US ‘Friends of Ireland’ politicians call on UK government to cancel Drumcree parade
A group of US Congress members has urged the UK government to cancel a controversial Orange Order parade in Northern Ireland. The politicians argue that the march risks reigniting sectarian tensions and undermining the peace established by the Good Friday Agreement.
Why it matters
This intervention highlights the ongoing international interest in Northern Ireland's political stability and the sensitivity of historical sectarian divisions.
Leading US politicians have written to Northern Ireland’s Secretary of State Chris Bryant asking the UK Government to cancel the Orange Order parade on the Garvaghy Road .
Fourteen members of the US Congress, all members of the influential Friends of Ireland Caucus on Capitol Hill, told Bryant that failing to take decisive action risked “reopening one of the most painful chapters in Northern Ireland’s history”.
They said it would also undermine “nearly three decades of peace, stability and reconciliation made possible by the Good Friday Agreement”.
‘This march harkens back to decades of sectarian rule’
The intervention comes following the delay of a Belfast High Court hearing until Monday on the contentious parade which the Protestant Orange Order wants to proceed down the Garvaghy Road, the Catholic estate in Portadown, Co Armagh.
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