A former IRA prisoner today urged nationalist residents in Northern Ireland to fairly and fully consider proposals to replace the Parades Commission with a new system for handling contentious marches.
Sean Murray, a member of Lord (Paddy) Ashdown’s Strategic Review of Parading, issued the appeal after two residents’ groups criticised their suggestion that councils and the Stormont Executive should take over responsibility for parades.
Nationalist residents’ leaders in two of the most contentious marches - the lower Ormeau in South Belfast and Garvaghy Road in Portadown - accused the body of coming up with a model which could lead to parading decisions being politically influenced.
However they were urged by Mr Murray, who chaired a nationalist residents’ group in west Belfast, to study the recommendations and engage fully with the review team before a final report is produced in the autumn.
“I have been in touch with all the residents’ groups and they have said to me they will get the report, they will study the report and they will give us their analysis. I am asking every group to do that.
“It is not a question of who is right and who is wrong. We all have a vested interest in relation to working and dealing with contentious parades. It is in all of our interests - everyone who lives in this country has an interest in resolving parades.
“There are complex issues that will take time to unravel but there’s a major determination within this group to give it our best shot to achieve a resolution to all of these issues.”
Under the current system, organisers of Protestant Orange Order parades and other marches must notify the police of their proposed routes 28 days in advance.
Where a dispute arises and dialogue fails, the Parades Commission is called in to adjudicate.
The review team has proposed organisers should notify local councils 35 days in advance who will publicise them. Anyone opposing a parade would then have a week to register their concern.
If local agreement cannot be found, the disputed march will be referred to the Office of First Minister and Deputy First Minister at Stormont who will appoint a team of mediators.
Failure to reach agreement through the mediation process will result in theFirst and Deputy First Minister appointing another panel of three adjudicators to take evidence and decide whether the parade can go ahead as planned. Their determination will be made public.
The review team also produced a code of conduct for parades which would compel all participants to co-operate with the police, ensure no-one attending a parade was under the influence of drink or drugs, there was no inappropriate and abusive language or gestures and no paramilitary costumes, flags, banners or symbols.
However they have also decided to focus in the months leading to their final report on how the Garvaghy Road/Drumcree and lower Ormeau parades disputes can be resolved.
In a joint statement the Lower Ormeau Concerned Community and Garvaghy Road Residents Coalition claimed the proposals would politicise, rather than de-politicise, marches.
“The review body has opened a doorway for those who wish to turn the marching issue into a major political football, where political expediency will take precedence over valid human rights concerns,” they claimed.
PA