Apprentice Boys clubs in Lurgan are to protest in the town this afternoon, following a Parades Commission decision to ban an open-air religious service close to the predominantly nationalist William Street area.
The commission said it had made the decision to ban the religious service after "serious public disorder" in William Street during the Apprentice Boys "Relief of Derry" celebrations on August 14th. The commission did not "see any reason why the religious service has to take place in the notified venue".
A spokesman for the Apprentice Boys, Mr Roy Ferguson, said the decision "shows just how low this government is prepared to stoop in an effort to appease nationalists and suppress anything Protestant. Very soon the Protestant community will be prohibited from attending their churches on the direction of the Parades Commission."
Mr said that "no doubt such decisions will be readily enforced by Chris Patten's new police service".
It is known that today's street protest in Lurgan does not have the backing of the general committee of the Apprentice Boys. Senior officers within the Orange Order and Royal Black Institution have also expressed concern at today's protest, fearing it could have a "detrimental effect" on the overall attitude to the loyal orders in Lurgan.
More militant elements in the Apprentice Boys have accused the local Orange Order leadership of "deliberately wanting to keep things quiet in Lurgan to enhance the chances of the Drumcree parade getting down the Garvaghy Road in the immediate future".
A strong police presence is expected to prevent any repetition of last month's violence between the Apprentice Boys and nationalists.