THE fear and mistrust experienced in Northern Ireland during the 1996 summer of violence surrounding the Drumcree stand off can only be stopped from recurring through consensus, the chairman of the Independent Review of Parades and Marches has stated.
Issuing the report yesterday, Dr Peter North and other review members, Father Oliver Crilly and the Very Rev Dr John Dunlop, Presbyterian, voiced their concerns and hopes on the parades issue.
Dr North said: "Many of those we talked to told us of their alarm at the potential consequences of the disruption last summer. We can only hope that in these recommendations, people will recognise another way forward. Parades and protests have the capability of polarising communities, as we have seen.
"The misunderstandings, the mistrust and fear experienced in 1996 will, we hope, make way for a consensus society - one in which the rights of marchers and protesters, none of which are absolute, bring with them responsibilities, not least that those exercising such rights should take account of the effect of their actions on their relationships with other parts of the community - and be prepared to temper their approach accordingly."
Father Crilly said despite the very perturbing nature of much of the evidence examined, he was impressed at the frankness of many contributors to the inquiry. He praised the efforts by the loyal orders to establish a code of conduct for its members. "We are not depressed because of the past five months many of the people we spoke to had a positive input."
Dr Dunlop said there was no "quick fix" to the issue. "We have a complex situation. It is a complex problem and if there is a simple answer, it is the wrong one."