Portadown District L.O.L. No.1
The Annual Orange Parade to Drumcree Parish Church
Drumcree is one of two 'mother' churches in Portadown - the
other being Seagoe Parish Church.
The annual Orange service at Drumcree Parish Church is one
of the oldest Orange services in Ireland.
The first service was held in 1807.
The Garvaghy Road is the shortest and most direct route between
Drumcree Parish Church and Carleton Street Orange Hall.
The Garvaghy Road was originally bounded by farmland and
was only developed for housing in the late 1960s and early
1970s.
The housing was originally mixed but intimidation and ethnic
cleansing forced almost all Protestant families to leave the
area.
In 1985 the R.U.C. conducted a demographic survey of the
Garvaghy Road and approved it as a route for the Orange Parades.
The main reason given was that few houses faced directly onto
the Garvaghy Road.
It is the main arterial route from that part of the town
into Portadown town centre. The geography and demography of
the area has not changed significantly from that time.
The parade takes less than 10 minutes to pass a given point.
Since 1985 the Loyal Orders have re-routed ten parades away
from Obins Street/Garvaghy Road area. The Drumcree parade
is the only one left that passes along the Garvaghy Road.

View of Garvaghy Road from Portadown
towards Ballyoran Hill. |

View of Portadown from Ballyoran Hill. |
Garvaghy Road
The Facts
There are approximately 900 houses along the disputed 600
metre stretch of the Garvaghy Road.
Only 66 houses face directly onto the Garvaghy and Drumcree
Roads.
Less than 10 houses (less than 1%) have addresses actually
on the Garvaghy Road.
75% of the houses are between 100-600 metres away from the
Garvaghy Road.
It is impossible to see the Garvaghy Road from the vast majority
of the houses along it.
It was statistics similar to these compiled in 1985 and 1986
that enabled the R.U.C. to approve the Garvaghy Road as a
main route to the Orange Hall in Portadown.
The Estates Off The Garvaghy Road
The Facts
Churchill Park - Contains approximately 200 houses. Only
5 of which face directly onto the Garvaghy Road.
The Beeches - Contains approximately 100 houses. Only 5 of
which face directly onto the Garvaghy Road.
Garvaghy Park - Contains approximately 100 houses. Only 10
of which face directly onto the Garvaghy Road.
Ballyoran Park - Contains approximately 500 houses. Only
46 of which face directly onto the Garvaghy and Drumcree Roads.
Code of Conduct
Drumcree Church Parade
Bands are only allowed to play Hymn tunes. Many of these
tunes are common to both communities.
Bands refrain from playing whilst passing St. John's Chapel
on the outward journey to Drumcree Parish Church.
As an act of good faith bands do not play at all along the
Garvaghy Road.
Stewards are appointed to ensure individuals on parade do
not respond to provocation. In the long history of the parade
the Orange Order has never been involved in any form of indiscipline
during a parade along the Garvaghy Road.
Only local Orangemen, a small number of County Officers and
the local Member of Parliament, take part in the parade and
only members of Portadown District i.e. local residents walk
along the Garvaghy Road.
The parade is led by members of the Portadown Ex-Servicemen's
Lodge and only their Standard and the District Bannerette
are carried in the parade.
WHO IS CORRECT?
On 28 June 1999 the Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. Tony Blair,
M.P., told Portadown Orangemen that "he had asked
them to move and you have moved".
Mr Blair further stated that Portadown District "had
been reasonable" in their efforts to find a
just and lasting solution.
He went on to say that the District had "changed
the dynamics of the situation" and that the
District "had taken a bold step".
On 28 June 1999 the Parades Commission, an unelected, unaccountable
quango imposed conditions on Portadown District's Annual Church
Parade home from Drumcree Parish Church preventing them from
walking back into Portadown via their traditional route and
stated "the opportunity provided by such a break (the
banning of the 1998 parade) should be seized by political,
community and religious leaders to demonstrate greater responsibility
and to make strident efforts to bridge the chasm between both
sides of the community so laying the foundations for a more
tolerant atmosphere in the future. Regrettably the
Orange Order has not used this opportunity in a positive way".
Is it not reasonable to pose the question who has
the greater understanding of what is really happening in relation
to the situation in Portadown?
Alternatively are the Parades Commission simply being
anti Orange?
THE SEARCH FOR A SOLUTION
It is frequently but incorrectly stated that the Orange Institution
is not committed to dialogue.
Portadown District L.O.L. No. 1 has gone to enormous lengths
in a bid to broker what would objectively be considered a
fair and honourable resolution of the Garvaghy Road parade
dispute.
In an attempt to resolve the situation regarding their traditional
parade home from Drumcree Parish Church via the Garvaghy Road,
Portadown District, together with representatives of County
Armagh Grand Lodge, and the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland,
has had discussions with a wide and influential range of people
over a sustained period.
The list of people and groups they met is numerous and includes:-
- The Prime Minister, The Rt. Hon Tony Blair, M.P.
- The Secretary of State
- Members of Parliament
- Members of the House of Lords
- Northern Ireland Office Ministers
>
- The main church leaders in Ireland
- Local politicians
- The Chief Constable of the Royal Ulster Constabulary and
other senior police officers
- Civic leaders
- Prominent members of the business community
- Local church and business representatives
- Conflict resolution analysts
In addition to these there has been a series of bilateral
meetings and proximity talks involving Government officials
or their representatives and the Garvaghy Road Residents'
Coalition.
In the period since the present Drumcree Stand-Off began
the officers of Portadown District L.O.L. No. 1 have worked
incessantly in an attempt to resolve the serious impasse which
they now find themselves in an intense round of meetings and
consultations have continued on virtually a daily basis.
Evidence of the lengths to which the Portadown Orangemen
have gone to find a permanent solution to the Garvaghy Road
parade problem can be judged from the record of meetings and
consultations, dating back to July, 1998.
The Orange delegations attended both the bilaterals and proximity
talks determined to find a just and lasting solution to the
impasse.
However, at every stage our desire to obtain such a solution
was frustrated by the delaying tactics of the Garvaghy Road
Residents' Coalition, who have shown no interest in the core
issue but are prepared to hide behind any excuse to avoid
dealing with the issue and have, on every occasion, thwarted
our best efforts to move the process forward through their
intransigence.
They have repeatedly concerned themselves with irrelevant
questions such as the make-up of the Orange delegation or
have produced papers with in-built pre-conditions, including
the fact that there can't be an Orange parade on the Garvaghy
Road, but then disingenuously conclude with the hope that
we (the Orange) won't set pre-conditions and that they are
actually prepared to consider everything.
In light of this anyone approaching this situation with a
balanced and logical view will conclude that Portadown District
L.O.L. No. 1 have "gone the extra mile" to achieve
a solution. The same cannot be said of the Garvaghy Road Residents'
Coalition.
Letter To The Garvaghy Road Residents,
July 1997.
From County Armagh Grand Orange Lodge.
The following letter has been sent to the residents of the
Garvaghy Road area outlining the position of Portadown District
on its annual church parade from Drumcree Parish Church.
The letter will be printed in the local Portadown press.
An opportunity is being given to all within the Portadown
community to make a constructive response.
The letter is signed by the County Master and County Chaplain
and is sent in good faith. The letter is self explanatory
and really needs no further comment.
Dear Resident,
We are writing to all residents of the Garvaghy Road area
to explain our position about the annual walk by members of
Portadown District Orangemen from the service of worship at
Drumcree Parish Church in July.
This is a sincere and genuine attempt to deal with the many
misconceptions concerning the walk and there are a number
of points we would like to make for your information:
1. The service on the first Sunday in July is partly to remember
those who died at the Battle of the Somme in 1916. We pay
tribute to all those of both communities who died for the
cause of peace and justice.
2. The Orange Order is traditionally a parading organisation.
We see our parade as an outward witness to our sincere belief
in the Reformed Faith. For that reason, we see attacks on
our parades as both a denial of civil liberties and an attack
on our religion. For us, this is as distressing as the disgraceful
protest - which we unreservedly condemn - outside Harryville
chapel.
3. In the interests of harmony, mutual respect and reconciliation
the Orange Order has acknowledged objections raised by the
Nationalist community and has already implemented the following
principles for the Drumcree Church parade:
a. The number of parades in the area has been reduced from
ten to one in the past ten years.
b. Only members of Portadown District parade.
c. No bands take part which could be perceived as antagonistic
to our Nationalist neighbours. Accordion bands lead the parade
playing hymn music that is common to both traditions.
d. The Orangemen walk four abreast so that the walk will
pass any one given point in less than five minutes.
e. The Order marshals and disciplines its own members to
ensure there will be no confrontation on our part. If this
was reciprocated, then there would only be a need for a minimal
police presence.
f. The right to walk peacefully and in a dignified manner
and the right to protest in a peaceful and dignified manner
should not be denied to anyone.
It is the sincere hope of the Orange Order that the vast
majority of the people of Portadown will work together in
a new spirit of tolerance to defeat extremists who want confrontation
this Summer. As a matter of principle, we cannot be involved
in talks with convicted terrorists because of what they have
inflicted on our community. But we do want to listen to all
those within the community who want to promote harmony and
mutual respect among the people of Portadown and would welcome
constructive comments which should be sent to the following
address: Co. Armagh Grand Orange Lodge c/o House of Orange,
65 Dublin Road, Belfast BT2 7HE.
We sincerely hope that this letter will go some way towards
building up inter-community confidence and respect so that
we can look forward not only to a peaceful Summer but to a
more peaceful and tolerant era for all the people of our land.
The letter has been signed by Denis Watson, County Grand
Master and Rev. William Bingham, County Grand Chaplain.
4 JUNE 1997.
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