN: ORANGE ORDER STAND OFF WITH POLICE LATEST (5)

(4 Jul 1999) English/Nat
The annual march by the Protestant Orange Order through Portadown, Northern Ireland, has not sparked the violence that many feared.
British soldiers and police blocked the marchers from entering the town's Catholic areas part of the Order's traditional route.
Protestant leaders calmed the crowd to ensure there were no clashes with police.
The senior Orangemen then stepped forward to hand officers a letter protesting the blockade.
The Orange Order parade has been a source of violence since 1995, when Catholics took it upon themselves to block the march, which they regard as triumphalist.
On Sunday, leading Orangemen made a peaceful bid to lift the barrier preventing them from passing along their traditional parade route - Garvaghy Road.
At the barricade, they handed a policemen a letter of protest, saying they expected an immediate response from Prime Minister Tony Blair and Northern Ireland's top policeman.
But they appeared intent on avoiding the violence of past years, telling supporters to stay back from the barrier, then retracing their steps.
An extra 13-hundred troops and 700 police were put in place to try to stop any violence in the wake of the parade.
They erected a barbed-wire fence, and dammed a stream to divide the two communities.
Orange Order marchers saw the restriction of the route by the Parades Commission as an infringement of their rights.
SOUNDBITE: (English)
I feel very bad about it.
Q: why's that?
Because it's been done for years, walking down this Garvaghy Road and the government seems to be going against the Protestant people and that homeland ours. And IRA- Sinn Fein is getting away with whatever they want to do, even without decommissioning (disarming) or anything. They want to push us into more or less a United Ireland.
SUPER CAPTION: vox pop, Orangeman
SOUNDBITE: (English)
As British citizens we should all be equal and we should be able to express our cultural identity and that has been denied to us today.
SUPER CAPTION: vox pop Orangeman
SOUNDBITE: (English)
Why should we be stopped here in the first place? Why should we be stopped. We've done that march for over 200 years and it's only these last four or five years there's been any trouble. What happened? What caused that? Who caused it? You ask them.
SUPER CAPTION: vox pop Orangeman
Northern Ireland police chief Ronnie Flanagan stopped by to tour the police defences.
He said he had already responded to the Orangemen.
SOUNDBITE: (English)
I've already contacted them. Their query was why are we preventing them from proceeding and our response is very simple. The Parades Commission have the lawful responsibility to make decisions. They've made their decision. It's my responsibility to enforce that and that's what we are doing. So I contacted the Orange Order and let them have that response. Thank you very much.
SUPER CAPTION: Ronnie Flanagan, Northern Ireland police chief
Last year's PORTADOWN parade turned into a standoff which sparked nightly skirmishes at the barrier between unionists and police.
The violence ended only when three young boys were killed in a firebomb attack on a Roman Catholic home.
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[@Ryan-xz4te]

I hope the orange men can explain to their grandchildren how garvaghy road was lost under their watch and the ormeau road and ardoyne and the whitewell road🤣🤣🇮🇪

[@williamgoldsmith3796]

"Feeling very bad," can't get marching through a Catholic area like we were used too, can't get putting the "taigs" in their place!!!!!!!!! This equality for all is a disgrace.🤣🤣🤣

[@liamobrien4767]

Pity about the stupid add from F.F.

[@michaelward4826]

🦕

[@ericmourinho9589]

What the fuck is that all about

[@f.b508]

😂😂😂😂😂 it’s their KKKulture

[@sararyan1255]

🍊💩💉🥴🍼