Despite a relatively trouble-free Twelfth yesterday , it is unlikely that the Orange parades will ever become Northern Ireland's Mardi Gras, writes Gerry Moriarty, Northern Editor
The Twelfth really is a splendid spectacle. Were it possible to shear away all the tribalism, sectarianism, violence and tension we associate with the climax of the Orange marching season, it could be sold by tourist chiefs as Northern Ireland's Mardi Gras, as John Hume has suggested.
But it is not possible, and one wonders if this period will ever be one solely of carnival rather than concern. Many middle-class Catholics and Protestants sensibly clear out of Northern Ireland at this time of year, leaving those at the interfaces to repeat, not always metaphorically, a famous battle 312 years ago.
It was glaringly obvious yesterday that at the so-called peace line areas each community's view of the other is still too raw, angry and bitter to permit a "live and let live" attitude to the Twelfth.
The Orange Order, in the face of damning photographic evidence, owned up to some of its brethren being involved in violent clashes with police at Drumcree last Sunday. But at different fields around the North, Orangemen were prepared to make excuses for the trouble.
Similarly, Sinn Féin was pooh-poohing any notion that republicans were preparing for violence as Orange parades went past such flashpoint areas as Ardoyne in north Belfast and Whiterock in the west of the city.
This was against the evidence of petrol, paint and acid bombs as well as iron bars, bricks, bottles and spiked metal missiles being uncovered in north and east Belfast, and of CCTV cameras being damaged at potential trouble spots.
While there were disturbances in Belfast yesterday evening, it could have been a lot worse. The huge security presence and the discovery yesterday evening of the stockpile of customised missiles on the roofs of shops at Ardoyne helped ensure reasonable order in the city, although at the time of writing last night tension remained high.
The fact that the Twelfth concluded as calmly as could be hoped in the circumstances may be due chiefly to a pre-emptive strike by Mr Alan McQuillan, the Police Service of Northern Ireland commander in Belfast.
On Thursday night he called a press conference to warn that republicans were planning a major riot at Ardoyne as Orangemen paraded home. Implicit in his comments was that some senior Sinn Féin figures who had been urging nationalist restraint were speaking with forked tongue.
This was all "black propaganda" and a slur on the people of Ardoyne, said Sinn Féin's Mr Gerry Kelly. He said the missiles recovered from shop roofs were part of the security features of the building.
But Mr McQuillan's initiative placed republicans in a double quandary: if serious violence broke out it would prove Mr McQuillan had good intelligence.
Had major violence erupted in north Belfast, republican politicians could not claim it happened spontaneously. It put Sinn Féin on the back foot for once.
It's possible that Mr McQuillan's warning actually suited the "doves" in Sinn Féin who understood the political consequences of any violence but who had to be mindful of their hardliners. Senior Sinn Féin figures in Ardoyne, including Mr Kelly, did attempt to maintain order at the scene last night.
At the Orange Order and Independent Orange parades in Ballycastle, numbers were down on previous years. Many speakers wanted Sinn Féin thrown out of the executive.
The pro-agreement Ulster Unionist Minister, Mr Michael McGimpsey, accused No unionists of "hijacking" loyalist culture.
He said: "We have potentially one of the best cultural events in the world here with the Twelfth parades. . .It is time for unionists to celebrate their background, not to carp at each other."
Fine words, but very few Orangemen or republicans were listening yesterday.