A TOTAL of 93 per cent of residents of the lower Ormeau Road in Belfast believe marches should not be allowed through areas in which the opposite tradition is in the majority, according to a poll by Coopers & Lybrand.
The findings have been seen as an endorsement of the position of the Lower Ormeau Concerned Community (LOCC) group which opposes Orange Order parades through the nationalist area.
Orangemen and some politicians from both communities had previously claimed the LOCC had adopted an "extreme position" which was unrepresentative of residents.
The RUC banned an Orange march from passing through the lower Ormeau on Sunday.
Only 16 per cent of residents believed Protestant church parades should be allowed into Catholic areas. Sixty per cent thought the Orange Order should voluntarily reroute its marches away from districts where it met opposition.
However, three quarters of those interviewed also said every one should have the freedom to march. A third believed St Patrick's Day parades should be allowed into all areas.
Coopers & Lybrand questioned 425 Catholics in the lower Ormeau for its report, the first of a series planned for flashpoints in the North. A total of 36 per cent believed discussions should be held between residents and march organisers in an attempt to avoid confrontations.
Just over a quarter favoured an independent commission to deal with the issue. The LOCC welcome the findings and called for a meeting with the Orange Order.
A spokesman said: "The marching organisations can no longer pretend that people in the area are indifferent to, or in any way supportive of these sectarian parades.
"We urge the authorities to publicly declare that, given the strength of local opinion, there will be no parades along the lower Ormeau Road until such time as the Orange organisations seek and receive the consent of residents of the area."