Northern Ireland court temporarily blocks proposed Garvaghy Road loyalist march

A Northern Ireland High Court judge has temporarily suspended a proposed loyalist parade along Portadown’s Garvaghy Road, citing the risk that the long-running dispute could escalate and lead to unrest. Justice Smyth issued the order after a five-hour hearing on Saturday. It suspends both the march, which was due to begin at 8am on Sunday, and the Parades Commission’s decision allowing it to proceed under restrictions, pending a full hearing of a judicial review application.

The case was brought by the Garvaghy Road Residents Coalition. The route has been barred for 28 years following sectarian violence around Drumcree church in 1998. Smyth said there was profound mistrust between residents and the Portadown Loyalist Lodge, with neither side accepting the other’s reassurances.

She urged the parties to reach a voluntary agreement and called on them to “step back from the abyss”. The loyalist lodge was not represented at the hearing and indicated through the person who had sought permission for the parade that it would not agree to suspending the procession. Loyalists appealed the judge’s decision, with a second special hearing scheduled for Saturday night.

Tensions also rose after a request was made for permission for a countermarch. The court heard that attendance had initially been estimated at up to 5,000 people before being revised to 300. The Parades Commission had permitted the procession with conditions, including an 8am start and a limit of 35 participants, while imposing no route restriction.

Democratic Unionist MP Carla Lockhart said nationalist residents had nothing to fear, while Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald called the decision reckless. Prime Minister Andy Burnham and Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Bryant appealed for calm and responsible conduct as the legal dispute continued.