O 311938Z OCT 08
FM AMCONSUL BELFAST
TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 1410
INFO AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 
AMEMBASSY DUBLIN PRIORITY 
NSC WASHINGTON DC
AMCONSUL BELFAST

C O N F I D E N T I A L BELFAST 000138 
 
 
NOFORN 
 
G FOR SPECIAL ENVOY DOBRIANSKY; NSC FOR ANSLEY 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL:  10/31/2018 
TAGS: PGOV PREL EI UK
SUBJECT: PLANNED MILITARY PARADE AND SINN FEIN COUNTER-DEMONSTRATION 
PROVOKE CONTROVERSY 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Susan Elliott, Consul General, Belfast. 
REASON: 1.4 (b), (d) 
 
¶1.  (C) Summary:  British Ministry of Defence plans to hold a 
welcome home parade November 2 in Belfast for troops from the 
Royal Irish Regiment (RIR) returning from Afghanistan.  Sinn 
Fein (SF) and dissident republican groups announced that they 
plan to hold separate counterdemonstrations on the same day.  SF 
President Gerry Adams told the Consul General that the SF 
protest march will be peaceful.  The Consul General asked Adams 
to consider changing the route of the SF march to avoid the 
gathering places of loyalist supporters of the RIR and dissident 
republican groups.  Adams agreed to consider the request and on 
October 31 SF announced they had decided to change the route of 
their march to completely avoid areas near the loyalists and 
dissident republicans.  On the same day, in order to diffuse the 
tensions, the Ministry of Defence cancelled its planned fly over 
of military aircraft and announced that troops will not carry 
weapons during the parade.  PSNI Deputy Chief Constable Paul 
Leighton told the Consul General that the dissident republican 
group EIRIGI had not officially informed the PSNI and the 
Parades Commission of its plans to hold a march.  As a result 
the PSNI considers the EIRIGI march to be illegal and will 
arrest anyone trying to participate. End Summary. 
 
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MILITARY PLANS WELCOME HOME PARADE IN BELFAST 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU) In mid-July, the British Military announced plans to 
hold a welcome home parade and church service in Belfast for 
Royal Irish Regiment (RIR) troops returning from Afghanistan. 
The Belfast City Council agreed in September to host a civic 
reception for the troops, even though politicians from the 
Nationalist parties opposed the plan.  Nationalist members of 
the Belfast City Council from the SDLP and SF plan to boycott 
the reception attended by soldiers, their families, and Unionist 
supporters of the RIR. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Initially planned as full military march with weapons 
and military aircraft flying over the parade, on October 31, 
Major General Chris Brown announced that in order to reduce 
tensions, the RIR troops would be unarmed.  He also cancelled 
the military aircraft fly over of the parade.  In addition, the 
RIR's band will not play regimental music nor will the RIR carry 
regimental colors.  Several Unionist politicians, including Ian 
Paisley Jr of the DUP and Danny Kennedy of the UUP, have 
publicly expressed their unhappiness with the Gen. Brown's 
announcement. 
 
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SINN FEIN JUSTIFIES MARCH 
------------------------- 
 
¶4.  (C)  SF announced plans in mid-October to stage a counter 
demonstration on the same day as the military parade.  SF 
President Gerry Adams termed the British Ministry of Defence's 
decision to hold a military parade "totally unacceptable." 
Adams also blamed Secretary of State Shaun Woodward for allowing 
the parade to proceed.  NOTE: Woodward's staff told Consulate 
that he did not feel comfortable asking SF to change their 
plans. END NOTE.  Adams stated publicly that victims of British 
troop actions in Ireland would be offended by a military parade. 
  Adams and SF supporters have also said protest march also 
reflects Sinn Fein's opposition to wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. 
 
 
¶5.  (C) In a meeting October 30, Adams assured the Consul 
General that the SF demonstration would be peaceful.  The Consul 
General raised police concerns that route of the SF march would 
intersect with both dissident republicans and loyalist 
supporters of the military.  Adams admitted he had not focused 
on the potential problem regarding the routing of the march.  He 
said he would recommend that SF modify the route because he did 
not want any violence.  SF officials contacted Consulate Belfast 
and Embassy Dublin on the morning of Oct 31 to advise that SF 
decided upon a new route which would place them nowhere near the 
loyalists and dissident republicans. 
 
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DISSIDENT REPUBLICANS COULD CAUSE VIOLENCE 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶6.  (C/NF)  EIRIGI, a dissident republican group based in 
Dublin, announced plans to hold its own demonstration on 
November 2.  PSNI Deputy Chief Constable Paul Leighton advised 
Consul General the police believe up to 200 dissidents, many 
bussed in from Dublin, may try to participate in this protest 
march.  The dissident march is scheduled to begin in West 
Belfast (away from the SF gathering).  Since this group did not 
request permission from the Parades Commission, the police will 
not allow them to march and will arrest anyone trying to 
participate in this "illegal" demonstration. This could lead to 
a confrontation and violence because the PSNI has intelligence 
that dissidents may have small petrol bombs and hand guns. 
 
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COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶7.  (C) The British Defence Ministry apparently believed after a 
year of devolved government that a military parade could take 
place in Belfast without incident.  However, its parade has 
resurrected the anger and distrust that the republican community 
felt towards the British military.  As a result SF leadership 
felt compelled to hold a counterdemonstration.  With relations 
between the DUP and SF already strained due to differing 
opinions on how to devolve policing and justice, the extensive 
media coverage of the outrage from both sides has not been 
helpful.  While the parade controversy has damaged 
cross-community relations, peaceful parades by the military and 
SF on November 2 will demonstrate that Northern Ireland's 
political leaders and majority of the population do not want to 
return to the violence of the past. 
 
 
ELLIOTT