Republican News · Thursday 11 July 2002

Nationalists braced for Twelfth violence

Nationalist communities throughout the Six Counties are bracing themselves for this year's sectarian Twelfth parades which are taking place against a background of widespread UDA and UVF violence directed at vulnerable nationalist areas.

The scenes of Orangemen rioting at Drumcree on Sunday, while not as intense as in other years, indicate that the underlying violence that accompanies these sectarian parades is still as much a part of the spectacle as the bowler hats and collarettes.

Promises by the leadership of the Orange Order to discipline any Orangemen engaged in violent confrontations make fine copy for the media but, as in the past, are unlikely to result in action.

Similarly, despite risible assurances from loyalists of a 'no first strike' policy towards nationalists, the pages of this paper record just some of the recent attacks that they have carried out. Their campaign is more likely to escalate as the crescendo of loyalism's annual orgy of bigotry and violence approaches.

David Trimble, John Reid, and many others in the unionist and British political leadership are doing little or nothing to prevent the likelihood of violence or even lost lives.

This weekend will see nationalist enclaves such as the Short Strand in East Belfast and Ardoyne in North Belfast sealed off by hundreds of Crown Force personnel. British soldiers and members of the PSNI, who have been unable to protect vulnerable nationalist areas from an ongoing loyalist campaign of sectarian violence for many months, will be demonstrating their ability to facilitate Orangemen and their triumphalist parades.

Meanwhile, nationalists in the Springfield Road in West Belfast are calling for support for two protests they are organising against an Orange parade through the area on Friday. The first protest will be at 8.30am as Orangemen go to join the main Belfast parade while the second protest is organised for 6.30pm.