ICTU calls stoppage in the North over postman's murder

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions has called a 12-hour stoppage throughout the North in protest at the murder of a Catholic postman in north Belfast on Saturday.

20-year-old Daniel McColgan was shot dead by the UDA as he arrived for work in the strongly loyalist Rathcoole area. The UDA has since made death threats against all Catholic workers in Belfast and has said Catholic schoolteachers are now "legitimate targets".

The ICTU decided to call for a half-day stoppage to protest at the development, which comes as sectarianism in Belfast reaches levels not seen since the height of the Troubles.

Tom Gillen, the ICTU’s Northern spokesman, confirmed the decision to call a stoppage following a meeting at Stormont with First Minister David Trimble and Deputy First Minister Mark Durkan today.

"We are calling for support and co-operation from employers given the unprecedented nature of recent events," he said.

"We feel it is an expression of how seriously we take these concerns and we are making contact with government departments to see how we can do this."

The stoppage will take place on Friday following a lunchtime rally outside Belfast City Hall. There will also be a two-minute silence at workplaces tomorrow to coincide with Mr McColgan’s funeral.

Both Mr Trimble and Mr Durkan are to make a statement in the Assembly later this afternoon on the deteriorating security situation in north Belfast.