Paul Steele, a member of the Volunteer Tom Williams Republican Flute Band, part of the West of Scotland Bands Alliance that organized the march, described the ban as "an infringement of our civil liberties."

Based on what the cops called "new information which indicates there is a significant threat of serious disorder, violence and damage to property," the councillors hastily convened a meeting and banned the march.

Offering no evidence, the Daily Record accused march organizers of having in the past provoked violence and a number of arrests. The paper also claimed that the bands have websites that "glorify IRA terrorism and sectarian hatred." The band in question has no web site.

Jack McConnell, member of the Scottish Parliament for the area, said through a spokesman that "when processions are used to promote sectarianism or fuel religious hatred then he’d expect the police to take this into account and take action."

McConnell has been at the forefront of a chauvinist campaign against Irish nationalism in the name of combating religious "sectarianism." Scotland has a substantial population of Irish origin that has been subjected to second-class status.

"It is totally unacceptable that our community is denied rights because of threats," said Jim Slaven of the James Connolly Society. "We are adamant that we will be challenging this."

Organizers will reapply for a permit, said Kelly Phinn, another member of the Tom Williams Flute Band. "It will be worse for them in the end, because more people will come when we do have the march," he said.

"Feelings are running high," said Slaven, "as people feel that for generations we have had to put up with [pro-British] marches that are provocative, cause disruption, and are intimidatory of the Catholic population." The area is the scene of annual marches celebrating the British conquest of Ireland. Flute bands connected to the Orange Order, a rightist pro-British organization that is anti-Catholic, are active in the marches.

"They’ve marched through Wishaw for years," said Phinn. "The Scottish Executive has anti-racist billboards saying ‘One Scotland, many cultures,’" commented Steele. "There’s a contradiction there."

"We want an evenhanded approach based on the right to march," said Slaven. "I am disappointed that politicians saw fit to fuel the fires over this event."  
 
 
Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home