TWO men who say they were racially abused in central Belfast by a group watching an Orange parade have hit out at the police response.
Solaimane Hayda (32) and his friend, who did not wish to be named, told The Irish News they were confronted on Royal Avenue at around 6pm on Monday evening by three bystanders who were watching a returning parade.
The group, comprised of a woman in her mid-twenties and two men, one in his 30s and the other a pensioner, hurled racial abuse at the two friends as they passed a bus stop opposite Belfast Central Library.
Mr Hayda, who is originally from Morocco, has been living in Belfast for five years, while his friend, a Portuguese national, has been a resident in the city for 14 years.
Mr Hayda said: "They were eating sandwiches and watching the parade. They started shouting abuse, calling us black b***rds and Pakis, and telling us 'we don’t want you in this country'."
"They began kicking out at us and trying to punch us. They chased after us and we ran up North Street to get away."
According to Mr Hayda, police officers both in a nearby vehicle and standing on the road witnessed the events, but an officer who intervened "just told us to keep moving on" and did not detain any of the group who had initiated the racial abuse.
Mr Hayda said that he did not report the incident after escaping the group, believing the police had the necessary evidence after officers had witnessed the confrontation unfold.
The father-of-one added he did not have confidence in the police response after being punched in Botanic Avenue in February.
He said: "On that occasion they took a statement but no-one was ever caught. The police reaction didn’t give me much hope."
A police spokesman urged Mr Hayda to get in contact with officers to report the incident, adding that they had no formal record of the attack.
