Irish mark 10 years of strife

Press, 29 August 1978, Page 8

Irish mark 10 years of strife

NZPA-Reuter Belfast! About 3000 marchers on Sunday remembered the civil-rights demonstration which ushered in the 10-year-old Northern Ireland conflict. They followed the Bkm route from Coalisland to Dungannon taken 10 years: ago by some 3000 people! protesting against dis-I crimination against Romani Catholics in the heavily-pro- 1 testant British-ruled prov- i ince. But despite 10 years of j guerrilla war and sectarian l conflict no settlement is in! sight. The two communities have! repeatedly failed to work! out a political formula for governing the province, I which is now directly ruled [ by the British from London. I So far the British Govern-'

ment has not responded to calls from the neighbouring Irish Republic to commit itself to pull out eventually.

The Protestants outvote the Catholics two-to-one, and successive British Governments have said they will not pull out unless the majority wants it. Britain’s 13,000 troops have, however, inflicted heavy losses on the Provisional Irish Republican Army, the main guerrilla force. Bombings, shootings, and rioting are few compared to what they were four years ago.

Nearly 300 British soldiers are among the 2000 dead of the last 10 years, and 20,000 people have been injured.

The march 10 years ago ended in clashes with the police and Protestant counter-demonstrations.