Drumcree: O’Neill accused of breaking the law
First Minister Michelle O’Neill has been accused of “breaking the law” by her actions during a day of tension which saw the Drumcree Orange parade blocked by residents of the Garvaghy Road.
DUP leader Gavin Robinson claimed “standards have been shattered” and said they will engage with Secretary of State Sir Chris Bryant about “how we can go forward when there is such a level of disdain for the simple fundamental democratic principles of society”.
“We have law makers acting as law breakers and they need to face the consequences for their actions.
“We can’t have a situation where people who have the privilege of holding high office in Northern Ireland so flagrantly disregard the pledge of office and statutory underpinnings of their office,” he told media in Belfast yesterday afternoon.
Thousands of protestors had blocked the predominately nationalist route in Portadown in a bid to prevent a contentious Orange Order parade passing.
A ruling by the Parades Commission adjudication body permitting the march from Drumcree Church was upheld in an “unprecedented” late night sitting of the High Court in Belfast just a few hours earlier.
As the News Letter went to press last night the road was still blocked by protestors with the parade on hold.
The Drumcree parade, which was associated with violent clashes during the Troubles, has been banned since 1998.
Protestors, many of them wearing balaclavas, clustered in large groups in heavy rain along the road yesterday morning, a move that delayed the scheduled 8am start of the parade.
Sinn Fein leaders were among those gathered on the road, including the first minister and Sinn Fein vice-president Michelle O’Neill.
Mr Robinson blasted the presence of Stormont ministers and elected representatives as “shameful”, and claimed they are “breaching their pledge of office, participating in an unlawful protest and blocking”.
“That is a situation that I think cannot be allowed to pass unchallenged, I believe there are sincere calls for those individuals to be investigated and prosecuted for the position they are taking, but as it stands today, there is a lawful determination from the Parades Commission,” he said.
He said Ms O’Neill is “breaking the law”.
“She’s the head of an Executive and she is prepared to wilfully disregard the ruling of our courts, the determination by the statutory body charged with determining parades in Northern Ireland,” he said.
“Those are fundamental questions for her and the pledge of office that is given and the law that sits behind that are important fundamentals that are being tested today by her actions, and they will be tested through sanctions as well.”
Asked whether his party will continue to work with Sinn Fein, Mr Robinson responded: “Our party is maintaining the dignity of the Portadown Orangemen as they have shown determination and patience so will we.
“I can look at you all in the eye today and say we are being plunged into difficult territory because of the actions of people who are expected to be lawmakers in our country breaking the law.
“The fundamental principle of upholding the rule of law in this society are sacrosanct and cannot be tarnished.”
He added: “We have someone who calls herself a first minister for all breaking the law today, breaking the law, prepared to give a two-finger salute to the rule of law and order in this country, and she is surrounded by other people who should know better.
“The crisis is not of our making, I think all around us can see how challenging a situation this is but the fundamentals remain, the rule of law must sustain, a legal determination must be policed appropriately.”
Earlier Sinn Fein president Mary Lou McDonald called on Northern Ireland Secretary Sir Chris Bryant to intervene to ban the parade.
She said the people of the Garvaghy Road would “not be drawn back to the past”.
Ms McDonald said: “We have spent all night here, all night talking to people, listening to people, seeking to reassure people that actually this can be resolved, and it must be.
“So here is what needs to happen now – the secretary of state needs to intervene. The chief constable of the PSNI needs to intervene and put a stop to this.
The group of Orangemen due to take part in the parade waited at nearby Drumcree Church, having assembled early yesterday.
l Morning View, page 16