Apprentice Boys refuse to talk to residents
By Laura Friel
``Totally unacceptable'' and ``arrogant'', is how spokesperson
Donncha MacNiallais has described Derry's Apprentice Boys' call
for the Bogside Residents Group to be excluded from the city's
forum to discuss forthcoming contentious parades. The Apprentice
Boys, the Orange Order and Unionist Parties all boycotted last
Friday's opening session of the parades forum, convened by the
city's mayor at the behest of local clergy and business people. A
spokesperson for the Apprentice Boys, Willie Hay said the
organisation would only take part if the Bogside residents
association were excluded. BRG spokesperson Donncha MacNiallais
described himself as ``deeply disappointed'' at the Apprentice Boys
response. ``I think it is very arrogant of Mr Hay to seek to
exclude anyone'', MacNiallais said. In the wake of the Good Friday
agreement, the Ulster Unionists decision to boycott the forum was
`ludicrous', said MacNiallais. Unionists are expected to enter an
Assembly with representatives of the nationalist community, ``how
do they square that with their refusal to engage at a local
level,'' asked MacNiallais. ``Members of the DUP and Apprentice
Boys apparently have no problem sharing a platform with a
convicted LVF activist, yet are unwilling to participate in a
forum if BRG representatives are present. This kind of sectarian
bigotry is unacceptable,'' said MacNiallais.
Meanwhile remarks by Glen Barr, a loyalist appointee who recently
resigned from the Parades Commission have been challenged by the
Lower Ormeau Concerned Community. Describing the boycott decision
as ``fully justified'', Barr said unionist politicians and loyal
orders should not enter into the forum with nationalist residents
groups. ``The Apprentice Boys and Orange Order have realised that
negotiation with these groups is pointless,'' said Barr. Glen
Barr's views are clearly at odds with the role of a Parades
Commissioner as envisaged by Professor North, said the LOCC.
``These are clearly not views which Glen Barr has come to since
his resignation from the Parades Commission. No person who held
such extreme views was a fit and proper person to carry out the
function of a parades commissioner.'' Describing the appointment
of Barr as a serious error of judgement, the LOCC said a similar
error had been made with other appointments. ``We believe that all
the other appointments made during this flawed process should be
rescinded and that a new independent, impartial and fair
commission be appointed,'' said the LOCC.
Earlier the legal challenge by a member of the Lower Ormeau
Concerned Community against the four controversial appointments
to the Parades Commission had been thrown out of the High Court
in Belfast. Judge Kerr said that the application for a judicial
review with regard to Glen Barr and Tommy Cheevers couldn't
proceed because they had both resigned from the commission.
He went on to claim that it wasn't his function to state if the
other two appointees, Aidan Canavan and Rose Anne McCormick, were
representative of their community nor to `second guess' Direct
Ruler Mowlam. Canavan was a member of the SDLP and is a partner
in a solicitors firm which works for the `Police' Federation.
McCormick was a former member of the `Police' Authority.
Gerard Rice, spokesperson for the LOCC, said after the hearing
that he was surprised at the Judge's decision. ``The four recent
appointments severely damaged the independence of the Commission''
he said.
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