The ugly aftermath of flag protests
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Consequences of a flag
Carrickfergus, a small town in County Antrim with a
population of 40,000. Usually a bustling, thriving town at Christmas time is
now worryingly becoming a ghost town. The reason behind this is because of the
recent flag protests in the town. Christmas shoppers are now cautious about
venturing into the town in case of being caught in any trouble.
Violence first erupted in the town on Wednesday 5th
December. What started as a peaceful protest quickly escalated with missiles
such as rocks and bottles being thrown at police and police vehicles. There was
an estimated 1,600 people involved in the rioting. The violence is said to have
come after political parties in Northern Ireland made the decision to remove
the Union Jack flag from Belfast City Hall.
Since the first protest in Carrickfergus there has been many more in the area. Most of these protests have been peaceful. However on 17th December protests, yet again quickly escalated into riots. Protesters tried to break into the local shopping mall and the local 'Tesco' in the area also had to go into 'lock down' as rioters were targeting the supermarket. Shoppers were told to stay in the premises until calm had been restored.
Alliance Office after being targeted.
Since the first protest in Carrickfergus there has been many more in the area. Most of these protests have been peaceful. However on 17th December protests, yet again quickly escalated into riots. Protesters tried to break into the local shopping mall and the local 'Tesco' in the area also had to go into 'lock down' as rioters were targeting the supermarket. Shoppers were told to stay in the premises until calm had been restored.
Christmas is only a few days away and this week is said to
be the busiest leading up to the big day. Two of the main places to shop in the
area 'Tesco' and the 'Decourcy Centre' have both been targeted. This is a
worrying situation for the local traders in Carrickfergus. Business in the town
expect to make most of their revenue at this time of the year and now business'
are worried that consumers may not venture into the town to do their Christmas
shopping in case of getting caught in the violence.
Businesses in Belfast have been hit badly by the protests
and riots over the past few weeks. The 'Belfast Continental Market' which comes
to the town every year over the festive period was closed after protesters
started to riot outside the gates of City Hall where the market is situated.
The Belfast Continental Market not only brings people from all over Belfast to
the town centre but also visitors from Coleraine, Londonderry and further
afield. Businesses in the town thrive on the extra trade that the market
brings. Traders in Belfast are now worrying about the knock-on effects that the
riots are having on their business.
We all know that to put it simply the economy is in a right
mess. More people are being made redundant, unemployment figures are rising and
businesses we thought would stand the test of time are now gone from our high
streets. Traders in Belfast knew they were facing a tough Christmas this year
with consumers having less disposable income. However they never expected just
how much more of a struggle it could become..
Apparently around £3m may have been lost in Belfast alone
over the past week as shoppers have decided to stay at home in case of facing
any trouble while in the town. This is a huge a lot of money lost in a very
short amount of time. Why can’t the locals realise what they are doing to their
own town? Their own cousins, mothers, fathers may all be affected by their
ill-behaviour as come the New Year business may find themselves in financial
difficulties due to the amount of money lost which ultimately means more job
losses.
Mr Fanning who owns Speranza in Shaftesbury Square told
'CityBeat' “I have seasonal staff who I’ve just told are getting less hours.
That means less pay for them and they don’t have money to spend in shops, so
the knock-on effect is tremendous.”
Another local trader Colin Neill of Pubs of Ulster said
trade was down 20 to 30% during the busiest time of the year. "We're seeing
premises sending staff home and this is our critical period, this is when we
make a third of our year's turnover. We're getting hammered."
"A big chunk of our business is the evening economy and
if people are uncertain about going out, we lose out. It's serious, it's
critical."
Tourism consequences
Last year Belfast was voted one of the world's top
destinations for 2012 by National Geographic. It was described as "a
treasure" with an "incredible atmosphere". Some may argue that
this "incredible atmosphere" has fairly disappeared recently with the
on-going protests and riots over the decision to remove the Union Jack flag
from Belfast City Hall.
Media coverage on the incidents has meant that most of the
world can gain information on the recent happenings in Belfast. Northern
Ireland has always been seen as a troubled country, however with positive media
coverage over the past year with the MTV EMA's coming to Belfast and the
amazing Titanic Building being constructed it hasn't been a bad year for the
country. Just when you think you're getting somewhere things tend to come
crumbling around you. This is unfortunately what has happened to Belfast over
the past few weeks.
A leading Northern Ireland businessman has told how loyalist
riots have led to American tourists cancelling their stay at his luxury hotel
over Christmas. The group of tourists had booked out an entire floor of suites
at Belfast’s Merchant Hotel for four nights. However, after hearing about the
riots they contacted the hotel to cancel their stay. It is believed the booking could have been
worth tens of thousands of pounds.
Chairman of the Belfast Visitor and Convention Bureau, Stephen Magorrian, said that unless the disturbances are brought to an end the city’s tourism prospects for 2013 will be damaged. “It is unfortunate and disappointing that after what has been a great year for tourism in Belfast, it should end with wanton disruption and violence on our streets. “It’s damaging to our businesses, it is damaging our reputation internationally, and it will undoubtedly damage our prospects for 2013 — a very important year — if it doesn’t stop now,” said Mr Magorrian.
Not only has this affected tourism in Belfast, it has also affected tourism in Carrickfergus. Carrickfergus as a small seaside town finds it difficult to compete with larger cities to attract tourists. In order to help a small town like Carrickfergus attract more tourists the local council put together a 'Carrickfergus Masterplan'. This was to improve the facilities and the overall look of the town. Carrickfergus Council has spent thousands of pounds on various improvements in the town, such as new public toilets, new paving in the town centre and a state of the art children's play park. After the recent protests and riots in the area John Cameron, UK Youth Parliament Member said “It was saddening to see thousands of pounds worth of damage to the new paving in the town centre and also building materials destroyed. People have to remember this is our community and violence like this is only discouraging to large investors which want to bring new business to the town.” New business to the town ultimately means more tourists will want to visit.
United Kingdom 'embarassed' by protests and riots in Belfast.
Since the recent incidents in Belfast some people from England have expressed their views on the protests and riots that are on-going in Northern Ireland. Former Cabinet Member Edwina Currie said in an interview with Stephen Nolan that 'You've got hoodies in Belfast, wrapping themselves in the Union Jack but hiding their faces, with masks and got their hoods up. You think do I really want to be associated with that, is that my Britain, is that my United Kingdom? No it isn't."
Identity is so important to people in Northern Ireland and this has definitely been made more noticeable through the protests that have taken place. I was shocked in the interview to find out that the incidents in Northern Ireland had apparently not been reported on in British newspapers and that according to David former editor of the Mirror "they didn't give a damn". He added "I'd rather they had their own bloody flag and didn't fly our flag because it's embarrassing"
It seems that the English have one view on Northern Ireland, that it's a troubled country and their embarrassed to be associated with the country. Can I just add that its this beautiful country that is hosting one of the most prestigious events in the world, the G8 Summit.
David former editor of the Mirror said that it will be a long time before he comes back to Northern Ireland in case he 'bumps into hoodies in the street'. Stephen Nolan argued back in the interview that the country is not full of hoodies and these protests aren't happening everyday. David argued that this was not what he had seen in the news. Stephen Nolan made a very good point (for a change) in saying that 'You know the news agenda David?' Personally as a former editor of a newspaper David of all people should know the agenda of the news.
So with all the economic problems that Northern Ireland may face due to these protests and riots, they might also have less support than they thought from the rest of the United Kingdom.
Lets just hope that Northern Ireland can bounce back from these recent incidents so that the aftermath doesn't get any worse than it already is.
Let me know your thoughts on this story. Tweet me at @GemmaTaggart or leave a comment below.
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