The Lord Mayor of Dublin has said she is disappointed that the Orange Order has postponed its march in Dublin.
Cllr Mary Freehill said she was "deeply concerned" at reports that members of the Dublin and Wicklow District Order had received threatening phone calls and letters about the march, which was to have taken place at the end of this month.
She had received such threats herself, but felt they represented the views of "only a small minority of the citizens of Dublin". In her view, most Dublin people supported the right of the Orange Order "to parade peacefully in the streets of our city".
Mr Ian Cox of the Dublin-Wicklow Orange Lodge announced the postponement of the March last Monday. Mr Cox said the march was being called off because of intimidation and a lack of political support.
Cllr Freehill said she was surprised that a spokesman for the district order had suggested that she had sought to distance herself from the event.
"I was strongly supportive of the right of the Orange Order to march in Dublin . . . However, as a woman and a socialist I do not and could not be expected to endorse the aims and objectives of the Orange Order," she said.
"Those who expressed and organised opposition to the parade should reflect on the message that these events will convey to many people in Northern Ireland and indeed to people abroad," Cllr Freehill said.
Meanwhile, the Lord Mayor has offered to meet residents of Garvaghy Road, Portadown, in the Mansion House.
rosullivan@irish-times.ie
