Orange Order stopped by police after attempting to march Drumcree route at 4am

In a second attempt at 9.30am, five members of the Orange Order walked to the police line close to Drumcree Church before being told by PSNI they couldn’t proceed

Members of the Orange Order were stopped by police twice on Monday morning as they attempted to march along the contentious Drumcree parade route in the early hours.

It is reported that a number of men attempted to march towards the Garvaghy Road in Portadown from Drumcree Church at around 4am.

They were met by police vehicles and prevented from passing any further.

In another attempt, shortly after 9.30 am on Monday, five Orange Order members walked to the police line close to Drumcree Church.They were told by an officer that they were not permitted to proceed.After a member of the public walked along the road, the five members removed their collarettes and walked again to the police line.After again being stopped, Portadown deputy District Master Alastair Power asked the officer to confirm that a member of the public was allowed to walk down the road, but his colleagues were not.

The Orange Order parade was set to go ahead at 8am on Sunday, September 27 after an “unprecedented” late-night sitting of the High Court in Belfast just a few hours earlier.

The Drumcree parade, which was associated with violent clashes during the Troubles, has been banned since 1998.

Thousands of people gathered on the Garvaghy Road throughout Sunday to prevent the Orange Order parade from nearby Drumcree Church from passing along the route.

The mass gathering, which was illegal under parading legislation in Northern Ireland, involved senior Sinn Féin politicians, including Stormont ’s First Minister Michelle O’Neill.

Portadown Orange District have said there are “no words” to express the anger felt by their members.

They said that PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher has treated their community with “disdain” and called for his resignation following Sunday’s events.

In a statement, they said: “We wish to make clear. We aren’t going anywhere. We stand ready and require our determination, which has legally been determined in our favour, to be given effect.

“There is no circumstance whereby we will compromise upon this determination being fulfilled. A legally binding decision is not something requiring ‘resolution’: it has itself resolved the matter.

“Finally, given the sheer incompetence of the PSNI’s operation; we believe both the Chief Constable and ACC Henderson, the gold Commander, should resign.”

As of 8am on Monday morning, five PSNI Land Rovers are lining the road close to where a small group of Orange Order members have stayed overnight.

A contentious Orange Order parade was unable to proceed on Sunday after protesters had gathered on the mainly nationalist Garvaghy Road about a mile away.

There were no protesters on the Garvaghy Road early on Monday.

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