Court ruling reopens Portadown parade route dispute
A court has allowed the Orange Order parade to use a route through a mainly Catholic area for the first time in nearly 30 years, as counterprotests began.
A Northern Ireland court has allowed the Orange Order’s Drumcree parade to proceed along a disputed route through a Catholic area of Portadown, France 24 reported. The ruling came in the early hours of Sunday after a legal challenge over the procession.
The decision permits the parade to use the route for the first time in nearly 30 years. The report does not confirm whether the procession ultimately took place.
Counterprotests began as the legal dispute ended, with police working to keep marchers and protesters apart.
The dispute dates to the mid-1990s. Tensions over the route have previously led to riots, roadblocks and murders, and threatened Northern Ireland’s peace process.
