Editorial: ​Drumcree ruling is a morale boost for unionism

For decades, unionism had abandoned any prospect of progress over the most contentious parading dispute in Northern Ireland’s history.

While Drumcree has not been the rallying issue for Orangeism or the broader Protestant community that it once was, the reaction to Tuesday’s landmark court ruling shows that it still holds huge symbolism for many.

It’s a long way short of a green light to walk down the Garvaghy Road, but it has been a significant morale boost. At the heart of that is the belief that unionists have not had a fair hearing generally. The many who believe that a decision to block Orangemen walking there was taken decades ago will feel vindicated.

Information emerged in court which suggests that the Orange Order may not have been getting a fair hearing for some time. That a commissioner would see mediation – the gold standard in dispute resolution – as a “non-starter” is remarkable. Worse again that he would seek to avoid giving the Orange Order “an angle” to “keep prodding” the Commission.

Northern Ireland has moved on a lot since the height of this dispute in the late 1990s. Nobody is suggesting anything like a return to those days of disorder and violence.

What the Portadown Orangemen are looking for is a small dignified walk home – no huge band parade and certainly not hundreds of supporters following on.

The Parades Commission has a job to do – and that is to consider each of these parading issues on their merit. Every application made should be viewed with a fresh pair of eyes, and not through the lens of the horrors of the tail end of the Troubles.

There was a common cause amongst the unionist parties yesterday. It was a significant win which will boost the morale of the wider unionist community.