Mary Lou McDonald denies Taoiseach’s claim Sinn Féin has ‘simplistic’ view of Drumcree solution

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald has rejected the Taoiseach’s suggestion that her party has an “overly simplistic” view of how to resolve the Drumcree dispute. Sinn Féin has repeatedly called on the UK government to intervene and stop the Orange Order march which is at the centre of the continuing stand-off at Garvaghy Road in Portadown. Micheál Martin told reporters on Saturday he did not agree with Sinn Féín’s assessment that “Drumcree could be sorted by me simply telling Andy Burnham what to do” and accused the party of lacking “sincerity”.Asked on the BBC’s Sunday Politics programme if she accepted that “the reality is, it’s not that simple”, McDonald replied: “well, it is actually.” READ MOREShe said Martin had “described the Parades Commission determination as incomprehensible and wrong, and he and I agree on that matter.“We have impressed upon him and on all the others, on the British government, that there is a resolution to this, which is that the Secretary of State call this, make it clear that he puts a stop to this march, and thereby creates a space for a mediation and a dialogue.” She also accused the Dublin and London governments of creating a “vacuum” by not working actively towards Irish unity, saying that while they “sit on their hands and fail to create the democratic space and dynamic for all of us to engage, to discuss, to plan about Ireland’s future, while there is a vacuum there, we are sitting ducks for this kind of reactionary sideswipe from small elements in society who want to upend our progress. “So the government in London [and] particularly Micheál Martin and the Government in Dublin, need to pay attention to that.” Taoiseach Micheál Martin criticised Sinn Féin's stance at a Fianna Fáil event on Saturday. Photograph: Brian Lawless/PA Wire The stand-off at Drumcree has been continuing since September 27th, when a limited march by 35 members of the Orange Order – which had been given the go-ahead by the Parades Commission and subsequently by the High Court – was prevented from proceeding due to the presence of protesters on the Garvaghy Road. The Orangemen have made a number of attempts to parade down the road since then, but their way has been blocked by police Land Rovers, and protesters continue to maintain a watch along the sides of the road. Supporters of the Orange Order at a festival in Edgarstown, Portadown, to rally the community behind the march. Photograph: Mark Marlow/PA Wire Rap trio Kneecap and contemporary Irish folk singer Radie Peat are expected to visit the area on Sunday evening, it is understood.On Saturday, rallies took place on the Garvaghy Road and in the loyalist Edgarstown estate in support of the two sides in the dispute. Addressing the several thousand who gathered in support of the residents, Sinn Féin vice-president and Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O’Neill said that “if the British government is not prepared to end this crisis, then it’s up to every single one of us ... to collectively and unequivocally stand with the Garvaghy Road residents and say no to a sectarian, unwanted march”. The DUP MLA and Deputy First Minister, Emma Little-Pengelly, described it as “electioneering” and accused O’Neill and Sinn Féin of “a complete abdication of leadership”. The district master of the Orange Order in Portadown, Nigel Dawson, said: “We’re still waiting for the Chief Constable to do his job and put the parade down the road, as per our legal determination and backed up by a High Court judge.” A fresh legal challenge to the march by the Garvaghy Road residents is due to be heard at the Court of Appeal in Belfast on Monday. Lawyers for the residents argue the Parades Commission “materially misdirected itself” on the police assessment of the potential for disorder, and had not given an “accurate representation of the evidence received from the PSNI” in its decision. Drumcree church in Portadown, where the proposed march would start. Photograph: Liam McBurney/PA Wire On Sunday, McDonald again defended Sinn Féin’s participation in the protest against the march and said there was “no question of us co-operating” with any potential police investigation. A major police operation remained under way at Drumcree on Sunday and evidence gathering is “ongoing”.Assistant Chief Constable Anthony McNally said “anyone blocking the Garvaghy Road will still be treated as participating in an unnotified and therefore illegal protest” and “anyone found to have broken the law will face criminal justice consequences”. Additional reporting – PA.