BELFAST — Talks aimed at resolving the long-running dispute over the Drumcree parade in Portadown concluded without agreement on Thursday, marking the fifth day of a standoff. Sir Chris Bryant, who facilitated the discussions, said negotiations were "between a rock and a hard place."
Representatives from the Orange Order and residents of Garvaghy Road met at Hillsborough Castle, but no resolution emerged. A legal appeal concerning the march is now scheduled for Monday.
Sir Chris expressed disappointment that an agreement was not reached but said his "door remains open" for further dialogue. He disclosed that a range of options had been explored, including respecting the right to march without exercising it, and a proposal for a final march with no future applications. However, the parties "were unable to agree on any of all that."
Earlier in the week, Sir Chris had indicated that a resolution to the stalemate was "tantalisingly just a bit far away."
Tensions escalated on Sunday after a court hearing granted permission to members of the loyalist Orange Order to parade along their traditional route through the largely nationalist Garvaghy Road in Portadown—the first time such permission was granted in nearly 30 years.
Since 1998, restrictions have prevented the Orange Order from marching through the predominantly Catholic area after earlier parades led to violent clashes and significant police interventions. The parade was scheduled to commence at 8 a.m. on Sunday, but hundreds of protesters blocked attempts to proceed down Garvaghy Road. Some protesters wore balaclavas or other face coverings. The march has not gone ahead since.
Mary Lou McDonald, president of Sinn Féin, and Michelle O'Neill, Northern Ireland's first minister, joined the protesters.
Jamie Bryson, a loyalist activist and legal adviser for the Orange Order, stated that the group would accept the determination of next week's legal appeal. He urged Garvaghy Road residents to do the same, saying Thursday: "If the Court of Appeal upholds this determination, commit to accepting the law and walk away, and we'll do the same."
Breandan Mac Cionnaith, representing the Garvaghy Road Residents Coalition, expressed hope for an agreement but firmly asserted "there is no such thing as half a march." Mac Cionnaith confirmed that talks had paused following the Thursday meeting.
