Violent scenes after vote on union flag in Belfast - Polidicks

[QUOTE][B]Belfast council votes to restrict flying of union flag over city hall[/B] Two PSNI officers were hurt after hundreds of protesters tried to storm Belfast City Hall following a vote to restrict the flying of the union flag to 15 days a year. Police used batons and brought in dogs to push the protesters, some of whom had scarves covering their faces, out of the courtyard at the back of City Hall. Cars belonging to council members and staff were damaged during the disorder. A council security worker was also reported to have been hurt. Earlier, councillors agreed by 29 votes to 21 to bring City Hall into line with Stormont and other government buildings in Northern Ireland to fly the union flag on designated days. Just over a week ago, the council's strategic policy and resources committee voted 11-9 in favour of removing the flag completely. The decision had to be ratified at a full meeting. Belfast City Hall opened in 1906 and the union flag has flown from a flagpole in the centre of the building every day since. The PSNI said two female police officers were taken to hospital. Their injuries are not believed to be life-threatening. A spokeswoman said violence had spread to other parts of Belfast. Hundreds of loyalists took to the streets and burnt Irish tricolours to show their opposition to the motion to have the flag removed for the first time in over a century. [B]Sinn Féin MLA Gerry Kelly, who sits on the Northern Ireland Policing Board, said the PSNI had serious questions to answer over the handling of the situation.[/B] [B]Speaking from City Hall, he said: "I have to say, and I don't use these words unless I really mean them, it was a disgraceful police operation - or lack of a police operation.[/B] [B]"If that had been 1,000 or more republicans, it would have been very different. There they would not have left it that they were able to come into the back of City Hall.[/B] "They indiscriminately attacked cars. We are very, very lucky that they didn't get into the building or we could have been dealing with a lot more injuries." [B]Ulster Unionist Jim Rodgers said he was not surprised violence had flared.[/B] [B]"There is a real anger," he said. "I cannot condone violence but people do not realise just how strongly the people in Northern Ireland think about flying the flag over City Hall."[/B] Maire Hendron from the Alliance Party said the violence was orchestrated through social media sites. She said: "Tonight was a disaster for this city." [/QUOTE] [IMG]http://img.rasset.ie/0006b940-642.jpg[/IMG] Source: [URL]http://www.rte.ie/news/2012/1203/belfast-council-union-flag.html[/URL]

[quote]some of whom had scarves covering their faces[/quote] Oh no! Not [I]scarves [/I]!

What the fuck? Bitches need to fly our flag! Britain didn't lose soldiers keeping that place safe for nothing.

Shut up, Sinn Féin, you IRA supporting POS.

Boohoo, it's a goddamned flag. [editline]3rd December 2012[/editline] And by the way, go fuck yourself Sinn Fein. [editline]3rd December 2012[/editline] [QUOTE=Trainbike;38693271]Oh no! Not [I]scarves [/I]![/QUOTE] A ski mask might as-well be correlated with a terrorist attack to most people here :v:

It's just the usual shite, organised protest turns into a riot because all the thugs in hoodies turn up looking for a fight with the police.

I still don't understand what advantage Britain had to retaining Northern Ireland apart from retaining integrity over territories they've claimed.

[QUOTE=Irkalla;38693574]I still don't understand what advantage Britain had to retaining Northern Ireland apart from retaining integrity over territories they've claimed.[/QUOTE] I still don't understand what advantage Ireland had to splitting itself off from the UK.

[QUOTE=Irkalla;38693574]I still don't understand what advantage Britain had to retaining Northern Ireland apart from retaining integrity over territories they've claimed.[/QUOTE] It's full of Scottish and English people. [editline]3rd December 2012[/editline] [QUOTE=FlubberNugget;38693584]I still don't understand what advantage Ireland had to splitting itself off from the UK.[/QUOTE] Mostly to do with Catholic discrimination iirc. Although that had massively improved during the 19th century.

People want a united Ireland then you tell them they'd have to pay for health care and they change there tune pretty fast.

[QUOTE=Sobotnik;38693665] Mostly to do with Catholic discrimination iirc. Although that had massively improved during the 19th century.[/QUOTE] haha, oh lord.

[QUOTE=Sobotnik;38693665]It's full of Scottish and English people. [editline]3rd December 2012[/editline] Mostly to do with Catholic discrimination iirc. Although that had massively improved during the 19th century.[/QUOTE] Things only started improving after the Good Friday agreement mate sorry, don't know about you but I've been told stories of Catholics getting the shit kicked out of them for walking on the wrong side of the street some-20 years ago

[QUOTE=Killzone(Dylan);38693691]People want a united Ireland then you tell them they'd have to pay for health care and they change there tune pretty fast.[/QUOTE] But most Northern Ireland don't want to reunite with the republic of Ireland, for the most part NI has a hell of a lot more in common with Scotland than it does the republic.

and people say the US gets uppity about flags

[QUOTE=Mabus;38693776]haha, oh lord.[/QUOTE] But it did, and still is.

[QUOTE=Nightsure;38693800]Things only started improving after the Good Friday agreement mate sorry, don't know about you but I've been told stories of Catholics getting the shit kicked out of them for walking on the wrong side of the street some-20 years ago[/QUOTE] You can say the same for either side, please don't turn this thread into deciding who the victims of the Troubles were, when both sides were harmed :/

[QUOTE=lavacano;38693810]and people say the US gets uppity about flags[/QUOTE] Trust me, we only get uppity about flags when they aren't the kind we hang up around our neighborhood. [sub]sadly.[/sub]

[QUOTE=Nightsure;38693800]Things only started improving after the Good Friday agreement mate sorry, don't know about you but I've been told stories of Catholics getting the shit kicked out of them for walking on the wrong side of the street some-20 years ago[/QUOTE] Until the 1820s, Catholics weren't allowed to vote. There were also heavy restrictions on property ownership.

My Facebook is fucking exploding with all this shit. They've got a point thought. Since the flags been taken down, the king billy memorial will probably be painted over.

[QUOTE=Sobotnik;38693842]Until the 1820s, Catholics weren't allowed to vote. There were also heavy restrictions on property ownership.[/QUOTE] In earlier years you could get seriously fucked up financially and sometimes mortally for being a Catholic or even a suspected Catholic sympathiser I'm both English and Irish and frankly I'd rather see a wholly independent Ireland

[QUOTE=Maloof?;38693959]In earlier years you could get seriously fucked up financially and sometimes mortally for being a Catholic or even a suspected Catholic sympathiser[/QUOTE] It got better though. Certainly life as a Catholic in 1910 in Ireland was miles better than in 1800. [QUOTE=Maloof?;38693959]I'm both English and Irish and frankly I'd rather see a wholly independent Ireland[/QUOTE] But that leads to a lot of problems for all the Protestants living in the north.

[QUOTE=Sobotnik;38693842]Until the 1820s, Catholics weren't allowed to vote. There were also heavy restrictions on property ownership.[/QUOTE] They were called the Penal laws, for a person with such a slewed view on Ireland I'm honestly surprised you managed to almost get that right. they only really went away in law form by 1869, but that's ancient history. Discrimination in Northern Ireland was extreme up to around the early 90's and it still is very much alive today.

[QUOTE=Maloof?;38693959]I'm both English and Irish and frankly I'd rather see a wholly independent Ireland[/QUOTE] Never mind us Northern Irish who want to be in the Union :l

[QUOTE=Maloof?;38693959]In earlier years you could get seriously fucked up financially and sometimes mortally for being a Catholic or even a suspected Catholic sympathiser I'm both English and Irish and frankly I'd rather see a wholly independent Ireland[/QUOTE] A united Ireland sounds great in theory, but it would never work in practice (at least in our lifetime). Far too much has happened so it's best to leave it as is, it's about as close to peace we're ever gonna see ,and to be frank it's not all that bad for the most part.

[QUOTE=Maloof?;38693959]In earlier years you could get seriously fucked up financially and sometimes mortally for being a Catholic or even a suspected Catholic sympathiser I'm both English and Irish and frankly I'd rather see a wholly independent Ireland[/QUOTE] I'm irish in heritage and current family relations and the day Ireland becomes independant is the day I move to greater britain.

[QUOTE=Mabus;38694047]They were called the Penal laws, for a person with such a slewed view on Ireland I'm honestly surprised you managed to almost get that right.[/QUOTE] I'm sorry what? [QUOTE=Mabus;38694047]they only really went away in law form by 1869, but that's ancient history. Discrimination in Northern Ireland was extreme up to around the early 90's and it still is very much alive today.[/QUOTE] Discrimination still exists today, but that isn't to say it had not improved in the century preceding independence.

At this stage peace is all that matters, the issue will have to be resolved at some stage. But hopefully blood will never have to be spilt.

You know a good start would for us to actually have our own flag. The Red Hand flag hasn't been official for 40 years, so we've just got the Union Flag atm.

[QUOTE=CMB Unit 01;38693832]You can say the same for either side, please don't turn this thread into deciding who the victims of the Troubles were, when both sides were harmed :/[/QUOTE] As much as both sides were victims of the conflict as a whole it began over discrimination of Catholics

The reason for this whole mess is because the English failed to integrate Ireland like they did with the Scottish and Welsh.