LONDON — British Prime Minister Andy Burnham urged calm in Northern Ireland on Sunday after a disputed parade received approval from Belfast’s High Court during a late‑night session.
Thousands of demonstrators, many masked with balaclavas, assembled to stop the Orange Order march—a group strongly backing Northern Ireland’s continued place in the United Kingdom—from moving through Portadown, a town where many residents support union with the Republic of Ireland.
It marks the first time in almost three decades that the Orange Order has been permitted to parade along Garvaghy Road, a long‑standing flashpoint between the communities before the 1998 Good Friday Agreement largely halted the violence. During the Troubles, roughly 3,600 people lost their lives and about 50,000 were injured.
Ending the conflict required reconciling opposing identities in Northern Ireland, which stayed within the United Kingdom when the rest of Ireland gained independence a century ago. Northern Irish nationalists, predominantly Catholic, aspire to unite with the Republic of Ireland, whereas largely Protestant unionists wish to remain part of the U.K.
Burnham appealed for “calm on all sides” regarding the parade, noting that “significant progress has been achieved in Northern Ireland, and we must not allow it to be reversed.”
Jon Boutcher, chief of the Police Service of Northern Ireland, urged “those with influence to encourage people to obey the law,” referring to the large protest blocking Garvaghy Road. He said there have been no signs of violence or disorder.
“Police are engaging with all sides and will continue to do so. It is incumbent on all of us to unite at moments like this and do everything possible to safeguard a peaceful Northern Ireland.”
Politicians from both communities expressed opposing views on whether the march should proceed.
Northern Ireland’s First Minister Michelle O’Neill, who leads Sinn Féin—the party historically tied to the Irish Republican Army—said the court’s decision to allow the march “raises questions about how the entire peace process functions.”
“The gains of the past 28 years are being called into question by the actions of the Orange Order and those in political unionism who seek to pull us backward,” she said while joining the counter‑protest on Garvaghy Road.
Gavin Robinson, leader of the Democratic Unionist Party—the biggest pro‑UK party in Northern Ireland—accused Sinn Féin leaders of exacerbating the situation.
“The rule of law cannot be applied selectively, only when Sinn Féin favours the result,” he said. “Our institutions rest on respect for the police, the courts and the rule of law.”
The march received its final approval at a court hearing that ended at 2:15 a.m. on Sunday.
The Orange Order derives its name from William of Orange, the Protestant prince of Holland who defeated Catholic King James II to claim the British throne in the 17th century.
