Sir, - Although this letter will surprise some of my very many friends in the Roman Catholic community, I cannot stand idly by and remain silent while the Protestant people of the Glenbryn estate in North Belfast are left without full media coverage surrounding the protest being staged by them at the Holy Cross school.
I utterly condemn sectarianism and violence no matter what their source may be, but the scenes there are a result and each result has a cause. In this case the cause is that for the past 15 years and more Republican terrorists have made their lives unbearable. The Protestant people further down the Crumlin Road in Woodvale Road and Twadell Avenue have also suffered in the same way. They cannot go to their local shops or post office without fear.
I ministered in that area for nine years in two parishes and have seen a lot of what has occurred. I still have many friends in Ardoyne who regularly seek my prayerful advice.
I am a retired rector, aged 77, and do not support any illegal activity. I only ask that the Glenbryn people be left in peace. That is all they ask too. - Yours, etc.,
Rev Henry Daniel Heatley, Carrickfergus, Co Antrim.