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Orange sectarianism continues

26/05/07

The seasonal upsurge in sectarianism in the occupied six counties has once again begun with the annual advent of the benignly labelled ‘marching season’.

In Ballymena, 60 flute bands and 1,500 loyalist supporters have been given permission by the six county Parades Commission to march through the mainly nationalist, northern end of the county Antrim town.

Only minor restrictions have been imposed on the coat-trailing exercise, which takes place this evening.

The same march last year, which occurred less than a month after the murder of catholic teenager Michael McIlveen by a unionist gang, resulted in verbal abuse being hurled at local mass-goers and the playing of sectarian tunes.

The unionist parade comes only days after the announcement that St Mary’s catholic primary school in the Harryville area of Ballymena is to close following a sustained sectarian campaign against it.

Over the last 10 years the school has been attacked on numerous occasions, including four serious firebombing incidents and another where a ‘live device’ was thrown.

School authorities at St Mary’s have directly attributed falling student numbers to the sectarian campaign.

Meanwhile, no restrictions have been placed on a loyalist band parade planned for July 2 in a unionist area of west Belfast.

The ‘Upper Falls Protestant Boys’ flute band are to bus 50 bands and 4,000 supporters into the Suffolk estate for the controversial event.

In previous years, march participants have abused neighbouring nationalist residents and, in 2005, a band calling itself ‘Ulster First Flute’ (UFF) marched through the small estate in the garb of their more sinister namesakes.

The Orange marching season only serves to highlight the inherently sectarian nature of the six-county state, as other news this week confirmed.

In north Belfast, a 25ft-high ‘security fence’ is being erected in the grounds of an integrated primary school to protect nationalist residents from continuing loyalist attacks.

Nationalists in the Whitewell area of the city have long been the target of loyalist mobs and have been forced to demand the erection of the fence in order to achieve some form of respite.

In one instance last summer, loyalists torched the home of a mother and her 12-week-old daughter while the pair slept. Fortunately, both escaped alive.

éirígí spokesperson Dáithí Mac An Mháistir said that the sectarian actions of unionism showed the reality of life for many people in the six-counties.

“Every summer, we see an increase in bigotry against the nationalist population in the occupied area, both through ritual demonstrations and violent attacks. This is the reality of what many isolated communities have to live through.

“However, sectarianism is an institution in the Orange State, not a seasonal hobby. It can still be evidenced in employment differentials, in the allocation of housing and funding to communities and, of course, in the policing structures.”

Dáithí continued: “While nationalists in the six-counties should continued to demand equality at every opportunity, we cannot hide from the fact that inequality and bigotry will persist while Britain maintains the artificial border and fosters division in Ireland.

“Only a British withdrawal and the dismantling of the Orange State will give us the chance to begin a genuine process of national reconciliation and to address bigoted attitudes and structural inequalities.

“In the meantime, if Bertie Ahern is re-elected he should consider placing pressure on Ian Paisley over the sectarianism emanating from his supporters the next time he meets him for a photo opportunity.”