Cleric rejects Dee Stitt’s suggestion that UDA/UFF part of ‘Protestant culture’ as Jamie Bryson announces north Down loyalist is ‘a client’

A Protestant cleric has spoken out against attempts to link paramilitarism with Protestantism, saying he sees nothing Biblical about such groups.

     One of the images David 'Dee' Stitt           chose for his 'Protestant culture' tweet 

            Thursday 21st July, 2022. 

A Protestant cleric has spoken out against attempts to link paramilitarism with Protestantism, saying he sees nothing Biblical about such groups.

Rev Bill Shaw made the comments in response to David ‘Dee’ Stitt, the prominent north Down loyalist and former boss of the charity Charter NI.

Mr Stitt, claims to be an ex-UDA commander, tweeted out a message during the Twelfth week which showed pictures of UDA/UFF signs in Bangor, as well as enormous UDA/UFF flags.

Alongside this he said: “Our Protestant history, culture and heritage will never be taken away from us. It’s in our DNA.”

    Dee Stitt outside the office of Charter       NI, which he claims no longer employs          him but is still listed as a 'Peace IV                           Area Coordinator'. 

Charter NI, which runs off the back of substantial public funding, used to be run by Mr Stitt but he stepped aside from a leadership role there in 2018.

Charter NI says Mr Stitt no longer works for the charity, although its website continues to list him as “Peace IV Area Coordinator”.

Rev Shaw is listed as a director of Charter NI.

He said of Mr Stitt’s comments: “From a personal point of view I’d want to distance myself totally from that.

“The term Protestantism - that’s much abused, particularly within loyalism. That’s a fact. That’s not just my opinion.

“I struggle at this time of the year massively with these ‘expressions of culture’ as they put it. It’s never been part of my culture.”

      ALLEGED: UDA Brigadiers North                 Down's David 'Dee' Stitt & East                    Belfast's Jimmy 'Millions' Birch 

He added that he was talking about “paramilitarism” in particular, and that “most right-thinking people” feel the same.

“While that may be the claim on the part of Dee Stitt and the people he purports to represent... it’s never been part of my culture.

“And I think I’d say confidently that for the vast majority of the unionist community it’s not part of their culture either.

“Whatever else they might claim to be, loyalist or whatever, I don’t see any of the characteristics of Biblical Protestantism in how they conduct themselves.”

The News Letter asked Mr Stitt to clarify his remarks.

It was put to him that many people think the UDA is nothing to be proud of since it killed hundreds of innocent people. It was also put to him that the Bible has strong things to say about murder.

  Jamie Bryson normally the mouthpiece          for the UVF has now become the                mouthpiece also for the UDA I'm                 curious how that go down with                             his cohort Mackers          

A response came, but not from Mr Stitt. Instead fellow loyalist activist Jamie Bryson issued a message from his outfit JWB Consultancy “on behalf of my client David Stitt”.

It said: “There are many competing narratives and moral viewpoints in relation to the conflict in Northern Ireland.

“The existence of such different views is recognised by the Belfast Agreement itself, which - rightly or wrongly - at its heart was about bringing loyalist combatants and IRA terrorists into the political process.

“It is a demonstrable fact that the largest nationalist party, Sinn Fein, continue to endorse and celebrate the actions of the IRA who murdered and maimed thousands.

“If society endorses the right of Sinn Fein to take that view, which is grossly offensive to many in the PUL community, then it can not be the case that a different standard is applied to those who take a particular view of loyalism’s role during the IRA’s terrorist campaign.

       CHANGED TIMES: Now Jamie's outfit        JWB Consultancy now claims to have         the UDA on its books including Dee                   Stitt as one of his clients. 

“Mr Stitt stands over his views, and he is legitimately entitled to express them and hold them.

“His work in peace building activity is well known and it is possible to hold a particular view on the past, even one that some may find contentious, and to equally be a positive contributor to building a peaceful future.”

One of those who had re-tweeted Mr Stitt’s initial message linking Protestantism to the UDA was fellow loyalist activist Moore Holmes.

He was asked why he had done this, but did not respond.

With many thanks to the: News Letter and Adam Kula for the original publication. 

Follow these links to find out more on this story: Number of murals on public property growing – and loyalist ones far outnumber republican ones

‘UDA could not have picked worse target’: remembering the murder of primary school teacher Cyril Murray in east Belfast exactly three decades ago.

Marching for sodomite marriage-Presbyterian minister Bill Shaw

Cleric rejects Dee Stitt’s suggestion that UDA/UFF part of ‘Protestant culture’ as Jamie Bryson announces north Down loyalist is ‘a client’

COMMUNITY FEAR FUNDS TO BE AXED IN PROTOCOL ROW

                EXCLUSIVE STORY

COMMUNITY leaders in loyalist stronghold areas including east Belfast and the Shankill Road area of north Belfast are becoming increasingly panicking paramilitary activity around the anti-Protocol violence will see both governments (London and Dublin) pull the plug on loyalist community funding. 

   Dee Stitt who said he was resigning as           the CEO of Charter NI, for family             reasons also oversees the UDA funding. 

            PHOTO Credits: Pacemaker 

The decision last week by the Irish government to order an audit on all grant aid paid out to so-called community groups since the signing in 1998 of the Good Friday Agreement has set alarm bells ringing in the community group sector. The overwhelming number of organisations working at ground level in the community are beyond reproach but there is concern that the presence of senior paramilitary figures in some of the anti-Protocol/anti-Good-Friday-Agreement groups could put the community funding in jeopardy.

   North Down UDA commander Dee Stitt,          flanked by two UDA volunteers in           full paramilitary uniform reading out          a paramilitary statement standing                      beneath a UDA mural. 

People such as 'Harmless' Harry Stockman, according to sources served as the UVF's second in command, who took an early retirement package from Shorts to take up a £300,000-a-year post with a (legal paramilitary post) community initiative. Other senior figures such as North Down UDA commander Dee Stitt and alleged East Belfast Brigadier Jimmy 'Millions' Birch (pictured below) are among a raft of loyalist paramilitaries overseeing the spending of public money at a time when their organisations are both involved in civic disruption and organised crime. Stitt has previously claimed he is no longer a member of the UDA.

      Alleged UDA East Belfast Brigadier                       Jimmy 'Millions' Birch 

A spokesperson for the *orthern Ireland Office said said there was no indication that the British government was planning an audit but warned community founding was kept under constant review. "The UK government provides the *orthern Ireland Executive with founding to deliver public services, including support for community groups in *orthern Ireland. "Devolved administrations are fully accountable for the proper control and management of their public expenditure allocation. "For all UK government funding provided directly the appropriate oversight and governance arrangements are in place to ensure value for money."

With the Irish government demanding every cent sent north is accounted for, there are fears a huge question mark hangs over community funding. Political sources in Dublin point that one of the mainstays of community funding in the wake of the Good Friday Agreement was to aid in the rehabilitation of terrorist prisoners released under the terms of the deal. "It (funding) was in part aimed at helping people who otherwise were virtually unemployable whether that was in the form of job training or giving opportunities to those committed to peace to contribute to their communities. "On the whole that is what has been achieved but questions have to be asked about those in public funded jobs who are still at it, active paramilitary activity." 

 Dee Stitt and Jimmy Birch sat side-by-side. 

The Sunday World understands senior loyalist figures including Stockman have held meetings with groups in republican areas over concerns about funding. Political concern is also growing that paramilitary activity around the anti-Protocol/anti-Good-Friday-Agreement campaigns will undermine electoral support for unionist parties.

The hoax bomb attack on Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney carried out the UVF's B Company, and the organisation's threat to escalate their campaign rattled-political parties who are anxious not to be associated with civic disruption.

                               SCARE

The UVF was also behind a security scare that closed the north-south rail link. The appearance of Doug Beattie's election poster with a noose around his neck ramped tensions up even further. 

It sparked rumours that mainstream unionist politicians are now reluctant to share a platform with the likes of PUP leader Billy Hutchinson because of his party's connections with the UVF and his own terrorist history.

It is only a few short months since the four unionist political leaders attempted a show of unity in opposing the Brexit Sea Border. 

That show of unity now lies in tatters, with TUV chief Jim Allister constantly attacking the DUP, and Doug Beattie stating his party will no longer attend anti-Protocol rallies because he believes they are stoking civil unrest and community tensions. 

With many thanks to the: Sunday World and Richard Sullivan for the EXCLUSIVE original story. 

Follow these links to find out more on this story: This may be the last hurrah for anti-agreement unionism

THE Good Friday Agreement (GFA) will 'NEVER' be Renegotiated and UVF Intimidation will not Achieve the Removal of the Protocol

CHOOSE YOUR UNIONIST PARTY WISELY - FORWARDS WITH BEATTIE AND THE UUP OR BACKWARDS WITH BRYSON, DONALDSON AND ALLISTER - HOW WILL YOU VOTE ON 5TH MAY?