The Independent Loyal Orange Institution along with the rest of the Loyal Orders were invited by the Grand Lodge of Ireland to lay wreaths at Schonberg House on Tuesday 1st September on behalf of the Orange Victims of the Troubles.

A total of 344 Orangemen and 1 Orangewoman lost their lives at the hands of terrorists, many of whom were serving members of the Ulster Defence Regiment and the Royal Ulster Constabulary.

The Independent Institution was represented by the current serving Imperial Grand Master Rt Wor Bro Phil Moffatt and the County Master of County Grand Lodge of Antrim Rt Wor Bro Roy Wilson.

Speaking prior to the event, The Imperial Grand Master said,

” As part of the Loyal Order Family we pay tribute to the members of the Orange Institution who lost their lives during our troubled past. We salute the brave memory of each one, who sadly fell victim to the cowardly acts of the IRA, and we remind the perpetrators of terror, that there is a day of accountability to those, who in their dark past, took the innocent lives of so many within the Orange Family

We remember particularly the grieving families of our sister and brethren, who were plunged into sorrow and heartache as a result of the Irish Republican Terror Campaign which was waged against our people.

Many of these killings remain unsolved to this day. Whilst we remember those who fell victim to the cowards of the IRA , we will not allow history to be rewritten or airbrushed when it comes to defining a Victim of the Troubles and we will never allow the rewriting of our past to go unchallenged.

The Independent Institution remain resolute in identifying and distinguishing a marked difference between those who were innocent victims of the troubles, from the cowards of the IRA who orchestrated the terror campaign which led to the loss of so many lives. They are the victim makers and therefore justice demands that the perpetrators of terror, be made accountable for our troubled past”  

In a day of reflection and discussion the ILOI requested the opportunity to host the Orange Victims Day in 2028 which was unanimously accepted by the other Loyal Orders. Having been a guest for the last number of years it was recently proposed at our Imperial Grand Lodge meeting that we take our turn and bring the event to North Antrim.

The time of the vent will be to show solidarity not just with the other Loyal orders but also with victims across Northern Ireland. We are also acutely aware that as an organisation based in North Antrim that this area thankfully was not ravaged by the Troubles in the same way that other parts of our province was. We did not share a border with the safe haven of the Irish Republic where geography and constitutional and political convenience allowed the republican movement to strike at will over the border and flee to the safety of that souther jurisdiction. We also did not suffer from the demographics which in other areas left the protestant community an isolated rural minority which Irish Roman Catholic Republican terrorists could attempt to ethnically cleanse.

However our members and our community served and sacrificed with our brethren and sisters sharing their loyalty and bravery in the cause of our wee country. Indeed we believe that the many victims and veterans in North Antrim have often been forgotten, and many in deference to the suffering of border communities have not spoken of their own service and sacrifice. The result is that victims and veterans support services have not developed in the same way in our area and many who still bear the scars and the loss have not received the same level of support and recognition.

In the run up and in the year when we host Orange Victims day we will be working with victims groups like FAIR – Families Acting for Innocent Relatives with whom we have a long standing relationship to not just support and promote their work but to extend their services and share their expertise to victims and veterans in North Antrim. Our Grand Masters Charity that year will be focused on victims and veterans and will also allow the ILOI to better recognise and support our own members and communities who served and sacrificed.

Another focus of this work will be the fight for truth and justice to ensure that the Republican movement are not allowed to re-write history and to air-brush their atrocities from the record of the past. Sinn Fein /IRA have blood on their hands and they must be held accountable. As we watch their leaders eulogise mass murderers while claiming to be politicians for all we must speak out.

Reflecting and Remembering 

In a day of somber commemoration the ILOI stood in solidarity with the other Loyal Orders and with victims and veterans.