THE PSNI HAVE described yesterday’s Twelfth of July celebrations as the most peaceful for some years and a model for years to come.
Assistant Chief Constable Alan Todd said, “I am pleased that what was a lovely sunny day also turned out to be a lovely day for the thousands who attended the various demonstrations across the country.
We dealt with a number of minor incidents throughout the day and have made a small number of arrests but these were very much in the margins of what has been widely described as the most peaceful Twelfth of July for some years and a model for years to come.
He added that it was “a busy day for police officers who were out and about keeping people safe”.
Despite this, one bonfire in East Belfast was spotted bearing a coffin with an effigy of Martin McGuinness on it ahead of the twelfth.
Sinn Féin Senator Rose Conway-Walsh said, “This is a blatant display of hatred and bigotry which propagates sectarian divisions in our country.
“If there is one thing that Martin McGuinness showed us, it was how to accept and embrace those with different opinions, creeds, and cultures from ours. He showed us the importance of reaching out and of the reconciliation phase of the peace process.”
In a statement on Tuesday, DUP leader Arlene Foster urged those who build bonfires to “not play into the hands of those who want to demonise [their] culture”.
Senator Conway-Walsh has hit out at the political response, saying:
It is not acceptable that unionist politicians fail to show leadership in refusing to condemn this hate crime.
“Through being guarantors of the Good Friday Agreement the British Government and Irish Government have a legal obligation to ensure that the elements of that Agreement and other agreements are fulfilled, because it serves to tackle all these hate crimes.”
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