The Holy Cross dispute occurred in 2001 and 2002 in the
Ardoyne
Ardoyne () is a working class and mainly Catholic and Irish republican district in north Belfast, Northern Ireland. It gained notoriety due to the large number of incidents during The Troubles.
Foundation
The village of Ardoyne was founded in ...
area of north
Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
,
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
. During the 30-year conflict known as
the Troubles
The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an "i ...
, Ardoyne had become segregated –
Ulster Protestants
Ulster Protestants ( ga, Protastúnaigh Ultach) are an ethnoreligious group in the Irish province of Ulster, where they make up about 43.5% of the population. Most Ulster Protestants are descendants of settlers who arrived from Britain in the ...
and
Irish Catholic
Irish Catholics are an ethnoreligious group native to Ireland whose members are both Catholic and Irish. They have a large diaspora, which includes over 36 million American citizens and over 14 million British citizens (a quarter of the British ...
s lived in separate areas. This left Holy Cross, a Catholic primary school for girls, in the middle of a Protestant area. In June 2001—during the last week of school before the summer break—Protestant
loyalists
Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...
began
picketing
Picketing is a form of protest in which people (called pickets or picketers) congregate outside a place of work or location where an event is taking place. Often, this is done in an attempt to dissuade others from going in (" crossing the pick ...
the school, claiming that Catholics were regularly attacking their homes and denying them access to facilities.
The picket resumed on 3 September, when the new school term began. For weeks, hundreds of loyalist protesters tried to stop the schoolchildren and their parents from walking to school through their area. Hundreds of
riot police
Riot police are police who are organized, deployed, trained or equipped to confront crowds, protests or riots.
Riot police may be regular police who act in the role of riot police in particular situations or they may be separate units organize ...
, backed up by
British soldiers, escorted the children and parents through the protest each day. Some protesters shouted
sectarian
Sectarianism is a political or cultural conflict between two groups which are often related to the form of government which they live under. Prejudice, discrimination, or hatred can arise in these conflicts, depending on the political status quo ...
abuse and threw stones, bricks, fireworks,
blast bomb
An improvised explosive device (IED) is a bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action. It may be constructed of conventional military explosives, such as an artillery shell, attached to a detonating mecha ...
s and urine-filled balloons at the schoolchildren, their parents and the
RUC. The "scenes of frightened Catholic schoolgirls running a gauntlet of abuse from loyalist protesters as they walked to school captured world headlines".
[Heatley, Colm]
''Interface, Flashpoints in Northern Ireland''. Chapter 1: Alliance Avenue and Holy Cross Dispute
Conflict Archive on the Internet
CAIN (Conflict Archive on the Internet) is a database containing information about Conflict and Politics in Northern Ireland from 1968 to the present. The project began in 1996, with the website launching in 1997. The project is based within Ul ...
(CAIN) Death threats were made against the parents and school staff by the
Red Hand Defenders
The Red Hand Defenders (RHD) is an Ulster loyalism#Paramilitary and vigilante groups, Ulster loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in 1998 by loyalists who opposed the Belfast Agreement and the loyalist ceasefires. , a loyalist paramilitary group. The protest was condemned by both Catholics and Protestants, including politicians. Some likened the protest to
child abuse
Child abuse (also called child endangerment or child maltreatment) is physical, sexual, and/or psychological maltreatment or neglect of a child or children, especially by a parent or a caregiver. Child abuse may include any act or failure to a ...
and compared the protesters to North American
white supremacist
White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other Race (human classification), races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any Power (social and polit ...
s in the 1950s.
[ During this time, the protest sparked bouts of fierce rioting between Catholics and Protestants in Ardoyne, and loyalist attacks on police. On 23 November, the loyalists ended the protest after being promised tighter security for their area and a redevelopment scheme. The security forces remained outside the school for several months after.
In January 2002, a scuffle between a Protestant and a Catholic outside the school sparked a large-scale riot in the area and attacks on other schools in north Belfast. The picket was not resumed and the situation has been mostly quiet since then. The following year, the ]BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...
aired a documentary-drama about the protests.
Beginnings
Holy Cross is a girls-only Catholic primary school in the Ardoyne area of north Belfast. Ardoyne was one of the most deprived areas of Northern Ireland.[http://www.niassembly.gov.uk/globalassets/Documents/RaISe/knowledge_exchange/presentations/series3/gaffikinppt241013.pdf Changing population in Belfast. Prof. Frank Gaffikin. ]Queen's University Belfast
, mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back?
, top_free_label =
, top_free =
, top_free_label1 =
, top_free1 =
, top_free_label2 =
, top_free2 =
, established =
, closed =
, type = Public research university
, parent = ...
Before the outbreak of the Troubles
The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an "i ...
in the late 1960s, the area was "mixed", with Catholics and Protestants living alongside each other. However, after violence broke out between the two communities, the area became segregated. The area to the south of Alliance Avenue became almost wholly populated by Catholics (who were mostly Irish nationalist
Irish nationalism is a nationalist political movement which, in its broadest sense, asserts that the people of Ireland should govern Ireland as a sovereign state. Since the mid-19th century, Irish nationalism has largely taken the form of cu ...
and republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
) while the area to the north (known as Glenbryn) became wholly populated by Protestants (who were mostly unionist and loyalist
Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cro ...
). This left Holy Cross in the middle of a Protestant area and some of the schoolchildren had to walk through it to get to school. A wall
A wall is a structure and a surface that defines an area; carries a load; provides security, shelter, or soundproofing; or, is decorative. There are many kinds of walls, including:
* Walls in buildings that form a fundamental part of the supe ...
(known as a " peace line") was built to separate the two communities. During the Troubles, almost 20 people were killed near the peace line by loyalists, republicans and the British Army.[
In the mid-1990s, the ]Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army (IRA; ), also known as the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and informally as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary organisation that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, facilitate Irish reun ...
(IRA) and the main loyalist paramilitary groups—the Ulster Defence Association
The Ulster Defence Association (UDA) is an Ulster loyalism, Ulster loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 as an umbrella group for various loyalist groups and Timeline of Ulster Defence Association act ...
(UDA) and Ulster Volunteer Force
The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) is an Ulster loyalist paramilitary group. Formed in 1965, it first emerged in 1966. Its first leader was Gusty Spence, a former British Army soldier from Northern Ireland. The group undertook an armed campaig ...
(UVF)—declared ceasefire
A ceasefire (also known as a truce or armistice), also spelled cease fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be between state act ...
s. In 1998, the Good Friday Agreement
The Good Friday Agreement (GFA), or Belfast Agreement ( ga, Comhaontú Aoine an Chéasta or ; Ulster-Scots: or ), is a pair of agreements signed on 10 April 1998 that ended most of the violence of The Troubles, a political conflict in No ...
was signed, which set up a government in which Irish nationalists/republicans and unionists/loyalists were to share power. However, the political situation remained tense. So-called dissident republicans
Dissident republicans, renegade republicans, anti-Agreement republicans or anti-ceasefire republicans ( ga, poblachtach easaontach) are Irish republicans who do not support the current peace agreements in Northern Ireland. The agreements follo ...
and dissident loyalists continued to wage small-scale violent campaigns.
In December 2000, Protestant taxi driver Trevor Kell was shot dead in Ardoyne. The IRA were suspected of involvement as forensic evidence linked the gun with an IRA shooting in 1997. This would make it the first sectarian killing for almost two years. The next day, loyalists retaliated by shooting dead Catholic man Gary Moore as he was renovating a house in Newtownabbey
Newtownabbey ( ) is a large settlement in North Belfast in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is separated from the rest of the city by Cavehill and Fortwilliam golf course. It surrounds Carnmoney Hill, and was formed from the merging of severa ...
. Later, the IRA was blamed for the "punishment shooting" of two men, one of whom is believed to have been questioned over Kell's death.["Ardoyne stories: Behind nationalist lines"]
BBC News, 4 September 2001. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
The protesters claimed their homes were being regularly attacked by Catholics and that they were being denied access to facilities in the Catholic area, such as shops and playgrounds.[ However, Catholics claimed that their homes were regularly being attacked also.][ The Protestant population of Glenbryn had dropped significantly since the ceasefires and some Protestants believed they were being driven out. Other protesters alleged that IRA members were using the children's journey to-and-from school to gather intelligence.][ Anne Bill, a community worker who was centrally involved in the protest, said "Protestants felt they weren't getting a fair deal under the Good Friday Agreement. People in Glenbryn kept telling the Government about attacks on their houses and how vulnerable they felt but we weren't being listened to. That is why people protested on the Ardoyne Road, the focus wasn't so much the school itself ..The community in Glenbryn is in decline and it is fearful of Ardoyne. That does encourage a siege mentality".][
Tension built and youths from both communities raised more and more flags along Ardoyne Road.][ On 19 June, a fight broke out between men putting up loyalist paramilitary flags and the occupants of a passing car. Loyalists allege that the car from republican Ardoyne estate rammed the ladder and knocked the two men off. How the episode started remains disputed.]["Holy Cross school, Belfast: two years on"](_blank)
Beatrix Campbell
Mary Lorimer Beatrix Campbell, OBE (''née'' Barnes; born 3 February 1947) is an English writer and activist who has written for a number of publications since the early 1970s. Her books include ''Wigan Pier Revisited'' (1984), ''Goliath: Brit ...
, ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', 1 December 2003. Retrieved 4 August 2009. In the summer of 2001, the RUC received intelligence that UDA members were planning to "exploit community tensions" to kill Irish nationalists, Catholics and/or police officers.
Summer 2001
On Tuesday 19 June, Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) officers had to protect children and parents entering the school after they were attacked by loyalist stone throwers. Police described the attack as "vicious". Following the incident, a blockade of the school developed, with loyalists standing across the road and RUC officers keeping the children and their parents away.[A Chronology of the Conflict: 2001]
Conflict Archive on the Internet
CAIN (Conflict Archive on the Internet) is a database containing information about Conflict and Politics in Northern Ireland from 1968 to the present. The project began in 1996, with the website launching in 1997. The project is based within Ul ...
(CAIN)
The following day, the school was forced to close when loyalists blocked the entrance. During the evening, hundreds of loyalists and nationalists (up to 600) clashed with each other and with the police. Shots were also fired at the police and over 100 petrol bombs were thrown. During the riots the police fired a number of the new 'L21 A1' plastic baton rounds for the first time.[ 39 RUC officers were injured. Nine shots in total were fired – six from loyalists and three from republicans. The trouble came after an explosion at the rear of Catholic homes next to a peace line. Both loyalist and nationalist politicians blamed each other for the violence. This would be the first of many large riots to take place in Belfast within more than a year.
The morning blockade continued on Thursday 21 June. About 60 of the school's 230 pupils entered the school through the grounds of another school. Senior ]Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Gri ...
member Gerry Kelly
Gerard Kelly (Irish: Gearard Ó Ceallaigh; born 5 April 1953) is an Irish republican politician and former Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) member who played a leading role in the negotiations that led to the Good Friday Agreement on 1 ...
said: "It's like something out of Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
in the 1960s". Three Protestant families left their homes in Ardoyne Avenue, saying they were afraid of a nationalist attack. During the evening and night there were serious disturbances in the area around the school. Loyalists fired ten shots, and threw six blast bombs and 46 petrol bombs at police lines.[ Two Catholic homes were attacked with pipe bombs, and a child was thrown against a wall by one of the blasts. 24 RUC officers were hurt.
On Friday 22 June, a number of schoolchildren again had to enter the school through the grounds of another school. This was the last day of school before the summer break.][
Talks between the protesters and the schoolchildren's parents took place over the summer, but no agreement was reached. On 20 August, a 'paint bomb' was thrown at the home of a Protestant man in Hesketh Park, smashing a window and causing paint damage to furniture. The man had taken part in the loyalist protest.][
]
Autumn 2001
The protest resumed on Monday 3 September, the first day of the Autumn school term. The RUC, supported by the British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
, were by then better prepared and managed to force a path through the protesters. Loyalists jeered and shouted sectarian abuse as the children, some as young as four, were escorted into the school by their parents and the police. Stones and bottles were thrown at the children and their parents; one woman was injured.[ A mother of one of the schoolgirls said: "It was absolutely terrifying. They were shouting 'dirty tramps', 'your kids are animals', ']Fenian
The word ''Fenian'' () served as an umbrella term for the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and their affiliate in the United States, the Fenian Brotherhood, secret political organisations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries dedicated ...
scum', 'you Fenian bastards'. And all we were trying to do was get our kids to school". Unionist politicians claimed a "heavy-handed" police presence had inflamed the situation, while the Progressive Unionist Party
The Progressive Unionist Party (PUP) is a minor unionist political party in Northern Ireland. It was formed from the Independent Unionist Group operating in the Shankill area of Belfast, becoming the PUP in 1979. Linked to the Ulster Volunte ...
's Billy Hutchinson
Billy "Hutchie" Hutchinson (born 1955) is an Ulster Loyalist politician serving as the leader of the Progressive Unionist Party (PUP) since 2011. He was elected to Belfast City Council in the 1997 elections. Hutchinson was a Member of the North ...
alleged that five known IRA men had been allowed to walk with the children through the Protestant area.
Later in the day the Red Hand Defenders
The Red Hand Defenders (RHD) is an Ulster loyalism#Paramilitary and vigilante groups, Ulster loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in 1998 by loyalists who opposed the Belfast Agreement and the loyalist ceasefires. (RHD), an illegal loyalist paramilitary group, warned parents and children to stay away from the Ardoyne Road. A threat was also issued against police officers. During the evening there was violence near the school as youths from both sides attacked each other and the security forces. Three Catholic-owned homes on Newington Avenue were badly damaged in a loyalist pipe bomb
A pipe bomb is an improvised explosive device which uses a tightly sealed section of pipe (material), pipe filled with an explosive material. The containment provided by the pipe means that simple Explosive material#Low explosives, low explosi ...
attack. The blast caused an oil tank to catch fire and the flames spread to three houses, one of which was completely destroyed. Another pipe bomb exploded in the garden of a house in the White City area. There was also violence on North Queen Street and Limestone Road.[
The following is a timeline of the major events during the Autumn protest.
;Week one
*Tuesday 4 September: Loyalist protesters tried to block access to the school, but riot police forced a path through the protesters and lined the road with armoured vehicles, creating a cordon for the children and parents to walk through. Loyalists attacked riot police with a ]blast bomb
An improvised explosive device (IED) is a bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action. It may be constructed of conventional military explosives, such as an artillery shell, attached to a detonating mecha ...
(an improvised grenade), injuring one officer. As the children and parents made their way through the cordon, loyalist protesters shouted abuse and threw stones at them. Some of the children were forced to turn back. There was more rioting near the school during the evening and night. A crowd of loyalists attacked police with bricks, bottles, stones, fireworks, ballbearings and blast bombs. A volley of shots was also heard in the Glenbryn estate. Police figures stated that 41 police officers and two soldiers had been injured, fifteen blast bombs and 250 petrol bombs had been thrown, and four civilian cars had been damaged.[
*Wednesday 5 September: As the parents and their children passed Glenbryn Parade, loyalists threw a blast bomb towards them. The device exploded, injuring four police officers and a police dog. Panic ensued. Children began screaming and "weeping uncontrollably" and one mother suffered a panic attack. All were taken to hospital. The Red Hand Defenders (RHD) said it was responsible for the attack.][ Afterward, Progressive Unionist Party (PUP) politician Billy Hutchinson said he was "ashamed to be a loyalist today after seeing these people attack young Catholic girls". However, he says he continued to stand with the protesters each morning to show leadership.][ John Reid, the British ]Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...
, called the attack "barbaric" and called for the protest to end immediately.
*Thursday 6 September: The protest was peaceful but very noisy as protesters used air horns (klaxons), blew whistles, and banged metal bin lids as the children passed through the security cordon. Four parents in the 'Right to Education' group were notified that death threats had been made against them by the RHD, who said they would be killed if they were seen taking their children to the school. John Reid, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, cut short his holiday and returned to Northern Ireland because of the situation.[
*Friday 7 September: Loyalists held a silent protest as children and parents passed through the security cordon. The silent protest was a mark of respect for Thomas McDonald (16), a Protestant killed in a ]hit-and-run
In traffic laws, a hit and run or a hit-and-run is the act of causing a traffic collision and not stopping afterwards. It is considered a supplemental crime in most jurisdictions.
Additional obligation
In many jurisdictions, there may be an ...
incident after he had attacked a car with bricks and stones in another part of north Belfast on Tuesday. Catholic parents also held a minute's silence before beginning their walk to the school. Inside the school grounds, prayers involving clergymen from both denominations were said.[
;Week two
*Monday 10 September: The protesters were quiet as the children and their parents passed, but when the parents returned home the protesters used air horns (klaxons), blew whistles, and banged metal bin lids. Some of the protesters shouted "]Fenian
The word ''Fenian'' () served as an umbrella term for the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and their affiliate in the United States, the Fenian Brotherhood, secret political organisations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries dedicated ...
scum" at the parents. In London, Richard Haass
Richard Nathan Haass (born July 28, 1951) is an American diplomat. He has been president of the Council on Foreign Relations since July 2003, prior to which he was Director of Policy Planning for the United States Department of State and a close ...
, the United States Special Envoy for Northern Ireland
The United States Special Envoy for Northern Ireland (officially the Special Envoy of the President and the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland) is the top U.S. diplomat supporting the Northern Ireland peace process. The position is held ...
, discussed the protest with John Reid. Senior Sinn Féin member Gerry Kelly
Gerard Kelly (Irish: Gearard Ó Ceallaigh; born 5 April 1953) is an Irish republican politician and former Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) member who played a leading role in the negotiations that led to the Good Friday Agreement on 1 ...
introduced a private members' motion in the Northern Ireland Assembly
sco-ulster, Norlin Airlan Assemblie
, legislature = 7th Northern Ireland Assembly, Seventh Assembly
, coa_pic = File:NI_Assembly.svg
, coa_res = 250px
, house_type = Unicameralism, Unicameral
, hou ...
, proposing that "the Assembly supports the right to education of children attending the Holy Cross Primary School in north Belfast". Unionist members proposed an amendment to the motion to make it apply to all schools in the area. The Assembly passed the amended motion.[
*Tuesday 11 September: The protest followed the pattern of yesterday. Father Aidan Troy, Chairman of the school's Board of Governors, together with a local Protestant clergyman, held a meeting with representatives of the Concerned Residents of Upper Ardoyne (CRUA) who were organising the protest. John Reid also held a meeting with the representatives.][ Fr Troy said of the protest: "I really found it hard to comprehend the hatred that was shown to the school girls ... I walked with them and because of that I was spat on by the protesters. They held up posters accusing me of being a paedophile and they showed the children pornographic images. The intensity of the protest was hard to comprehend; I don't think people can really understand that from watching it on television".][
*Wednesday 12 September: The protest followed the pattern of Monday and Tuesday. However, before going to the school the children and parents held a prayer service and a minute's silence for the victims of the ]September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...
. On Friday, the protesters halted their protest for one day as a mark of respect for the victims of 11 September attacks.[
;Week three
*Thursday 20 September: Protesters reverted to the earlier tactic of making a lot of noise as the children passed. Six men appeared before Belfast Magistrates Court on public order offences related to the school protest. The six men were remanded on bail but told not to take part in the protest. As a result of the arrests, the group representing the protesters, CRUA, announced that it had "suspended all business until further notice".][
;Week four
*Wednesday 26 September: Protesters threw fireworks at children and parents returning from the school during the afternoon. That evening, a loyalist protest which blocked the nearby ]Crumlin Road
The Crumlin Road is a main road in north-west Belfast, Northern Ireland. The road runs from north of Belfast City Centre for about four miles to the outskirts of the city. It also forms part of the longer A52 road which leads out of Belfast to t ...
turned into a riot. Police said they moved to protect Catholic homes from loyalists and were attacked by gunfire, pipe bombs and petrol bombs. They responded with plastic bullets, and 33 officers were injured. There was further violence in the area the following night, and police came under fire from loyalists on Cambrai Street. Thirteen officers were injured in the violence and a woman was shot in the leg.[
;Week five
*Monday 1 October: Protesters continued their noisy protest as children and parents entered and left the school. Some protesters threw ]urine
Urine is a liquid by-product of metabolism in humans and in many other animals. Urine flows from the kidneys through the ureters to the urinary bladder. Urination results in urine being excretion, excreted from the body through the urethra.
Cel ...
-filled balloons at the children and parents. Cups of cold tea and water were also thrown by protesters. Reg Empey
Reginald Norman Morgan Empey, Baron Empey, (born 26 October 1947), best known as Reg Empey, is a Unionist politician from Northern Ireland, who was the leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) from 2005 to 2010. He was the chairman of the ...
(Ulster Unionist Party
The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it led unionist opposition to the Irish Home Rule movem ...
), then Acting First Minister of Northern Ireland
The First Minister and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland are the joint heads of government of the Northern Ireland Executive and have overall responsibility for the running of the Executive Office. Despite the different titles for the two ...
, and Seamus Mallon (Social Democratic and Labour Party
The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) ( ga, Páirtí Sóisialta Daonlathach an Lucht Oibre) is a social-democratic and Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. The SDLP currently has eight members in the Northern Ireland ...
), then Acting Deputy First Minister, met with local representatives to discuss the situation. Empy said there was no excuse for the ongoing protest.[
*Tuesday 2 October: British ]Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
MP Quentin Davies
John Quentin Davies, Baron Davies of Stamford (born 29 May 1944) is a British Labour politician and life peer who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Grantham and Stamford from 1987 to 2010. He served as a junior defence minister in th ...
, then Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland is a member of the Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet (United Kingdom), British Shadow Cabinet responsible for the scrutiny of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and their department, th ...
, accompanied parents and children as they returned home through the protest. Davies called the protest "utterly unacceptable".[
;Week six
*Tuesday 9 October: Aidan Troy, chairman of the school's Board of Governors, said he was considering taking legal action to try to end the protest. He said: "The weeks of suffering for these small girls were never justified ... This is no longer a legitimate protest; it is a form of ]child abuse
Child abuse (also called child endangerment or child maltreatment) is physical, sexual, and/or psychological maltreatment or neglect of a child or children, especially by a parent or a caregiver. Child abuse may include any act or failure to a ...
". The cost of policing the protest was reported as having reached £1 million.[
*Wednesday 10 October: Many of the protesters had begun to hide their identity and some were wearing masks of characters from ]horror movies
Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes.
Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoc ...
. Local doctor Michael Tan said that some of the schoolchildren's families were near "breaking point" and parents and children were in need of professional psychological care. Brice Dickson
Brice Dickson is a barrister from Northern Ireland and Emeritus Professor of International and Comparative Law at the School of Law, Queen's University Belfast. Formerly Professor of Law at the University of Ulster, he became the first Chief Comm ...
, head of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission
The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) is a non-departmental public body funded through the Northern Ireland Office but operating independently of government as the national human rights institution (NHRI) for Northern Ireland. It ca ...
, visited the scene of the protest. He spoke to some of the protesters but was criticised by some of the parents of the children for not walking the route with them as Quentin Davies had done. One of the protesters displayed a threatening letter allegedly sent by a group called the "Catholic Reaction Force". Meanwhile, it was announced that the security wall between the loyalist and nationalist areas would be extended.[
;Week seven
*Monday 15 October: Brice Dickson again visited the protest and called for it to end. He said "The treatment of these children is inhumane and their right to effective education is being affected". Protestant parents in north and west Belfast said that there had been rising attacks on buses carrying Protestant schoolchildren.][
*Wednesday 17 October: As children and parents were returning home from the school, a loyalist bomb exploded at the back of a house on Alliance Avenue. No one was injured but the householder, and a number of parents and children, were described as being "in shock".][
;Week eight
*Wednesday 24 October: There were disturbances on the Crumlin Road, not far from the school. Loyalists blocked the main road at about 4:30PM, stopping Catholic schoolchildren from getting home. Catholic families arrived to try to escort their children home. Bricks and bottles were thrown by both groups and police moved in to keep the sides apart. The Crumlin Road is the 'alternative' route that loyalists want the Holy Cross children and their parents to use when going to and from the school.][
*Friday 26 October: Two people were arrested during the protest outside the school. Loyalists had tried to block the road and stop children parents from getting to the school. That night, loyalists threw a pipe bomb at a group of soldiers and police on the road, badly wounding a soldier and injuring several officers.][ The school was closed the following week after ]Halloween
Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observanc ...
.
;Week nine
*Monday 5 November: Protesters said they had reached an "understanding" with the Police Service of Northern Ireland
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI; ga, Seirbhís Póilíneachta Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ')
is the police, police force that serves Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabu ...
(the former RUC, now renamed) over the weekend. As a result, the police were not wearing full riot gear when the protest took place.[
*Wednesday 7 November: The mother of a child attending the school began legal proceedings against John Reid and the police. The mother said that police had not given enough protection to her daughter and had failed to identify, arrest, or prosecute protesters who broke the law in full public view. While on a visit to Northern Ireland, Archbishop ]Desmond Tutu
Desmond Mpilo Tutu (7 October 193126 December 2021) was a South African Anglican bishop and theologian, known for his work as an anti-apartheid and human rights activist. He was Bishop of Johannesburg from 1985 to 1986 and then Archbishop ...
met some of the schoolchildren and their parents. Tutu also met some of those involved in the protest.[
*Friday 9 November: The protest was halted for one day. Some of the schoolchildren sat their "11-plus" exams. ]Mary McAleese
Mary Patricia McAleese ( ; ga, Máire Pádraigín Mhic Ghiolla Íosa; ; born 27 June 1951) is an Irish activist lawyer and former politician who served as the eighth president of Ireland from November 1997 to November 2011. She is an academic ...
, then President of Ireland
The president of Ireland ( ga, Uachtarán na hÉireann) is the head of state of Republic of Ireland, Ireland and the supreme commander of the Defence Forces (Ireland), Irish Defence Forces.
The president holds office for seven years, and can ...
, called for an end to the protest.[
;Week ten
*Monday 12 November: There was a change in the policing tactics used at the protest. Instead of gathering together all the Catholic parents and children and escorting them to the school as a group, the police specified a time period in which parents could walk to the school. About 400 police officers (an eighth of the total in Belfast) were there to ensure that the children could get to school. The day's operation cost an estimated £100,000. Some Catholic parents complained that the new police tactics left them more exposed to the protesters. Police arrested a nationalist who was taking a video of the protesters.][
;Week eleven
*Monday 19 November: The media reported that the father of one of the schoolgirls had begun a ]hunger strike
A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke a feeling of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most ...
. The man said that he felt so frustrated by the protest that he was refusing food in an attempt to end the blockade. It was also revealed that a split had occurred in CRUA, the protest group. It was reported that as many as five of its committee members may have resigned. They are believed to include spokesmen Stuart McCartney and Jim Potts.[
*Tuesday 20 November: The ]Belfast Education and Library Board
Education in Northern Ireland differs from education systems elsewhere in the United Kingdom (although it is relatively similar to Wales), but is similar to the Republic of Ireland in sharing in the development of the ''national school'' syste ...
(BELB) provided two buses for those schoolchildren and parents who wished to use them to get through the protest. However, most of them made their way to the school on foot.[
*Thursday 22 November: ]David Trimble
William David Trimble, Baron Trimble, (15 October 1944 – 25 July 2022) was a British politician who was the first First Minister of Northern Ireland from 1998 to 2002, and leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) from 1995 to 2005. He was ...
(UUP), then First Minister, and Mark Durkan (SDLP), then Deputy First Minister, held a meeting with the protest group. Before calling an end to the protest the protesters asked for CCTV
Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal is not openly t ...
to be introduced, along with road-calming measures, and tighter security in the area.[
*Friday 23 November: In the afternoon there was a rally in the middle of Belfast in support of the schoolchildren. About 500 people attended. In the evening the protest group held a meeting and announced that the protest would be "suspended".][
For months after the protest ended, police and British Army armoured vehicles sat outside the school and at the junction of Alliance Avenue each day. However, eventually parents were able to walk their children to school without a police and Army escort.][
]
January 2002
On Wednesday 9 January 2002, there were confrontations outside the school during the early afternoon. Disturbances and rioting quickly spread throughout Ardoyne during the evening and into the night. Catholic parents and Protestant residents each claimed that the other side had started the trouble. Catholic parents said that they had faced increased verbal abuse since Monday during their walks to and from school and that they were attacked while leaving the school on Wednesday afternoon. A Catholic mother claimed she was punched in the face as she walked home from the school with her child. Police officers said they arrived at a confrontation between a Protestant woman and a Catholic woman near the school. The police moved to make an arrest but the person was protected by other residents. Police officers said they had to draw their weapons. There was a report that loyalists had driven a car at the school gates in an attempt to break in. Some schoolchildren had to be taken home through the grounds of another school while a bus carrying other children was attacked on its way down Ardoyne Road. Protestant residents claimed the trouble started when Catholics removed a wreath from a lamp-post.[A Chronology of the Conflict: 2002]
Conflict Archive on the Internet
CAIN (Conflict Archive on the Internet) is a database containing information about Conflict and Politics in Northern Ireland from 1968 to the present. The project began in 1996, with the website launching in 1997. The project is based within Ul ...
(CAIN)
Up to 500 loyalists and nationalists were involved in the disturbances on the Ardoyne Road, Crumlin Road and Brompton Park areas. About 130 petrol bombs, acid bombs and fireworks were thrown. Four Catholic youths were hospitalised after being hit by shotgun pellets at Hesketh Park; loyalists petrol-bombed and destroyed a police vehicle; Catholic homes were attacked on the Upper Crumlin Road; a Catholic woman was knocked-down by a car on Twaddell Avenue; a Catholic man was struck by a police vehicle, and a 13-year-old Protestant schoolboy was injured when a bus was attacked. The police fired eight plastic bullets and arrested three people. As the trouble worsened, 200 police officers, backed by 200 soldiers, were deployed. At least 14 police officers were injured.[
The following day, the Holy Cross school was forced to close for the day. Some other schools in the area closed early due to fears about the safety of schoolchildren. In the morning, six loyalists, one with a gun, rampaged through the grounds of Our Lady of Mercy Catholic girls' secondary school, smashing 18 cars with crowbars. Parents rushed to collect their hysterical daughters. In the afternoon, Protestant pupils from Boys' Model Secondary School were ferried home in police armoured Land Rovers past nationalist crowds on Crumlin Road. Catholic parents and Protestant residents held separate meetings to discuss the situation.][
On Friday 11 January, the Red Hand Defenders issued a death threat against all Catholic teachers and all other staff working at Catholic schools in north Belfast. That weekend, two Catholic schools were set on fire and teachers' cars were attacked. On Monday, more than 750 armed police officers and soldiers were sent to guard Catholic schools in north Belfast while armoured vehicles lined Ardoyne Road. There was no protest outside the school and there was no serious violence, although there were a few minor scuffles. The ]Northern Ireland Office
The Northern Ireland Office (NIO; ga, Oifig Thuaisceart Éireann, Ulster-Scots: ''Norlin Airlann Oaffis'') is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for Northern Ireland affairs. The NIO is led by the Secretary of State for N ...
announced that permanent CCTV cameras would be installed on the Ardoyne Road. A temporary system was to be put in place while waiting for the permanent installation.[
In February 2002, Holy Cross schoolchildren travelled to ]County Galway
"Righteousness and Justice"
, anthem = ()
, image_map = Island of Ireland location map Galway.svg
, map_caption = Location in Ireland
, area_footnotes =
, area_total_km2 = ...
for a free holiday as guests of Peacock's Hotel. The owners of the hotel had made the offer of the holiday following the 2001 protests. Twenty of the schoolchildren also met Bertie Ahern
Bartholomew Patrick "Bertie" Ahern (born 12 September 1951) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach from 1997 to 2008, Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1994 to 2008, Leader of the Opposition from 1994 to 1997, Tánaiste a ...
, then Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...
, during a short visit to Dublin. Ahern said it would show support for the children from the people of the Republic.[
In June, James Adair—brother of ]Ulster Defence Association
The Ulster Defence Association (UDA) is an Ulster loyalism, Ulster loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 as an umbrella group for various loyalist groups and Timeline of Ulster Defence Association act ...
leader Johnny Adair
John Adair (born 27 October 1963), better known as Johnny Adair or Mad Dog Adair, is an Ulster loyalist and the former leader of the "C Company", 2nd Battalion Shankill Road, West Belfast Brigade of the Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF). This was a ...
—was jailed for six months for riotous behaviour and given a concurrent sentence of four months for obstructing police during the riots.
Outcomes
The Holy Cross protest was said to have heightened sectarian tensions in Northern Ireland in a way not seen since the Drumcree dispute in the mid-1990s. PUP politician Billy Hutchinson said "The protest was a disaster in terms of putting their cause forward but it was a genuine expression of their anger and frustration and fear over what is happening in that part of North Belfast".[
A month before the protest was ended the Department of Social Development announced a housing redevelopment package for Glenbryn. This angered some Catholics and nationalists, particularly in north Belfast, where almost 80% of those on the housing waiting list were Catholics. They saw the package as a "buy-off" for Glenbryn residents. Ardoyne Sinn Féin councillor Margaret McClenaghan says the common perception was that loyalists were being rewarded for intimidating schoolgirls. However, one Protestant community activist said "There is no victory for our area despite all the hype. It is actually a strategy of social political engineering between the NlO and the Housing Executive, to solve the issue of interface tension". He explained that 186 houses would be demolished and that only about 20% would be replaced. This, he said, would mean a shrinking of the Protestant population in Glenbryn.][
During the protest, a number of schoolchildren were moved to other schools. Applications for enrolment at Holy Cross had dropped by almost half.][
Since the end of the protest, steps have been taken to heal relations. The North Belfast Community Action Unit was set up to foster inter-community talks, focusing on social and economic issues of interest to Ardoyne and Glenbryn. Nevertheless, community workers from both sides admit progress has been slow.][
]
Effect on the schoolchildren
Brendan Bradley, head of the Survivors of Trauma group (which deals with victims of Troubles-related violence), said that the trauma experienced by the children was "almost without parallel" in the history of the Troubles:It wasn't as though this abuse lasted for a couple of days or was a one-off; it went on for months. Many needed counselling, some long-term counselling, in the wake of it all. Parents told how their daughters had changed from being fun-loving to being very withdrawn.
Fr Aidan Troy said that some of the schoolgirls had been "put on heavy tranquillizers such as diazepam ... because of the trauma they were experiencing". Parents spoke of how their children had been wetting the bed and had started to throw tantrums and become withdrawn. When Holy Cross teachers asked girls in Primary 6 (aged 9–10) to draw a picture many had drawn mothers and fathers crying, surrounded by people with angry faces.[
]
Later incidents
In 2003, Loyalists placed a pipe bomb at the entrance of the school, it was defused and there were no injuries.
In 2003, a BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...
televised drama called ''Holy Cross'' was made about the dispute, though it was filmed in Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
.["Holy Cross dispute in BBC film drama"](_blank)
Marie Louise McCrory, ''The Irish News
''The Irish News'' is a Compact (newspaper), compact daily newspaper based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is Northern Ireland's largest selling morning newspaper and is available throughout Ireland. It is broadly Irish nationalist in its view ...
'', 25 June 2003. Retrieved 1 March 2021.["Belfast priest protests at BBC re-enactment of sectarian hatred outside Holy Cross school"](_blank)
Ian Burrell, ''The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'', 6 November 2003. Retrieved 4 August 2009. Fr Aidan Troy, head of the board of governors of the school, expressed concern that the drama could reignite the problem.
In April 2013, loyalists erected Union Jack
The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Flag the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. ...
s and loyalist flags outside the school and painted the kerbstones at its entrance red, white and blue. On 25 April the Police Service of Northern Ireland
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI; ga, Seirbhís Póilíneachta Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ')
is the police, police force that serves Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabu ...
(PSNI) were called to the school to disperse a loyalist protest being held outside it. The protest was sparked by false rumours on social networks that Belfast City Council
Belfast City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Bhéal Feirste) is the local authority with responsibility for part of the city of Belfast, the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland. The Council serves an estimated population of (), the l ...
employees were due to arrive to remove the flags and the paint.
In the early hours of Sunday 23 April 2017, a bomb was found by a police patrol outside the gates of Holy Cross Boys' Primary School in Ardoyne. The police said the bomb was "significant in terms of its ndisclosedshape", and that police on foot patrol were the likely target. A sense of outrage was reported in the area.
References
External links
BBC Q & A on the Holy Cross dispute
{{coord, 54, 37, 12, N, 5, 58, 08, W, region:GB-BFS_type:event_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title
2001 in Northern Ireland
2002 in Northern Ireland
2000s in County Antrim
21st century in Belfast
Anti-Catholicism in Northern Ireland
Attacks on schools in Europe
Crime in Belfast
Crimes against children
Education in Northern Ireland
Ulster loyalism
Protests in Northern Ireland
Riots and civil disorder in Northern Ireland
Sectarian violence
The Troubles in Belfast