Loyalists maintain siege of Portadown nationalists
Supporters of the Orange Order are maintaining their siege of
nationalist areas of Portadown. The Drumcree stand-off may be
over but for the past ten days there have been nightly protest
marches, blockades of the nationalist districts and street
thuggery by loyalists.
The latest disturbances commenced on Monday 20 July. On that
evening several hundred Orange supporters accompanied by bands
made their way to Corcrain Road, only yards away from Craigwell
Avenue, a nationalist street which leads into Obins Street. (In
July 1996 over 16 homes in Craigwell Avenue were wrecked by
loyalists in the aftermath of Drumcree.) The loyalists dispersed
their protest after one hour before making their way via the town
centre to Shillington's Bridge, which leads directly onto
Garvaghy Road. Similar protests were mounted on Wednesday 22 and
Friday 24 July.
On Wednesday night two hundred loyalist protesters and a band
confronted the RUC at the junction of Craigwell Avenue and
Charles Street around 9pm. The stand off ended after half an hour
when the mob dispersed. An hour later a second gang congregated
at the intersection of Castle Street and Park Road but left
shortly afterwards. No arrests were made.
On Friday the loyalists were permitted by the RUC to proceed to
the very entrance to Craigwell Avenue where local Catholic
families were subjected to a hail of sectarian abuse and death
threats. Stones and bottles were also thrown at homes in the
street. At no time did the RUC attempt to intervene or disperse
the protesters.
Such was the intensity of abuse directed towards the area that
local Catholic clergy, concerned about the safety of people,
called off a weekly bingo session which was due to be held in St
Mary's Parochial Hall in Obins Street.
Later on Friday night a large crowd of loyalists armed with
baseball bats and other weapons, including a machete, attacked
customers leaving a pub in Woodhouse Street which leads to Obins
Street. A number of those injured needed hospital treatment.
Despite the fact that large numbers of loyalists had been roaming
the town centre the RUC failed to provide any protection to two
Catholic-owned pubs in the street. These two pubs along with two
others and a GAA club are the only places where nationalists in
Portadown can socialise in relative safety.
On Sunday several hundred Orangemen gathered at Drumcree Church
to protest and again on Monday and Tuesday of this week loyalists
held demonstrations near Craigwell Avenue and at the bottom of
the Garvaghy Road. On Tuesday night, 28 July the protests moved
closer to the Garvaghy Road with a thousand strong loyalist mob
gathering just yards away from the homes of nationalist
residents.
Two British soldiers were injured during the incident which saw
the loyalists make three fingered gestures to the residents,
referring to the incineration of the Quinn children in
Ballymoney.
Portadown's Orange Order spokesperson, David Jones, washed his
hands of any responsibility for the protests. He claimed not to
know who was behind them but implied that the Garvaghy residents
were being punished for standing up for their civil rights
``They've taken the action, now they've got to suffer the
reaction.''
It has been confirmed that the Orange Order has filed notice for
marches to take place from Drumcree on the next four Sundays -
2,9,16 and 23 August. On Saturday 15 August a march and `prayer
service' is to be addressed by Ian Paisley and Willie McCrea.
They are due to leave Carleton Street Orange Hall that evening
and, accompanied by at least eight bands, parade along the lower
part of the Garvaghy Road.
Councillor Breandán MacCionnaith told An Phoblacht this week:
``These demonstrations along with with the nightly illegal
protests are contributing to a real sense of siege for
Portadown's nationalists. In the last week a number of people
have been subjected to intimidation at their places of work. One
man had to be transferred by his employers from his place of work
in the town centre to premises owned by the same company in
another town after two loyalists approached him and threatened to
shoot him.''
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