PSNI investigating ‘a number of complaints’ about material placed on Eleventh Night bonfires

The Police Service of Northern Ireland is investigating “a number of complaints” about material placed on bonfires, which are being treated as hate crimes.

Bobby Singleton, assistant chief constable for local policing, said the complaints related to “election posters, flags and other offensive material” and in each case the police had “gathered evidence and have commenced investigations”.

Among the incidents being examined is the placing of an effigy of Sinn Féin vice-president Michelle O’Neill on a bonfire in the Eastvale area of Dungannon, Co Tyrone. The effigy, along with flags including Irish Tricolours, appeared on the pyre on Tuesday evening before it was set on fire to mark the eve of July 12th.

In a post on social media, Ms O’Neill said “those attempting to cause offence with effigies etc should catch themselves on and join the rest of us in building a better future”.

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The Grand Secretary of the Orange Order, Rev Mervyn Gibson, told the BBC he had consistently condemned such incidents and they “shouldn’t happen”.

“Bonfires should be celebratory events, not about condemning anyone else’s politics or culture,” he said. “Usually, there are lot more effigies and I think a lot of bonfires didn’t have any effigies on them last night, didn’t have any posters on them … so things are improving, but there’s always more room for improvement.”

Sinn Féin said it has reported a number of other incidents to police, including a poster of north Belfast councillor Brónach Anglin being daubed with what the party described as “threatening sectarian messages and vile sexual graffiti”, and an effigy and placard targeting councillor Taylor McGrann, which was placed on a bonfire in Rathcoole.

Pictures of bonfires displaying the names and election posters of politicians from other parties, including Alliance councillor Michael Long and SDLP councillor Gary McKeown, have also been shared on social media.

‘Sickening’

Sinn Féin MLA Gerry Kelly said these were “sectarian hate crimes”, describing the graffiti targeting Ms Anglin as “sickening” and “misogynistic”.

“Behavior like this can never be dressed up as a celebration of culture,” he said. “There should be a zero-tolerance approach to these activities and the PSNI must now thoroughly investigate those involved and make them accountable under the law.”

The incidents have been condemned across the North’s political divide. DUP MLA Deborah Erskine said placing the effigy of Ms O’Neill on the bonfire as “wrong”. Ulster Unionist Party leader Doug Beattie said it was “vile and hateful” and “achieves absolutely nothing.”

Aontú said on Wednesday that a car belonging to Sharon Loughran - who ran for the party in May’s council elections in Newry and Mourne - was set on fire in her driveway in the early hours of the morning. Ms Loughran said she could have been killed and this was a “radical escalation” of previous intimidation. She urged community leaders in Newry to use their influence to “stop this shocking violence on the 12th of July”.

That incident is also being investigated as a hate crime by the PSNI, which has issued an appeal for information and witnesses.

Anniversary

Parades took place in 18 locations across Northern Ireland on Wednesday as the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland marked the anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne. Members of the Orange Order take part in demonstrations on July 12th each year to commemorate the victory of the Protestant King William III over the Catholic King James II in 1690, which secured a Protestant line of succession to the British throne.

The largest gathering was in Lurgan, Co Armagh, where more than 150 Orange lodges – encompassing more than 5,000 marchers – took part in the parade, which was watched by thousands of spectators including the Northern Secretary, Chris Heaton-Harris.

The longest parade route is traditionally in Belfast, where marchers follow a six-mile route through the city. Other demonstrations also took place in locations including Ballymena, Bangor, Dungannon and Coleraine.

On Tuesday night, the majority of an estimated 250 “Eleventh Night” bonfires were lit in loyalist communities to mark the eve of July 12th. A statement from the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service said it received 147 emergency 999 calls between 6pm on Tuesday and 2am on Wednesday, down 28 per cent on last year. It said 34 of the calls were bonfire-related, one less than last year.

The PSNI said one person was taken to hospital after an incident at a bonfire in the Portaferry Road area of Newtownards.

One of the largest bonfires, located in Craigyhill, Larne, aimed to raise money for a local toddler who is undergoing cancer treatment. On Saturday, an Irish Tricolour and a poster of Taoiseach Leo Varadkar – as well as a boat to demonstrate opposition to the Northern Ireland protocol – were placed on top of a bonfire in Moygashel, Co Tyrone, before it was lit. The incident is also being treated as a hate crime by police.