The cook, his pregnant fiancée and their 14-month-old son were gone by Wednesday morning. At least two other Catholic families left that day, too, while others told local politicians that they wanted to leave as soon as possible.

For several days afterward, those who fled were forced to stay in a different friend’s house each night, said the cook, who asked that he and his fiancée not be named because he felt their lives were still in danger.

This kind of intimidation is not new in Northern Ireland, nor does it appear to be on the rise. Around 30 people have declared themselves homeless for similar reasons each year for the past half-decade, according to statistics provided by the Northern Irish government, and this year’s figure of 33 is no departure from that trend.

But the recent episodes at Cantrell Close have made headlines in Northern Ireland because they occurred in a place that was intended to be a foundation stone for a post-sectarian society. It has also raised concerns about certain politicians’ commitment to the process of integration, and about the ability of the Northern Irish police to curb the influence of sectarian paramilitary groups.

“This is a very good illustration of a much deeper problem,” said Stephen Farry, a lawmaker from the Alliance Party, which tries to bridge the divides between the province’s Unionists and nationalist communities. “Northern Ireland is not yet a peaceful society. We have ongoing coercive control by paramilitary structures at a local level across many communities.”