Racist violence surges in loyalist Belfast
01 August 2003
In July this year, racist attacks, which have been prevalent in Belfast for the past five years, peaked when seven families had to flee their homes after an escalation in racist attacks. Two families from South Africa had lucky escapes when pipe bombs failed to explode, others had to flee their homes due to mob attacks. There have also been several violent robberies at the homes of Chinese families who own take-aways and other businesses in the area. The attacks have been connected to the "White Nationalist Party" (WNP) which distributed racist leaflets in the Craigavon area in Belfast before the attacks, and members of the loyalist UDA and UDF.
The loyalist Ulster Political Research Group which represents the UDA quickly distanced themselves from the attacks although their spokesman Tommy Kirkham had to admit that: "The fact is, it wouldn't be possible for the UDA and UVF not to know what's going on in South Belfast". However, the Andersonstown News (7 July 2003) commented that loyalist sources on the Donegall Road say racist attacks were occurring long before the fascist party started their propaganda campaign: "Everyone in the area knows it was the UDA's junior wing, the UYM, who pipe-bombed the South African homes," said a loyalist insider. "Similar incidents have been occurring for the past five years. The UDA are just trying to cover their backs by issuing this statement - its just too easy and convenient to blame the Nazi Party."
Ulster loyalist Gareth James Allen (35), who formed the extreme right-wing "White Nationalist Party" in Northern Ireland last year, confirmed he had resigned from the party after pressure from loyalists but he denied his party had anything to do with the attacks. "Its just not worth the hassle," he said. "If I were to stay in my current role I’ll become a hate figure within my own community." The leaflets distributed by the WNP claimed "Al Qaida-style terrorists [were] operating in the area" and opposed the building of a mosque in nearby Bleary.
James Uhomoibhi, chairman of the Northern Ireland African Cultural Centre, said that "Africans here are not a homogeneous community. There are Catholics and Protestants, living in loyalist and nationalist areas, from the Falls Road to the Shankill. Those attacking us want to push the community into a state of confusion and derail it from reaching harmony and peaceful coexistence."
About 2,600 Africans live in Northern Ireland, of whom about 30-40% live in Belfast. There was a 45% rise in reported racial incidents - from 186 to 269 - from 1999 to 2000, according to the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland.
Statewatch vol 10 no 2. Guardian 5.7.03 and
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