SIGNS calling the GAA “the sporting wing of the IRA” in Co Antrim have been condemned as “a sinister attempt to intimidate.”
Police were informed the posters appeared beside sporting grounds in the Neillsbrook Road area of Randalstown on Saturday.
They have since been removed by local officers, with the incident being treated as a hate crime.
Sinn Féin’s South Antrim MLA Declan Kearney described the incident as “a sinister attempt by a small number of bigots to cause community division within the town.”
“It was a deliberate attack against the positive work of local sports clubs which cooperate closely together to promote inclusion and good relations between our different sporting codes and traditions,” he said.
“The small number of sectarian bigots responsible for this attack have nothing to offer society. They will not succeed in dividing the people of Randalstown, or in stopping cooperation between our local sports clubs.
“A zero tolerance is required towards the cancer of sectarianism in our community. We must redouble our collective efforts to build a new, progressive future for all of our people, based upon inclusion, equality and anti-sectarianism.”
A PSNI spokesperson added: “We will continue to engage with the local community and representatives in the area, alongside partner agencies.”
Anyone with relevant information is asked to call 101, quoting reference 549 of February 15.
