Few things put the evil released by Drumcree more clearly into context than the abuse levelled by the Young Unionist Council at the leaders of the Presbyterian Church in the North. In condemning the violence resulting from the determination of the Orange lodges to force their way through a Catholic community, senior members of the Presbyterian clergy are accused of "failing to reflect the views of their laity" (a curious perversion of the normal order of moral leadership even if it were true) and for betraying the political aspirations of unionists.
Drumcree nearly triggered a resumption of the futile, bloody campaigns that claimed more than 3,000 lives in 25 years of conflict. If the young unionists do not know this, or worse, if they think it would be worth risking for the sake of copperfastening something they claim is already supported by both communities in the North, they are living in cloud cuckoo land. "If all major surveys are to be believed," their statement rumbles, "Northern Ireland's continued membership of the UK is the only significant political arrangement which both Catholics and Protestants are willing to accept." Why, if they genuinely believe this to be the case, do they consider the broad cross community consensus needs to be ritually reasserted by sectarian organisations in a way that is unknown in any other civilised society?
Part of the answer lies in the traditional unionist propaganda that a perfectly normal political system existed north of the border, opposed only by a few malcontents. What is particularly disturbing about the attitude reflected in the young unionist statement is its refusal to acknowledge how wrong that picture was and its failure to see that, while there is certainly "nothing offensive or embarrassing" about wanting to maintain the union, the coat trailing of the Orange et al at Drumcree and elsewhere is by contrast deeply reprehensible.
There is a sense of foreboding as the reopening of the peace talks on September 9th approaches. The strong pre emptive attack at the weekend on President Clinton by Mr Michael Mates, a former Northern Ireland minister and now a standard bearer of unionist orthodoxy, on the question of Sinn Fein's participation is a reminder of the pressures on the British government from the Tory right wing. The final abandonment of the IRA's use of violence is an absolute necessity before Sinn Fein can take part, but the least likely way of resolving the issue is noisy political point scoring by Mr Mates.
Some very modest progress has been made during the summer by reducing tension in areas where the marching organisations have negotiated about routes. This is obviously the right direction to take, establishing a principle of consent which Sinn Fein should take to heart in regard to unionist rights in the North. But the gains have been marginal and it is difficult to be optimistic about political dialogue and negotiation in an atmosphere embittered by set piece confrontations and the following wave of commercial boycotts. What the North needs above all, perhaps, is a South African style Truth Commission to seek a dispassionate view of rights and wrongs.