Grand secretary of Grand Lodge of Ireland tells Irish senate that Orange Order members should be able to march freely

Orangemen should be allowed to parade through Dublin as part of the reconciliation process in Ireland, a leading member of the Orange Order has told Irish parliamentarians.

In an unprecedented address by a senior Orangeman to the Irish senate, Drew Nelson, the grand secretary of the Grand Lodge of Ireland, said it was time for his members who reside in the republic to march freely in the capital.

The last time a loyalist march was held in Dublin six years ago it resulted in Ireland's main thoroughfare, O'Connell Street, being turned into a battlefield with several hundred republicans rioting and 41 people arrested.

There was a further reminder on Monday night of the sectarian tensions around loyalist parades when four police officers were injured after coming under attack from republican youths protesting against a march passing by their area in east Belfast.

During the first speech by an Orangeman to the parliament's second chamber, Nelson said: "We are known mainly for parading and that is an important part of what we do. In the republic we have about 20 parades each year.

"For the reasons, which we all understand, these parades have been pushed to the margins of society. There has not been an Orange Order parade in a major town in the republic since before the Troubles.

"There was one planned in Dublin a few years ago but it was unable to proceed. Our members in the republic would welcome the opportunity to hold a parade in their capital city. As an institution we completely understand however the challenges which such a parade would pose."

The Orange Order maintained a presence in southern Ireland even after the island was partitioned in 1921 following the war of independence and the creation of unionist-dominated Northern Ireland. The Protestant cultural institution draws its members in the republic from the Protestant minority in the border counties of Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan.

Nelson told Irish senators and TDs (members of the lower house, the Dail) on Tuesday that relations had vastly improved between the Orange Order and the Irish government in recent years.

He singled out last year's royal visit to Ireland and the reception the Queen received during her historic tour across the republic as among the main reasons for the improvement in relationships between unionists and nationalists on the island.

The senior Orangeman also made a direct appeal to the Fine Gael-Labour government to reverse education cuts to Protestant schools, which he said would contribute further to the dilution of the Protestant presence in the republic.

"The issue which gives rise to most concern for our members living in the republic today is the funding cuts for Protestant schools," he told the parliamentary body. "It is not too strong to say that, in the border counties, the Protestant community actually fears for its continued survival as a viable, self-sustaining community. I appeal to you today to take whatever steps are within your power to address that issue and reassure our members living in the border counties."

Among those southern politicians whom Nelson singled out for praise was Éamon Ó Cuív, the grandson of the founding father of the Irish Republic, Éamon de Valera. Nelson said Ó Cuív's establishment of a special border fund to help Protestants living there had helped stabilise the community in the region.

He also called on citizens of the republic to attend the Orange Order's main demonstrations on the 12 July, when Orangemen commemorate the victory of William of Orange over James II at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690.

"Over the past seven years we have worked closely with Tourism Ireland to develop flagship parades and festivals on the 12 July. We hope these will contribute to attracting more tourists to both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland," he said.

In his concluding remarks, Nelson said he hoped that "no longer will the burden of history stand in the way of normalisation of relationships".