19/11/2001

Man begins hunger strike to end Holy Cross dispute

A parent at Holy Cross Primary School in north Belfast has begun a hunger strike aimed at stopping the protest.

The man, whose daughter attends Holy Cross Primary School in Ardoyne, which has been the focus of a bitter sectarian feud between nationalist parents and loyalist protesters, has been refusing food since last Wednesday.

It has been reported that the 31-year-old father-of-two, whose identity has not been disclosed, is conducting the fast because he sees no other way of resolving the situation.

However chairman of the board of governors of Holy Cross Father Aidan Troy, has urged the man not to continue with his fast.

Fr Troy who spent the weekend with the man said: “This is very much an act of frustration, an act of desperation.” He also said that while he understood why the man was fasting, it could have disastrous consequences for the man and his family.

Stuart McCartney who represents the Protestant Concerned Residents of Upper Ardoyne has said that while he sympathised with the man, he felt the action could be avoided. Speaking to BBC Radio Ulster on Monday from the picket line he said: “This whole thing could have been finished a long time ago, I am concerned about how many more victims, such as this gentleman, it is going to take, before this is resolved.”

The hunger strike is the latest development in a conflict which has seen police line the route taken by children and their parents to and from the Holy Cross school in the sectarian flashpoint area. (AMcE)

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