|
(Issued to all the main newspapers and to all
Unionist Parties) |
On Saturday evening a marching band
held its annual band parade.
This parade was very well supported
with many families with young children lining a significant area of the
upper Ormeau Road and around the designated route.
No businesses were subject to closure
on the night and the traffic flowed freely both on the Ormeau Rd and the
Ormeau bridge to enable disruption to be kept to a minimum for anyone who
had social pleasure or private business on this busy stretch of road.
The Ulster Bands Association
welcomes the fact that local businesses remained open as they can benefit
from the added business being generated by this event.
This parade was subject to a Parades
Commission determination from the original route which had been requested
to ease the flow of traffic in a built up area and reduce disruption to
the Community of the Ballynafeigh area.
On the 23rd March the
Parades Commission rejected these proposals and also refused to review
this case on 31.3.2005 in spite of overwhelming evidence based on a common
sense approach to alleviate problems by adding 3 streets to their original
determination.
The actions of the parade marshals
have been commended by both the Parades Commission representative and
local P.S.N.I in charge of policing this parade, the Bands Association
would like to thank all involved for their time and courtesy in making
this event a very successful evening for the band.
The times given by the determination
by the Parades Commission were fully met and in fact the parade finished
well ahead of this time.
The Ulster Bands Association would
like to congratulate the members of Ballynafeigh Apprentice Boys Flute
Band on their shear determination to cause minimum disruption to the
residents; this was achieved by the bands involvement in posting in the
region of 500 leaflets to those living around the route of the parade and
a high degree of awareness when marshalling the parade.
The bands full co-operation with the
local PSNI personnel and Authorised officer from the Parades Commission
also alleviated any fears that may have been caused by a press statements
and radio interview released (on the 22nd March) by Alasdair
McDonnell of the S.D.L.P. before the Parades Commissions determination was
even delivered or given to the band, accusations levelled that the
organisers have NOT taken a “more reasonable approach to their
neighbours”.
This is criticism is totally
unfounded and was clearly intended to raise tension in what is
acknowledged as a mixed area. It is clear from the rhetoric and the
application of nefarious allegations with a broad brush that an election
is in the offing and it is perhaps time for our politicians to stop the
dubious practice of the politics of fear
The Ulster Bands Association would
like to highlight the fact that this event was not a “coat trailing
exercise” organised by Ballynafeigh Apprentice Boys Flute Band which was
what was quoted by Mr McDonnell on a radio interview of the 22nd
March, but was an annual parade held by the band at the same time every
year.
Ballynafeigh Apprentice Boys Flute
Band operate and reside in the community of Ballynafeigh and the Ormeau
Road and as such are entitled (but not absolutely) to the right of freedom
of peaceful assembly, under the European Human Rights legalisation.
Irresponsible statements from community representatives which are aimed at
thrusting those representatives to the fore at a time when an election is
imminent to the detriment of community relations is not responsible
politics or the politics of healing.
The Ulster Bands Association would
also like to ask WHAT agenda, or perhaps, WHOSE agenda is being operated
in the comments of a Deputy leader of a moderate nationalist party who has
sought absolutely no enlightenment from members of the band (some of whom
he is supposedly representing!) to alleviate any fears instead of trying
to heighten them.
Perhaps we can ask the same question
he asked in his radio interview, namely “why can’t these people live and
let live”
STATEMENT ENDS
For further information, contact –
Eddie Kelley
Chairman of the Ulster Bands Association
Notes to Editors
|
