AN ANTI-internment parade organiser has claimed that Belfast city is open to every group apart from republicans following the Parades Commission banning
an annual march from going to the city hall.
Up to 5,000 people and at least four bands had been expected to take part in the annual Anti-Internment League (AIL) march on Sunday August 7.The parade has been organised to mark the 45th anniversary of the introduction of internment, which saw hundreds of nationalists jailed without charge.Last night the Parades Commission ruled that the march will not be allowed to pass the junction of Divis Street and Barrack Street.
AIL spokesman Gerard Fitzpatrick claimed republicans have been unfairly treated.“Various groups rightly hold political and religious demonstrations throughout the year in the city centre, without opposition,” he said.
“These include trade unions, voluntary organisations, the LGBT community and numerous loyal order parades. Based on today's determination, the city centre is open to all - except Irish republicans.”The ban on the republican parade comes just weeks after a large loyalist parade passed through the city centre last month.
Up to 15,000 loyalists and 38 bands took part in the parade to mark the centenary of the First World War.Mr Fitzpatrick believes the commission has treated the AIL parade differently to the loyalists' march.
“They did so on the busiest trading day, Saturday, and at the busiest time of that day,” he said.“The Parades Commission not only approved this parade without restriction, they did not even deem it sensitive.
“By comparison, the six county Stormont state has again today publicly announced that progressives, republicans and others should be restricted and treated as second-class citizens.”Last night the AIL’s solicitor Michael Brentnall said he will seek a review of the commission's decision "on the basis of what has been disclosed in the determination”.In the last three years the AIL had sought permission to march from north Belfast to the city centre and on to west Belfast.
This year’s parade was expected to leave Andersonstown in west Belfast before moving down Castle Street and onto Donegall Place at its junction with Royal Avenue.
The procession would than have moved to Belfast City Hall for a rally which was due to finish at 1.30pm. It is expected that police will put a major security operation in place to uphold the determination.A parade organised by the West Belfast Festival involving up to 2,000 participants and 5,000 supporters is due to start at nearby Conway Street at 1pm.In its determination the commission accused organisers of deliberately breaching a “timing condition” placed on last year’s march which resulted in “public disorder” in the Oldpark area.The commission also said organisers had failed to engage with them.
“The object of this route restriction is to mitigate the parade’s potential for public disorder, its adverse impacts upon community relations and upon the life of the community,” it said.
The commission said the business community had objected to the parade on the grounds “it will have a negative impact on the city centre.”In 2013 violence erupted at Royal Avenue after hundreds of loyalists mobilised to block its route, resulting in violent clashes with police. The following year a similar parade passed without major incident.Last year the parade was stopped by the PSNI shortly after it left its start point Ardoyne in north Belfast as hundreds of loyalists gathered in the city centre for a major protest.
On that occasion the commission had determined that march should be clear of the city centre by 1.30pm.
However, when that deadline passed, police moved in to stop the parade in the Oldpark area of north Belfast. Violence broke out and petrol bombs, bricks and bottles were thrown at police.
