ONCE again Northern Ireland stands on the brink of a precipice.

In fact, it seems to be already slipping over the edge into the abyss.

Last night three RUC officers were shot and today looks set to be even more explosive with the Twelfth of July parade forcing the RUC to move 50 armoured Land Rovers into Belfast's Ormeau Road area.

The RUC has come in for heavy criticism for the way it has handled the marches by the Orangemen.

After five days of violence, the thousand-strong band of Protestants got the go-ahead to march through the mainly Catholic Portadown area. Once again, it looked like the men of violence and intimidation had won the day.

But blaming the RUC for the disorder is like handing out speeding tickets at Sunday's British Grand Prix.

They are faced with a no-win situation in which operational matters have to be decided in response to fast-changing events on the ground.

The real people to blame are, of course, the leaders who take every chance to stir up centuries of blind prejudice and sectarian hatred.

Some people now say the peace process is dead.

Mortally wounded it may be, but now more than ever is the time for the politicians and the peacemakers to step in.

If they do not act fast, then Ulster, which was offered a brief ray of hope, faces a return to the bloodbath of the last 25 years.

And the evidence of the last few days suggests it may be even worse.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.