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🇮🇪 Ireland /Elections & Politics

Issue of Orange Order marches on Garvaghy Road is “closed”, O’Neill says

From RTÉ News · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • Michelle O’Neill said residents of Portadown’s mainly nationalist Garvaghy Road faced direct provocation after the Orange Order applied for a limited parade.
  • Northern Ireland’s Parades Commission must decide whether 60 Orange Order members can take part in a proposed Drumcree parade on 27 September.
  • The dispute has revived criticism of the commission and memories of violent clashes around Drumcree in the 1990s.

Michelle O’Neill has declared the dispute over Orange Order marches on Garvaghy Road “closed”, even as a new application threatens to reopen one of Northern Ireland’s most contentious parade disputes.

The Orange Order applied for a limited parade involving 60 members on the route through Portadown on Sunday, 27 September. The Parades Commission, which rules on contentious marches, must now decide whether it can proceed.

This issue is closed.

· Michelle O’NeillNorthern Ireland’s first minister rejected the prospect of reopening the Garvaghy Road parade dispute.

O’Neill said residents along the mainly nationalist road had made their opposition clear. “This issue is closed,” she told reporters, describing the application as “provocation on behalf of the Orange Order and political unionism”.

“Why do they want to ramrod a march down a nationalist area? Why do they want to reopen a sore that was closed 28 years ago?” she asked. O’Neill said Garvaghy Road residents deserved to live without fear or intimidation and said her government stood with them.

I refer to this as provocation, this is provocation on behalf of the Orange Order and political unionism.

· Michelle O’NeillShe criticised the application for a limited parade through the mainly nationalist area.

The application follows a High Court ruling last month that quashed the Parades Commission’s latest determination on the Drumcree parade. Unionist politicians and the Orange Order heavily criticised the commission afterward. Unionist politicians have called for commissioners, including chairwoman Professor Evelyn Collins, to resign. Commissioner Billy Gamble has resigned, while Collins remains in post.

Why do they want to ramrod a march down a nationalist area? Why do they want to reopen a sore that was closed 28 years ago?

· Michelle O’NeillShe questioned the decision to apply for a new march on the route.

The issue dominated the opening debate when the Stormont assembly reconvened. TUV MLA Timothy Gaston said the judgment exposed serious failings and that unionists no longer had confidence in the commission. Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Bryant has ordered a judge-led review of how the body makes its decisions.

The Drumcree standoff made headlines in the 1990s, when nationalist residents opposed the parade passing through Garvaghy Road. The dispute led to violent clashes over several summers, political tension and a major security operation.

The Portadown District once again call on the Garvaghy Road residents to enter mediation without preconditions.

· Timothy GastonThe TUV MLA called for talks after opening the Stormont debate.
About this summary

Originally published by RTÉ News in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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