BY ANNE HOWIE AND JAMES NEIL
PORTADOWN, Northern Ireland -Residents of the nationalist Garvaghy Road area of this town in the north of Ireland remain under siege by British troops, police, and rightist thugs as they organize to ensure the sectarian Orange Order's Drumcree march is not forced through their community against their will.

The Parades Commission, a body set up by the British government to rule on "contentious" Orange marches, decided to reroute the supremacist march away from Garvaghy Road. Orange Order leaders, however, pledged to defy the legally binding ruling, by staying in Drumcree for "365 days," if that is what it takes. Following the Parades Commission's decision, pro-British Loyalists had set fire to 11 Catholic churches, burning two of them completely to the ground, as a way of intimidating the nationalist population and threatening further violence if the march was not let through.

London has sent 1,800 more troops into the British- occupied six counties of Northern Ireland, bringing the total to nearly 18,000. The Drumcree parade has been one of the most contentious parades that take place over the "marching season" every year in the north of Ireland. These marches are aimed at reinforcing the second-class status of Catholics and upholding British rule.

In 1995 residents of the Garvaghy Road agreed to let the march pass after gaining agreement from Orange Lodge leaders that it would do so in silence. When the march came to the bottom of the road, however, its leaders, including David Trimble of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) and Ian Paisley of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), danced and jeered, denying they had made any agreement with the residents. In 1996 in the face of residents' determination to halt it, Orangemen were involved in a five-day standoff with the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) after the march was banned. Following rioting by Loyalists across the North, the RUC cops violently forced the march through the nationalist area, claiming that it was the only way to restore order. In 1997, after the newly elected Labour government assured residents they would be consulted and informed of the British government's decision on whether the parade could proceed, massive security forces moved into the Garvaghy Road at 3:00 a.m. on the day of the march, forcing residents from their streets to secure the route for the Orangemen.

"No Talk; No Walk" reads a big sign today on Garvaghy Road. Residents have never called for the march to be banned, but demanded that the Orange Order negotiate with the local residents over the route. The Orange Order, however, has refused to discuss with residents, claiming it has a "right" to proceed through the 95 percent Catholic community. The Orange Order is a rightist organization that holds sectarian and triumphalist marches through Catholic communities in Northern Ireland.

Troops barricade Garvaghy Road
By July 4 Garvaghy Road had been blocked in by the British army and RUC police with barbed wire and police vehicles, checkpoints were stationed on roads leading into Portadown, and Nationalist residents were in a state of siege, not able to easily leave their area and return. The army dug deep trenches and then sealed the area with barbed wire, blocking Garvaghy Road with a 25-foot steel barrier. While the thousands of troops and RUC members were brought in, residents were prepared to defend themselves.

Many people from other parts of the North went to Portadown July 3-4 to show their solidarity with the residents, including supporters from Derry, Bellaghy, and Belfast. Young people from Paris and Dublin also arrived to show their solidarity. Local residents provided accommodation. International observers from Canada and the United States were invited by the Garvaghy Road Residents Coalition and the Lower Ormeau Road Concerned Community.

Residents prepare for defense
The Drumcree community center is the central point from which the residents are organizing the defense of their community, running a radio station for the duration of the standoff to provide news for the community and as a method of mobilizing.

On July 5 upwards of 6,000 Orangemen and their female supporters marched through Portadown, passing near Garvaghy Road toward Drumcree church. Orange Order leaders had said the parade would be silent as it passed a Catholic church on the outward route, but observers reported that some participants danced and jumped up and down, mimicking the murder of Robert Hamill, a Catholic man kicked to death last year in Portadown by Loyalists. They taunted watching nationalists, saying "What about Robert Hamill?" and laughing.

After their service at the church they attempted to go down the small road that leads to Garvaghy Road but were unable to, staying throughout the day as more Orangemen and others arrived. The surrounding fields filled up with cars as tents were erected along with Union Jack flags. At around midnight rightist DUP leader Ian Paisley arrived at the scene.

Since that night, supporters of the Orange Order have mounted pickets, marches, and protests across the North. Arterial roads have been blocked by sit-down protests or by torched vehicles, and loyalists have fought battles with the RUC, particularly in Belfast. Surprise Orange parades have also attempted to march into other nationalist areas; attacks on Catholics have started to escalate. The siege of Garvaghy Road was stepped up July 6 when Loyalists gathered at the bottom of the road, the one exit residents could use.

So far the British government has stated its intention to uphold the Parades Commission decision. Prime Minister Anthony Blair provoked fury from Garvaghy Road residents, however, when he said the Orange Order's actions had been a "responsible" attempt to resolve the situation.

The crisis facing the Unionist political parties is also reflected in the increasingly untenable position of UUP leader David Trimble, first minister of the newly-elected Northern Ireland Assembly. Trimble is a member of the Orange Order, but is considered a "traitor" by the more rightist elements in Unionism for participating in the Assembly beside the 18 elected Sinn Fein representatives. Sinn Fein is the party leading the fight to rid Northern Ireland of British rule.

On July 6 the Parades Commission announced that the Orange Order would be allowed to march July 13 through Belfast's Lower Ormeau Road, a small Nationalist area. Residents there have vowed to protest the triumphalist parade.

Residents have set up a special fax line and appealed for messages of solidarity to be sent to the nationalist residents of Garvaghy Road. The fax number is (44) 1762 392898.

Northern Irish Aid Committee and the Irish Parades Emergency Committee, two Irish solidarity organizations in the United States, have called for demonstrations across the country on July 11, in support of the nationalist residents of Garvaghy Road, the Lower Ormeau Road, and all nationalist communities in the north of Ireland who face the rightist marches.  
 
 
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