NORTH BELFAST ULSTER POLITICAL RESEARCH GROUP

MAKING POSITIVE CHANGE - SAFER STABLE COMMUNITIES

Drug dealers have been driven underground, no longer able to ply their trade openly in our streets and thieves who steal and rob from local pensioners, families and small businesses are finding themselves in front of judges for sentencing.

Individuals, such as an expelled Tigers Bay UDA commander Bill Hill,  and other expelled UDA members who are drug dealers, and a foolhardy so called "upstanding member of the community", all associates of Shoukri, are still trying to disrupt local community led policing initiatives from dealing with illegal money lending, drug dealing, intimidation and criminality.  All of these lowlifes avoid any form of welcome or community support for the Tigers Bay community led Policing and Community Safety Partnership, rather they have absolutely nothing than more crime, intimidation and unrest to offer this community.

More ominously, a few of these individuals in their desire to control communities, have, with the help of a "so called respected member of the community", been plotting and planning ways and means of undermining not just the North Belfast UPRG  but that of the entire UPRG family and organisation. Their latest actions, which are of an extremely dangerous nature, may result in major significant problems which could contribute to the destabilization of loyalism across the City. 

These same people pose as "super prods" and "saviours of Ulster"  in order to camouflage their true intent which is about promoting drug dealing and enjoying wealthy lifestyles earned from criminality and numerous illegal fundraising and selling schemes. 

 ALEXANDRA PARK - THE FACTS!

 Dispelling the Myths...

There have been a number of claims and allegations made in relation to anti-social behaviour arising from the launch/opening of the Alexandra Park Peace gate on the 16/09/2011. Such claims and allegations include almost nightly incidents of ASB involving groups of young people of up to 300 in number who faced up to each other on launch day, to smaller gangs involving youths and individual young people being involved in daily/nightly ASB attacks and incidents.   

In order to reassure the local communities and growing number of Park users, Alexandra Park steering group, with the support of North Belfast Community Development & Transition Group, requested information from the Police detailing reported Anti-Social Behaviour incidents associated with Alexandra Park or the immediate area (this is based on all the incidents being linked to the correct geographical location since the peace gate was opened). To this end, please see the following information from police;

On 16/09/2011 (the day of the official peace gate launch, by the DOJ minister) there were no incidents of note that have been linked to either Alexandra Park or the immediate area (this is based on all the incidents being linked to the correct geographical location.

In the financial year April 2011 /12 there were 9 reports of Anti-Social Behaviour

In the financial year 2012/13 there were 13 reports of Anti-Social Behaviour

In the current financial year 2013/14  there have been 3 reports of Anti-Social Behaviour

The GOOD NEWS is!...

Whilst not perfect, the above statistics represent and tell a very different story in relation to the SUCCESSES of the Alexandra Park Peace gate initiative! 

The opening of the peace gate has provided valuable access to many residents of both communities! 

Park users, dog walkers, families and individuals now use this area openly and freely for a number of leisure activities without fear of becoming a victim of serious anti-social behaviour. 

Indeed since the opening of the peace gate, general and sectarian related anti-social behaviour associated with the Park and in the area of the nearby Limestone Road interface has substantially reduced!    

Excellent partnership work involving the Community, NIHE, Belfast City Council, Police, DOJ and Youth providers continues to promote and deliver Safer Stable Interface Communities!

ALEXANDRA PARK PEACE GATE!

SUCCESSFUL, INNOVATIVE, and UNIQUE COMMUNITY LED PEACE BUILDING INITIATIVE 

 We present one of the feature articles in this month's edition of The Loyalist.

SOUTH BELFAST UPRG – “UNITY OF PURPOSE WILL GET US THROUGH THESE DIFFICULT TIMES”

This month’s edition of the Loyalist Magazine contains a statement from East and South Belfast Ulster Defence Association. It has created a certain amount of furore yet it needed to be published. South Belfast UPRG has a commitment to not just analyse political and social issues but to give advice and appropriate feedback. This is a perfect example whereby we do so in the hope of elucidating and informing the wider Protestant Loyalist Unionist community to allow all interested people to reach a better understanding and thus form their own opinions.

North Belfast Ulster Defence Association has been the subject of a pernicious propaganda war by a group of disaffected people. Many of these people have a vested interest in removing the leadership of North Belfast. Why is this? The criminality that was once rife in North Belfast has been openly challenged and thwarted in the last few years. This has been achieved through partnerships being formed with statutory bodies and agencies and delivered in a lawful and transparent way. In other words North Belfast has changed with the times and has achieved some outstanding results through cooperation and sheer hard work on the ground. This has not gone down too well in some circles and we see this dissatisfaction through mischievous Facebook postings and a campaign of harassment against hard working community workers. 

The statement accurately reflects the feelings of both East and South Belfast. We believe in North Belfast and we believe in the unity of purpose that we all share. North Belfast has suffered immensely over the years and it would take too long to fully explain the trials and tribulations that they have had to endure. They came through it then and they will come through this rather ill conceived ‘plot’ by expelled members and criminal elements now. They have our support and they have the support of the community they represent. 

The post Good Friday Agreement transformation of communities was never going to be easy. It was never going to be fully embraced by everyone. What we see in North Belfast is also being experienced in other areas; criminals attempting to muscle in on communities in transition, young men challenging those who would want to work hard in the community and being encouraged to do so by expelled members in the background. We have also witnessed drug dealers desperately trying to ‘protect’ their patch and deliberately creating instability. North Belfast has had to suffer this and has achieved a great deal of success. Success breeds envy and many of the Facebook postings and Twitter rants are the work of a small clique of family members and ‘associates’ of troublemakers and malcontents. They will not succeed in destabilising our community and our organisation.

The overall picture is not bleak and it is not overly concerning. We have had these issues before and we will no doubt have them again. Let us be very, very clear; our unity of purpose is absolute. It is resolute. And it is fundamental to our whole ethos, that being service and dedication to our culture and our community. The work that continues to evolve in East, North and South Belfast is a powerful indictment of those who would criticise us in the shadows. We are moving forward and no amount of jealous sniping and uncorroborated nonsense can stop this momentum. 

As already stated, North Belfast has our full and unequivocal support. We will not flinch from supporting them and we will not be held to ransom by the incessant moans of a gaggle of bitter underachievers and troublemakers. We are so grateful to those who have already offered their support from far and wide and we commit ourselves to reaching a satisfactory conclusion in this matter.

“Quis Separabit”; a phrase often said and often used as the one thing that we can all believe in. We hear it all the time and we use it incessantly, almost as a mantra, to show that we are unflinching in our desire to stay together as one. We stand behind this phrase now and we stand behind it always. It binds us and holds us and will always unify us. If you can believe in one thing, believe in this.

Quis Separabit.