And could the impasse bring down Stormont?

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Members of the Orange Order march from Drumcree Church amid protests of residents of the Garvaghy Road. Photograph: Cathal McNaughton/Reuters
Members of the Orange Order march from Drumcree Church amid protests of residents of the Garvaghy Road. Photograph: Cathal McNaughton/Reuters

Since early Sunday morning, 35 members of the Orange Order have been waiting at Drumcree Church to parade down the mainly nationalist Garvaghy Road in Portadown.

It is a march that, in the 1990s, sparked tension and violence in Drumcree, and with the result that the Protestant loyalist organisation has been refused permission to march through the Catholic area for nearly 30 years.

So why was it given permission now?

As of Tuesday, the Orangemen remain determined to march, saying they now have the legal right to do so. The local nationalist community is equally intent on preventing them.

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And the repercussions are being felt at Stormont. The DUP and the Orange Order have made complaints to the PSNI about the presence of Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald and Northern Ireland’s First Minister, Michelle O’Neill, at the protest.

With tensions running high on the streets of Portadown, and the DUP-Sinn Féin political partnership fraying, could this standoff bring down Stormont?

Mark Hennessy, The Irish Times Ireland and Britain Editor, reports from the Garvaghy Road.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Susanne Brennan.

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