LONDON, July 12, 2008 (AFP) - Thousands of people were Saturday attending a day of marches which was a symbol of sectarian tensions in Northern Ireland but has since been rebranded as a family-friendly pageant.

The Protestant Orange Order's annual marches marking their side's victory in the 1690 Battle of the Boyne frequently sparked violence during 'the Troubles', the civil unrest which plagued the British province until only a few years ago.

A reminder of the divisions which the parades still provoke came when an Orange Hall in Rasharkin, northeast Northern Ireland, was damaged in an apparent attempted arson attack early Saturday.

A bomb alert also delayed the parade there for several hours.

Many on the Catholic side steer clear of the parades, of which there are 19 across Northern Ireland this year, now been rebranded as an 'Orangefest'.

The event has the backing of tourism officials in both Northern Ireland and Ireland but has previously attracted criticism from Sinn Fein, the republican party which shares power in Belfast with the Protestant Democratic Unionists.

The leader of parade organisers the Orange Order, Robert Saulters, underlined enduring tensions between mainly pro-British Protestants and Catholics when addressing a parade in Dromara, east Northern Ireland.

'It is sickening to us, following such dastardly attacks on our people for 35 years, to see the commanders of that enemy sitting in government today acting as politicians who care for the peaceful existence of the people,' he said.

Orangemen from Australia, the United States and Canada are joining this year's events, which organisers say they hope more than half a million people will attend in total.