A gulf of mistrust has opened up between the nationalist community in Northern Ireland and the new Secretary of State, Dr Mo Mowlam, as a consequence of the decision to force through last Sunday's Orange Order march on the Garvaghy Road. The damage was compounded by the leaking of a Northern Ireland Office document, dated June 20th, which stated that "the consensus among the key players - the Secretary of State, the Minister of State, the Chief Constable, the GOC (General Officer Commanding the British forces), the parades commission chairman is that, if there is no local accommodation, a controlled parade on the Garvaghy Road is the least worst outcome.
The official mindset behind the briefing document appears clear. A repeat of last year's unfortunate events, when Orangemen were at first confronted and then - as a result of widespread civil unrest and rioting were allowed to dictate events, could not be contemplated. "Might" might not be right, but it was horribly persuasive. The RUC Chief Constable, Mr Ronnie Flanagan, admitted as much when he said his decision to allow the march to proceed was based on an assessment of the number of lives that would be lost if, on the one hand, he banned it or, on the other, allowed it to go ahead. It was truly "a choice between two evils".
Dr Mowlam has denied official duplicity in relation to the march and has said the leaked document was just one official view, which she had not endorsed; to suggest she had was an unfair interpretation of her position. That may be so. Nobody can deny that she invested a great deal of time and effort in seeking a compromise that could satisfy both communities. That she failed in her efforts is more a reflection on the intransigence of the people the Secretary of State had to deal with rather than a measure of her own good faith.
Given the alienation and dismay that now exists within the nationalist community in the aftermath of Drumcree, it is heartening to find that the two governments are moving forward together on the political front. A meeting between the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Burke, and Dr Mowlam in Belfast yesterday produced agreement that the arms decommissioning issue would be dealt with within the Northern Ireland talks process by July 23rd. Furthermore, mid-September has been nominated for the opening of substantive political discussions between the parties. These are considerable advances and they promise future positive political developments.
The British government is also moving to amend the legal framework within which parades take place in Northern Ireland, in an attempt to defuse the annual confrontations that invariably end in violence. Dr Mowlam has promised legislation by the autumn. She has spoken of her belief that a full debate on the matter at Westminster, in which broad community issues and public safety would be considered, could place controversial marches in a new context. In the short term, she has called for compromise from the Orange Order in relation to next Saturday's contentious Twelfth marches on the Lower Ormeau Road in Belfast and elsewhere. In the event of such co- operation not being forthcoming on a voluntary basis, official British government action in support of nationalist sentiment would not go amiss at this time.