East Belfast residents stage protest

Published Thursday, 04 August 2011

Loyalist residents have held a peaceful protest at an east Belfast interface on Thursday to raise awareness of what they claim is a rising number of attacks on their homes.

Around 100 people who live in the Lower Newtownards Road turned out at 5pm for the hour-long demonstration.

They state that houses on Duke and Susan Street have been under sustained attack over the summer, and the missiles are coming from nationalist Bryson Street.

Wheelchair user Chris Maneely has lived in the area for a year.

"My house has been getting attacked fairly regularly, two or three times a week with bottles, stones, bricks and rocks," he said.

"It's been getting worse and worse in the past two weeks and I've phoned the police almost every night.

"I live alone, so there's no one there to help me clean up the mess, so my family have to come round and pick it up because me in a wheelchair with tyres, picking up bits of glass bottle isn't going to work that well."

Community representatives from the Short Strand area told UTV they were very surprised by these claims.

They said they are not aware of any incidents and they are continuing to work to defuse tensions in the area.

Police have confirmed that they are carrying a robust investigation into a number of incidents in the area.

Both sides say there needs to be much greater work done in relation to security measures.

Comments

17 Comments

Budsy in EAST BELFAST wrote (289 days ago):

M.B that load of rubbish i know ppl on the interface and there houses are getting attacked daily by republicans youths they have hit kids petrol bombed homes it is completely orcestrated by republicans. you are blaming the uvf on everything what about the 2 young protestants and the photographer shot from the grounds of the chapel i suppose that was the uvf aswell.

ronnie in belfast wrote (290 days ago):

after hearing the stories FROM BOTH SIDES i was driving down newtownards rd fri evening i thought id have a look im no reporter and i dont lve in area ,just thought is see for myself well for what its worth the roofs and rd off susan st and juke street are covered in paint stains these are wheelchair axcess bunglows im talking about i dont think the people who live in them jumped out off wheelchairs to paint there roofs .then i drove past one landrover at corner off bryson st and through the short strand no paint stains to be seen anywhere and police are siting under a cctv towher ?? why are they taking an hour to respond to phone calls why are they siting there parked all night ,o my i add playing cards in back ,i know it made my mind up about whos telling the truth is this how we treet people who allready have problems in there everyday lives

Gazza in belfast wrote (291 days ago):

SHORT STRAND COMMUNITY WORKERS HAVE TO DO MORE....THEY HAVE BEEN TOLD EVERY TIME THERE IS AN ATTACK ON PROTESTANT HOMES , THE POLICE ALSO NEED TO PULL THEIR FINGER OUT AND START POLICING THE STRAND ITS NO USE DRIVING ROUND AND ROUND PROTESTANT AREAS WHEN BRICKS AND BOTTLES ARE BEING THROWN OVER THE POLICE WALL

M.B. in Belfast wrote (292 days ago):

What a load of rubbish and self pitying nonsense Glenn. The media and even, surprisingly, the PSNI have stated that the trouble over the summer in East Belfast was organised and orchestrated by the UVF. Most sensible and reasonable people don't buy this Unionist PR line anymore, it is criminal Loyalists who are to blame for the rise in tensions on that interface. It really is galling to watch Newtownards Road residents continue to protest and peddle the UVF line when everyone knows who it is stirring up the trouble. As I said before some of these individuals should get out of their beds and get a job instead of making up more excuses to get more grants and millions spent on their 'community representatives'. We have had enough of this rhubarb!

glen in east belfast wrote (292 days ago):

@ dan, why should the residents put pressure on the psni to arrest the UVF if the psni have evidence that uvf members were involved then they should use that evidence to bring them to court, these attacks happened before the rioting in june the loyalists that live at these interfaces are being attacked every night which when the psni are called they dont bother showing up hours later

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