DRUMCREE passed off with barely a peep this year, and the Portadown Lodge has refused to rule out talks with nationalist residents who object to a parade on Garvaghy Road.
The Irish Independent reports: Spokesman David Jones said the Orange Order was prepared to take part in talks with nationalists residents through intermediaries. He ruled out immediate face-to-face talks but did not discount the possibility that those could happen in the future.
“We have been involved in mediation before, through bilateral talks . . . and we are still prepared to be involved in those types of talks again,” he said.
“As the Parades Commission has clearly stated, while they would say face-to-face talks are preferable, they are not wholly necessary. They are prepared to accept that intermediaries being involved can help to work towards a resolution of the problem.
“Further down the line, as trust begins to develop between the two groups and as a facilitation begins to start between the two groups, there could possibly come a time when there will be face-to-face talks.
“But that is not going to happen in the immediate future.”
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