The Irish president has said the reconciling vision and courage of Northern Ireland’s civil rights leaders should be embraced on the 50th anniversary of protest bloodshed.

For some, the Royal Ulster Constabulary’s use of violence at Duke Street in Londonderry marked the start of decades of conflict.

Peaceful protesters seeking rights like one man, one vote, and the fair allocation of public housing were assaulted with batons.

President Michael D Higgins gave an award to one of the founders of the movement, Ivan Cooper, and applauded after St Columcille’s Ladies Choir sang the protest songs of the time.

He said: “The 5th of October march galvanised the movement for civil rights in Ireland.”

He added: “I add my own thanks to Ivan, as President of Ireland, for the courage, the leadership and the dedication to the cause of justice – justice in all its forms – that he has demonstrated throughout his political career.”

Derry in 1968 was a Catholic and nationalist city, administered for decades by a Protestant and Unionist majority, the President noted.

Dozens of people, including the MP Gerry Fitt, were injured when the protest march backed by the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association entered an area declared prohibited by then unionist minister of Home Affairs William Craig.

Nobel peace prize winner John Hume rescued the wounded and went on to become a statesman who helped end the IRA’s violent campaign decades later.

Irish 2018 National Ploughing Championship
President Michael D Higgins (Liam McBurney/PA)

Mr Higgins said: “As we assemble today let us, above all, recall the vision of John Hume, so rooted in the experience of the Civil Rights movement.

“A vision of a shared Ireland, one that recognises the unionist and nationalist traditions, one that is capable of reconciling communities, one that, North and South, preserves human dignity and vindicates and expands fundamental human rights – in the economic, cultural and social spheres.

“If we remain true to that vision, we can not only sustain peace on our island, but can, together, confront the shared challenges of the future with confidence and courage.”

He said the Civil Rights movement was the crucible from which Mr Hume emerged as a national and international politician.

“He dedicated his political life to realising its programme, and later, its wider emancipatory potential.”

Social Democratic Labour Party’s (SDLP) John Hume
John Hume in front of the Stormont Building (Paul Faith/PA)

The Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association’s leadership came from a diverse and broad cross-section of backgrounds, including Catholics, Protestants, unionists and republicans, socialists and trade unionists.

The president said they were united in their determination to combat the deep inequalities which scarred Northern Ireland – inequalities in housing, voting, and policing.

The association demanded the principle of “one person, one vote”, an end to gerrymandering, elimination of discrimination in the allocation of government jobs and housing, the repeal of the Special Powers Act, and the disbandment of the Ulster Special Constabulary.

Meanwhile, a parade organised by Sinn Fein recreated the original march carrying banners and singing songs. They carried placards protesting against Brexit and calling for LGBT rights.