The Long March, a 117-mile Protestant rights walk from Derry to Portadown, was on its sixth leg yesterday. About 150 marchers negotiated a 12-mile stretch from Antrim town to Glenavy, Co Antrim. The march was led by Ms Michelle Williamson, whose parents were killed in the Shankill Road bomb in 1993. Ms Thelma Johnston, whose son, David, an RUC constable, was shot dead by republican paramilitaries while on patrol in Lurgan, Co Armagh, two years ago also joined the march, despite walking with the aid of a crutch.
Const Johnston and his colleague, Const John Graham, were the first RUC officers to be killed after the breakdown of the IRA ceasefire in February 1996. One of the march organisers, dissident Ulster Unionist councillor Mr Jonathan Bell, said he was delighted that Mrs Johnston had joined the march. "Her son was killed in my constituency. I feel absolutely humbled and delighted that Mrs Johnston has joined us today," he added. Today, marchers are heading for Lisburn, Co Antrim, where on arrival organisers expect to hold their biggest rally yet.