Commission approves restricted Drumcree parade route

Northern Ireland’s Parades Commission approved a restricted Drumcree parade along Portadown’s Garvaghy Road, allowing up to 35 participants to use the route for the first time in 28 years. A legal challenge by the Garvaghy Road Residents Coalition was underway at Belfast High Court on September 26, leaving the determination’s status subject to possible change. The commission’s conditions limit the procession to 35 people, prohibit bands and accompanying supporters, and allow only one banner. Participants must leave Drumcree Church by 8 a.m. and disperse at Carleton Street Orange Hall by 9:30 a.m. The Orange Order had proposed a procession of 60 people, according to one report. The commission said its decision followed consideration of the available information and applicable legal framework, and said it should not be regarded as a victory for either side. Residents have opposed the return to the route, which runs through a predominantly nationalist area. The Parades Commission had barred the Orange Order from completing the route since 1998, after years of dispute and tension over the annual march.