Date and venue set for round 2

Greater Ardoyne Resident’s Collective (GARC) spokesman Mairtin Og Meehan has confirmed the group’s intention to stage a protest at the Apprentice Boy’s parade past Ardoyne on August 14, reports the newsletter. ABOD Ligoniel Walker Club have sought permission for a parade with one band and up to 90 participants, with August 4 the date set for the Parades Commission’s consideration of  the application. Meehan said if the “socially detached and discredited Parades Commission” allow the Apprentice Boys to march past …

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Shoot for thrills

The PSNI no longer use plastic baton rounds, they now use Attenuated Energy Projectiles (AEPs). Unlike previous baton rounds, AEPs are designed to be fired directly at people and aren’t ‘meant’ to bounce before impact. Within British Policing Guidelines (via West Mercia, if the PSNI have them online I can’t find them) they are not permitted as a general crowd control device and should only be fired at clearly identified individuals presenting an immediate threat that cannot be dealt with …

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What a difference 5 years make

In 2005 Ardoyne had exactly the same problems surrounding the 12th of July parade as those that transpired last night (and it has been going on a lot longer than that). Back then, a full five years ago, 80 police officers were injured during what Gerry Kelly described as control being lost for for a time. In that distant almost forgotten, for some, era he fully blamed the Orange Order for creating the conditions that resulted in the violence: The …

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Belfast City Council Sought ONH Approval for Community Wardens in Ardoyne

According to a report in the Irish News, Belfast City Council officials “had talks with members of Óglaigh na hÉireann (ONH)” and “are believed to have sought assurances from members of ONH that employees would be safe” before extending the community warden scheme to Ardoyne. The republican source said: “The council was basically told that as long as the wardens were not acting as the eyes and ears of the PSNI in monitoring republicans then they would not be touched.” A …

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