The Orange Order’s Drumcree parade has been given the green light to return to Garvaghy Road for the first time in almost 30 years.
The Parades Commission approved the return march along the road in Portadown earlier this afternoon – but set out several restrictions.
The decision, published today, allows a maximum of 35 participants, down from the 60 originally requested by Portadown District.
The procession must begin at 8am on September 27 and conclude at Carleton Street Orange Hall by 9.30am.
Only the Portadown District banner is allowed on the Garvaghy Road stretch of the route, while bands are forbidden from taking part.
Supporters must not walk alongside the march or gather near the parade route, including around homes on Dungannon Road and Drumcree Road.
The march has been given the go-ahead despite Garvaghy Road residents strongly opposing the parade proceeding through their area.
The road, situated in a predominantly nationalist part of Portadown, became one of the most notorious flashpoints of the Troubles era.
Residents have fought against the resuscitation of the parade
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Throughout the 1990s, the annual Drumcree parade triggered violent confrontations and political crises that demanded large-scale security operations across multiple summers.
Several people lost their lives in connection with the dispute during that time.
The Parades Commission had blocked the Orange Order from completing its traditional route along the road every July since 1998.
But a High Court case earlier this year revealed a series of procedural errors in how the commission had reached its previous rulings on the Garvaghy Road march.
That judgment quashed the commission’s most recent bid, paving the way for Sunday’s fresh application by Portadown District.
Garvaghy Road residents have long-campaigned to prevent the march from going ahead
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Sinn Féin vice president Michelle O’Neill said she “strongly condemns” the decision by the Parades Commission to “force an Orange march through the Garvaghy Road community”.
She said there was “no reasonable or logical basis” for the decision saying that the community has lived “in peace” and “got on with their lives”.
“Twenty-eight years of peace was not a problem that required a solution. It was a peace that needed to be protected.”
Ms O’Neill said it was a “march steeped in a history of hate, sectarian violence and murder”, adding: “People right across the North are absolutely dismayed.”
“Sinn Féin stands fully with the Garvaghy Road community and they will have the full support of nationalists from right across Ireland in the period ahead.”
Meanwhile, DUP leader Gavin Robinson welcomed the Parades Commission’s “significant and long-overdue” decision.
He said: “For 28 years, Orangemen have been prevented from completing their traditional church parade.
“Throughout that period, Portadown District complied with every determination, rejected violence and consistently offered dialogue and mediation.
“The commission has now explicitly recognised that the police have no information indicating that this peaceful parade will result in disorder or violence.
“While the severe restrictions on numbers, timing and bands will require careful consideration, the fundamental position has changed. The Garvaghy Road is no longer closed to Portadown District.
“Those participating will walk peacefully and with dignity. Others must respond in the same spirit.”
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