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CNN Sunday Morning

Protestant Orange Order Holds March in Northern Ireland

Aired July 07, 2002 - 10:17   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: We're going to move on to Northern Ireland now where Protestants are kicking off their summer marching season. Now traditionally, it's a very volatile and dangerous event. Hopefully it will not be that way this year.

CNN's Diana Muriel joins me now from live from Drumcree, Northern Ireland to give us an update on how it's going. Hi, Diana.

DIANA MURIEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra. Yes -- well, things are changing here by the minute. It's just started raining, which is probably the best riot control mechanism known to the police here in Northern Ireland.

Before that about an hour ago there was some violence here at Drumcree. What happened was that the Portadown Orange Order -- the Protestant's organization -- have their annual march from Portadown out of the town and to this small church in Drumcree that you see behind me.

They have a church service there and then they try to complete their march back into Portadown along a road -- the Garvaghy Road (ph) -- where mostly Catholic nationalists' residents are.

In the past they have protested at this and the Northern Ireland parade commission who have to give their permission for all of the parades that take place at this time of year as part of the Orange Order Parade. They have denied them the right to do that for the fifth year running.

What happens is that a barricade has been erected outside the church at Drumcree and the leaders of the Orange Order have come down there. They've handed over a petition of complaint demanding the right to walk back into town along that road saying that it is their human right.

Now after they had done that then some violence occurred. Some of the youths that are supporters of the Protestant Orange Order here managed to breech the barricade. It was a very low level barricade. That was a decision made by the police this year to try and keep a low, low level policing in force here rather than incite violence by having large steel barricades in place. But they managed to breech it.

Rocks were thrown at the police and the military. There are four army battalions in the British Army in place here -- about 2,000 officers -- police officers and soldiers in all.

They then moved a very large steel barricade into position, which was attached to a truck. And they rolled barbed wire into position. And more riot police enforced riot gear -- that's batons, large, re- enforced plastic shields and helmets moved into position.

There was then a hail of rocks and stones thrown at them. The police and soldiers made two baton rounds.

We understand that there were seven police officers who were injured, 15 walking wounded. On the other side one of the marchers sustained a broken arm.

But, as I say, the rain is coming down, people are dispersing. Hopefully there won't be anymore violence but we'll wait to see. Kyra?

PHILLIPS: Yeah -- hopefully no violence at all. Diana Muriel from Northern Ireland. Thanks, Diana.

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