Lord Mayor issues interface ‘cool it’ plea

The Lord Mayor of Belfast, Councillor Tom Ekin, today issued a ‘cool it’ message to political and community leaders for the sake of people who live in interface areas across the city.

He said he was making his call after meeting with many people who work and live in these areas during his time as Lord Mayor and said that it was time for everyone in Northern Ireland to take a step back in a bid to reduce tensions ahead of the summer.

The Lord Mayor said: “We are in a very dangerous time following the failure to reach a political settlement before Christmas, the speculation about the Northern Bank robbery, the callous murder of Robert McCartney, the upcoming elections and the onset of the parading season.

“I have been speaking to those people on the front line in interface areas and they are very fearful as it is always they who feel the brunt when tensions spill on to the streets.

“It is vital that politicians during election campaigning do not stoke up the tensions and instead try to cool them, they have the power to do that. They should avoid trying deliberate provocation of opponents or knee jerk reactions to things that they don’t like.”

Cllr Ekin said that Northern Ireland had suffered too many years of intolerance, of stimulating fear, of not accepting responsibility for actions.

“This is a failed formula and we should focus on messages of hope, tolerance, open mindedness and progress. Surely that isn’t too much to ask,” he concluded.

(MB/SP)