Vol. 400 No. 9
96 Mr. Barry asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he has discussed the rerouting of the Orange Parade in Portadown, County Armagh, under the Anglo-Irish Agreement; and if he got an undertaking that it will not be allowed through the nationalist areas of Obins Street and Garvaghy Road.
The question of the routing and the policing of parades is of particular sensitivity and importance and has been the subject of discussions at meetings of the Anglo-Irish Intergovernmental Conference and in the Anglo-Irish Secretariat in Belfast.
In the case of the Portadown parade, the Deputy will wish to be aware that it is no longer routed through Obins Street. It has, however, in recent years used an alternative route through the nationalist Garvaghy Road which is also unsatisfactory.The Government have conveyed in forceful terms their objection to the continued use of this route and have made it clear to the British authorities that they would wish to see it changed. They have underlined the overriding principle that parades should not take place in an area or along a route where they are not welcome. The Government will continue to press the British authorities on this issue and will also be closely monitoring the parade situation generally in Northern Ireland in the coming weeks.
