Northern Ireland is under severe pressure with the revival of old disputes that pit the rights of British Protestants against Irish Catholics, and this situation poses a threat to their claimed unity government.
Opposition to the Protestant Parade
Hundreds of residents of Garvaghy Road, the main Catholic area in the predominantly Protestant town of Portadown, stood in the rain last night to prevent the Sunday morning parade of the main Protestant group in Northern Ireland, the "Orange Order," from passing through the area. This parade had been banned since 1998 due to the widespread violence it had caused.
The Parades Commission, a group appointed by the British government for decades to adjudicate such zero-sum disputes, surprised Garvaghy Road residents on Friday by ruling that the scaled-back Orange parade must pass through the area on Sunday morning.
Legal Challenges and Reactions
Following this ruling, unprecedented legal challenges were raised at midnight on Saturday, and the Chief Justice of Northern Ireland stated that the courts had no authority to overturn the commission's independent judgment. This situation has turned into a buildup of tension that seems to have no resolution in sight.
Northern Ireland police deployed several hundred officers to the scene. Many of them were parked in armored vehicles on the narrow street on Sunday morning, separating the two opposing sides.
The two main parties in Northern Ireland's unionist government, which had only been reformed two years ago after a long hiatus, have taken sides in this new street battle. Sinn Féin, which represents most Catholics and has become the largest party in Northern Ireland, sided with the Garvaghy Road protesters.
Michelle O'Neill, Sinn Féin's First Minister, passionately told the crowd: "The residents of Garvaghy Road have the right to live free from sectarian harassment and threats."
However, the main pro-British party, the Democratic Unionists, sided with the parade-goers, hoping that the police would enforce the commission's ruling. The party's MP, Carla Lockhart, described the situation as a big day for Portadown, stating that "the law is on our side."
Meanwhile, Sinn Féin and other nationalist politicians called on the British government to intervene. However, British Prime Minister Andy Burnham stated that he would only reverse the commission's ruling if the Chief Constable of Northern Ireland recommended it.
Burnham emphasized that "we do not want to see things go back" and described the situation as a challenge for all parties involved.
