Threat of further Ardoyne protest
THE dissident republican who led an illegal sit-down protest at Ardoyne which preceded days of rioting across Belfast has promised another protest next month.
Martin Og Meehan, son of the late IRA veteran of the same name, says he was arrested and charged by the PSNI while leading the protest at Ardoyne on July 12.
Now he is promising to lead a similar protest against an Apprentice Boys parade at 8.30am on Saturday, August 14, at the same location on the Crumlin Road.
The protest earlier this month, against an approved Orange Order parade, preceded widespread violence which cost the taxpayer millions of pounds and left over 80 police officers injured.
But yesterday Mr Meehan vowed to lead another protest.
He said that the hardline group he leads, the Greater Ardoyne Residents Collective (GARC), feel that if "the socially detached and discredited Parades Commission" permit the Apprentice Boys to parade past Ardoyne again, then "yes, there will be a peaceful and dignified protest held by the Greater Ardoyne Residents Collective in opposition to such a march".
He added: "GARC would also like to state that in spite of claims to the contrary, our collective reiterates our respect for the Protestant religion, heritage and culture.
"We support the right of all groups to parade in a peaceful manner. However, they must adhere to the rights of others and march only where they are welcome."
He confirmed he was arrested on the Crumlin Road during the sit-down protest of July 12 and charged with "obstructive sitting".
The Parades Commission confirmed yesterday that the GARC sit-down protest on July 12 was illegal because it did not apply to hold it under legislation regulating parades and related protests.
Such illegal parades and protests are not a matter for the commission, he said, but for the PSNI.
Belfast Grand Master of the Orange Order, Tom Haire, said many people know of illegal republican parades which have taken place in recent years.
"We are continually told they are still under investigation, but people just hope we will go away," he said.
"However, we have had members of the Orange Order who have made slight divergences from their agreed parades and they were then investigated under caution by the PSNI. In once case the reason was that a parade departed 40 seconds later than had been agreed.
"But dozens of these people at Ardoyne were holding an illegal sit-down protest and their faces were all broadcast on television. What has been done about it?"
He believes the PSNI will not take any action to prevent another illegal protest at Ardoyne on August 14.
"They will just say they can do nothing and wait until it happens. That is the country we are living in, it is madness," Mr Haire said.
Tommy Cheevers, chairman of the North and West Belfast Parades Forum, said the Crumlin Road on which the protest took place is a main arterial route to Protestant areas which goes past and not through the Ardoyne.
"I wonder if the GARC protestors have consulted with the Protestant areas of Ardoyne, such as Glenbyrn, Hesketh and Alliance?" he asked.
The News Letter asked the PSNI if it was prosecuting participants of the illegal protest of July 12 and if it would be taking any proactive steps to prevent another illegal protest on August 14.
A spokeswoman said: "The sit-down protest forms part of the overall PSNI investigation into the activities of the day in Ardoyne area."
Two protestors were arrested "and are being processed through the courts" she said.
• In 2006 the News Letter revealed that the Parades Commission does not keep records on illegal parades. Neither the PSNI nor the Parades Commission were able to say at that time if there had ever been any related prosecutions. Unionists were "staggered, amazed and galled" by the discovery.
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Tuesday 29 May 2012
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