Northern Ireland violence drives out immigrant families

[Loki]

Northern Ireland violence drives out immigrant families

Terrified families from East Timor flee as loyalists attack nationalist homes in Portadown in marching season clashes



Immigrant families from East Timor fled a Catholic area of Northern Ireland on Friday night when loyalist rioters tried to attack nationalist homes, a Sinn Fein councillor said today.

"Around 100 loyalists attacked police who prevented them attacking nationalist homes," said John O'Dowd, who is a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

The families from East Timor packed their bags and ran from their homes in Portadown, Co Armagh on Friday night, when the area was engulfed in violence, he said.

"They packed their bags, so distressed were they at the violence. Their neighbours tried to reassure them that they would be safe in their homes but they left," he told Reuters.

A significant number of families from East Timor have settled in the Northern Irish town, where they work in the food packing industry alongside many Poles and Portuguese.

For several hours, police were attacked by people armed with petrol bombs, bricks, bottles, fireworks and other missiles in the latest violence surrounding the high point of the loyalist marching season.

The police fired around 20 plastic bullets and arrested three people. They confirmed that loyalists provoked the violence when a planned peaceful protest was hijacked by a violent minority.

The Mayor of the local Craigavon council, Democratic Unionist Alan Carson, condemned the violence.

"This does not do anyone any good. People have a right to live peacefully and feel safe in their own homes. The violence we saw last night is something we assigned to the history books," he said.

In recent days, nearly 50 police have been wounded and dozens have been arrested during violence in both loyalist and republican areas surrounding the annual 12 July parades.

More than 500 parades were held on Tuesday across Northern Ireland, the high point of the Orange Order marching season celebrating the victory of Protestant King William of Orange over Catholic King James at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. The majority passed off peacefully but they sparked outbreaks of street violence.

[Murphy]

Someone should have warned them. But they really should have taken the advice of their neighbours. They would have been much safer in their homes. By leaving they risked being attacked (by both communities).

[Óttar]

These loyalists are anachronisms. Neither England nor Scotland nor Westminster give a crap about them. There aren't even barely any British military personnel left in NI. What are they fighting for? Is the NHS really that good?

[Aces High]

I love the Ulster loyalists.

I remember once when i was on patrol in Ulster and one of the boys in my platoon was from Belfast and he says,"lets just pop in here for a little drink boys" and we ended up in a loyalist drinking club.

We were treated like royalty and all the rifles were stacked up in the corner with the umbrellas and coats whilst we had a good old time,they never let us pay for a drink.Fantastic people.....old school loyal people.

A lot of dis-service has been done to those people in the left wing British media but i remeber them as nice gentlemen and staunchly pro British and patriotic to the core.....Great people.

[Treffie]

What are they fighting for?

Interfaction rivalry - these assholes think their pride is at stake.

[Aces High]

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[Murphy]

We were treated like royalty and all the rifles were stacked up in the corner with the umbrellas and coats whilst we had a good old time,they never let us pay for a drink.Fantastic people.....old school loyal people.

I suppose that was before they started popping off British security forces as well?

You were once treated as royalty by the Catholic Nationalist population. What happened there? You defended them [Catholics] from Loyalist pogroms. You stopped them [Loyalists] from burning pensioners out of their homes. Then you started shooting Catholics in cold blood and beating and dragging fathers from their homes for the sin of being Irishmen and Catholic.

But aye.. Loyalists.. great people..

Funny you mention the UEFA Cup Final. I seem to recall them running absolute riot through Manchester.. because their television broke..

But aye.. Loyalists.. great people..

[Bridie]

Strange how the media seems most concerned about the bloody East Timorese immigrants, to make them the main focus of the article.

I suppose they figure that the general UK public cares more about the refugees than they do about the Irish.

[Aces High]

Catholic Nationalist population.

lol....hardly nationalist.

[Aces High]

Irish.

Ulstermen,different thing from Irish.