Bonfires, pyres of hate – no matter what you want to call them, there’s huge symbolism and controversy attached to and surrounding them whether Nationalist, Loyalist or other. The symbolism of bonfires, for Loyalism at least, is to celebrate the so-called ‘Glorious Revolution’ of 1688 and victory of Protestant king William of Orange over Catholic king James II at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690, which began the Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. So why are bonfires still a ‘thing’ in a ‘Northern Ireland’ where Catholics and Protestants are supposedly at peace, equal and living side by side? Surely traditions such those showing continued supremacy over the other neighbour should be condemned to the past in the 6 counties which were once at war? Not in a ‘Northern Ireland’, where Unionism was once all powerful and Loyalism drowned Irish culture under a tide of Orangeism.
That bonfires are a problem every single year in this country should indicate to those who build said bonfires, on both sides of the divide, that they have to go. Not only do they symbolise and throw in the faces of the other side, issues which have plagued this part of Ireland for decades and endanger property, but in a time when we’re virtually on the verge of environmental catastrophe, bonfires are one of the most environmentally damaging traditions we use in Ireland. Bonfires on both sides are used to throw insults and hurt at the other side using symbols and emblems, effigies and pictures of dead PSNI and RUC officers and much-loved political leaders and religious personalities. It’s the same year after year – and year after year we complain about it and refuse to break the vicious circle.
With that being said, Loyalist bonfires are by far the most controversial of all, more often than not due to their placement on flashpoints as we’ve witnessed in Tiger’s Bay recently with Loyalists hitting golf balls from the top of the bonfire into Newlodge, shouting abuse at Nationalists within their own community. It’s common knowledge that many Loyalist bonfires are run and indeed funded by Loyalist paramilitaries, with many of the pallets either being stolen or extorted (for want of a better word) from legitimate businesses which are already under protection rackets run by the same paramilitaries. Many forgo a month’s protection money for a couple of thousand pallets instead. Many personalities within Loyalism and indeed Unionism attempt to throw away the fact that paramilitaries control the bonfires, the sites and the festivities around them, preferring to shine some kind of limelight on communities and bonfire committees which are more often than not led by the same paramilitaries. If paramilitaries are not running the bonfire sites, why are there UDA flags all over them?
Someone made the mistake today on the radio, of telling a certain radio host to “Google it” when he asked how much the pallets cost that were being used on the bonfires. This “Google it” response came after none of the callers could, or would, tell him how much pallets cost or who the bonfire builders were buying them off. It turns out pallets now, contrary to what some Loyalist callers may think, cost between £8 and £25 per pallet, depending on the quality. The cost of a bonfire mounts, obviously depending on how many pallets are used and that is assuming the pallets are bought in rather than stolen or donated. No real business owner is going to give away thousands of pallets to be burned on a bonfire if they’re paying between £8 and £25 for each pallet so it takes either a huge amount of money to buy in the pallets or a criminal to steal them by the trailer load.
On top of that, many of the larger bonfires hire cranes and telehandlers to lift the pallets into place, like the one in Larne. So again, where does the funding come from to hire one of these cranes which can cost up to £1,200 per day?
Bonfires have to go. They’re a draconian relic of days gone, constantly jabbing at the other side to respond…and Nationalists fall into that trap every time. They are not culture, they are a tradition of burning that which is held dear by the other side and if we are ever to have any semblance of real peace and stability in this place leading up to a united Ireland, they must be left behind. On the off chance a Loyalist ends up reading this, the picture accompanying this piece of writing was taken right beside the bonfire in Larne, literally across the road. If Loyalists claim bonfires are not run by Loyalist paramilitaries…explain that picture.
Peace.
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