Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson have appealed for calm after the latest sectarian rioting in Belfast, which saw 29 police officers being injured after they were attacked with fireworks, bricks and other missiles.
Tonight protests are taking place in east Belfast and the PSNI has warned motorists to avoid the area.
Violence broke out yesterday between republicans and loyalists returning from a protest at Belfast City Hall over a council decision to restrict the flying of the Union flag over the building.
PSNI chief constable Matt Baggott praised his “courageous” colleagues, adding that the vast majority of people were grateful for their efforts.
Senior politicians from Belfast, Dublin and London are to meet next week to discuss the protests after more than 40 days of road blocks and sporadic violence by loyalists failed to produce a solution. Mr
Robinson and his deputy Martin McGuinness will join Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers and Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore for talks.
This afternoon, Mr Kenny
appealed for a halt to the violence. “This is destroying the economy of Belfast and destroying the reputation of Northern Ireland,” he told RTE Radio today.
He said the conflict highlighted the importance of maintaining the focus on the peace process.
“The political process has to deal with very diverse groups who are causing real trouble in the sense of destroying all the good work that has been done,” he said. “We can’t allow this to happen, we won’t let it happen, because there is no reverting to the disasters of the past.”
Mr Robinson said earlier the only way to end the violence is through the political process. He condemned those responsible for injuring dozens of police officers and costing the local economy millions but said protesters had become alienated. “There are political issues and people that feel disengaged and people that feel if we are trying to build a shared future they are not getting their share,” he said.
Mr Robinson, who represents east Belfast where the violence has been fiercest, told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show those throwing petrol bombs did not support his party.
“While we have been able to tackle the issue of getting political structures up we needed to win the support of the overwhelming majority of people in Northern Ireland,” he said. “We had to show them that devolution worked. It is no accident that the violence is occurring predominantly in those areas that are considered to be suffering from deprivation. The only way forward is through the political process that has been endorsed overwhelmingly by the people in Northern Ireland. It won’t change anything to be involved in violence.”
He said the decision supported by Sinn Fein, the SDLP and the Alliance Party to restrict the flying of the Union flag from Belfast City Hall to designated days like royal birthdays was a big mistake. “It was a bad decision but the only way of addressing the bad decision is through the democratic process.”
The Tánaiste also called for calm. “This violence is being orchestrated and those behind it are known criminals, intent on creating chaos," Mr Gilmore said yesterday. “This has nothing to do with real issues around flags and identity in a shared society, which are the subject of intensive political discussions at present.”
Ms Villiers urged restraint. “We can’t afford to have these continuing protests damage our economy and destroy potential jobs for Northern Ireland’s young people,” she said.
About 1,000 people attended a peace rally at Belfast City Hall this afternoon. A lot of young people and families joined the demonstration but they pointedly stood on the pavement rather than blocking the road. There were five minutes of noise - horns, shouting and whistling - to symbolise the silent majority speaking out and a huge round of applause ended the gathering.
Almost 100 officers have been injured and over 100 arrests made during weeks of sporadic trouble, the PSNI has said.
Today a 32-year-old woman was arrested by charged by the PSNI with disorderly behaviour and obstructing a constable in connection with yesterday's public disorder in east Belfast. She is due to appear before Belfast Magistrates Court tomorrow.
Trouble broke yesterday afternoon on the Albertbridge Road near the nationalist Short Strand and police separated the opposing factions. As the loyalists approached the Short Strand. there was violence across the interface with missiles being thrown by rival factions, which resulted in a number of properties being damaged in the Short Strand.
Police used water cannons and fired six baton rounds as they forced the two sides apart. Four officers were taken to hospital, two have been discharged.
“This was a difficult operation dealing with a large number of people determined to cause disorder and violence. My colleagues brought the situation under control with exceptional courage and professionalism," said Mr Baggott. “I know the vast majority of people will be grateful for their efforts. Police will continue to engage with all those committed to finding a solution to these issues.”
Demonstrators were returning from a 1,000-strong protest outside Belfast City Hall against the council’s decision to restrict the flying of the Union flag to designated days like royal holidays. According to police, they were made aware that the preferred route home would bypass part of the Short Strand. Instead they gathered at a bridge barred by officers then broke away and ran towards Short Strand by different roads.
Countless routes have been blocked during the loyalist campaign - in one case north of Belfast a pensioner trying to visit his dying wife in hospital was turned back. “If your wife was dying what would you be doing? Have a bit of sense. Protestants, you don’t know the meaning of the word, take yourselves home, show a bit of respect for people.” hey responded by jeering “cheerio” in a recording made by the BBC.
In west Belfast, a GP was twice prevented from attending a home visit with a patient terminally ill with cancer. Pat Kerr has cancer but had to wait while his GP tried to get through a road block in West Belfast last night for a home visit. His daughter Nicky expressed disbelief. "It’s already a very stressful situation without worrying if we can get him to the hospital or to medical attention,” she said. “To me, the most important thing is someone’s health, rather than anything else that’s going on.”
SDLP MLA Conall McDevitt said: “These are depraved acts which immediately dismiss any claim on a protest being peaceful."
Businesses in Belfast’s city centre have struggled to cope, with many reporting lost trade, and the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) warned some investors may think again.
Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams said there should be a cross-community response. “But there can be no going back. The tiny minorities who want to cling to the past must be rejected. Sectarianism must be tackled and ended.”
Ulster Unionist Party leader Mike Nesbitt has co-chaired a unionist forum designed to address grievances. “Street violence from so-called unionists, no matter what age, advances nothing but the cause of Irish nationalism. It is high time those involved in rioting realised they are destroying the very cause the hope to promote.”