ORANGEMEN'S SILENT TRIBUTE TO OMAGH DEAD
Orangemen's silent tribute to Omagh dead
TWO minutes' silence was observed for the victims of the Omagh explosion at an Orange Order rally in Portadown on Saturday night.
Five thousand people turned out for the rally, which was organised by the Independent Orange Order to express solidarity with Protestant families living in the lower Garvaghy Road and to reinforce support for the stand taken by Portadown District LOL No 1 over the Drumcree church parade.
Members of the mainstream Orange Order and Apprentice Boys of Derry from various parts of Northern Ireland joined the Independent Orangemen in a parade of the town centre to the rallying point at Water Street, which adjoins the lower Garvaghy Road. The main speakers were former Mid-Ulster DUP MP the Rev William McCrea, Mr Roy Ferguson, District Master of the Mid-Ulster Independent Orange lodge, and Mr David Jones, spokesman for Portadown District LOL No 1.
Mr McCrea spoke of his anger and revulsion at the barbarity that had been committed by republicans in Omagh, a town he said he represented as an MP for 14 years, and, offering the deepest sympathy to the bereaved and injured, he led in the silent remembrance for those who had died.
A strong security presence around Portadown ensured that the parade did not enter the nationalist part of the Garvaghy Road or the nearby Obins Street areas.
The Parades Commission prohibited the marchers from entering the lower Garvaghy Road, where there is a small enclave of Protestant families.
TWO minutes' silence was observed for the victims of the Omagh explosion at an Orange Order rally in Portadown on Saturday night.
Five thousand people turned out for the rally, which was organised by the Independent Orange Order to express solidarity with Protestant families living in the lower Garvaghy Road and to reinforce support for the stand taken by Portadown District LOL No 1 over the Drumcree church parade.
Members of the mainstream Orange Order and Apprentice Boys of Derry from various parts of Northern Ireland joined the Independent Orangemen in a parade of the town centre to the rallying point at Water Street, which adjoins the lower Garvaghy Road. The main speakers were former Mid-Ulster DUP MP the Rev William McCrea, Mr Roy Ferguson, District Master of the Mid-Ulster Independent Orange lodge, and Mr David Jones, spokesman for Portadown District LOL No 1.
Mr McCrea spoke of his anger and revulsion at the barbarity that had been committed by republicans in Omagh, a town he said he represented as an MP for 14 years, and, offering the deepest sympathy to the bereaved and injured, he led in the silent remembrance for those who had died.
A strong security presence around Portadown ensured that the parade did not enter the nationalist part of the Garvaghy Road or the nearby Obins Street areas.
The Parades Commission prohibited the marchers from entering the lower Garvaghy Road, where there is a small enclave of Protestant families.
Further Information
Publisher: NEWS LETTER
Ref: NL/027
Published Date: 17-Aug-98
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