anti war demo dublin 02 04 03 (video + pics)

by Sean Thu Apr 03, 2003 10:15

Have you got a username and password for photocall you could put up?

by d Thu Apr 03, 2003 10:20

one thing i don't understand about the protestors is why they think they have the right to stage sit-down protests??? i reckon it's fair enough for the guards to remove you when you do that...

i think it's very important that everyone hace the right to protest so long as you don't interfere with others...

by Arianna Thu Apr 03, 2003 10:56

The government has acted and continues to act illegally over the Shannon issue, in blatant disregard for the opinion of the majority of Irish people. I personally, and I presume many others,contacted our local and national politicians before the Dail vote on 20/03/03 asking them to take the views of the people and the illegality of Irish participation in the war into consideration.
I have been at marches and vigils, signed petitions, given our fliers, etc etc and the government will not listen. Brian Cowan actually said "We will not be swayed by the whims of the people over this issue".
So if our elected representatives choose to ignore us and the law, then I feel I have every right to make their lives as difficult as possible, by shaming them, embarassing them, and blocking their entry to or exit from the Dail where they are supposed to be representing us. The only way to resist this war and our participation in it, is to make it immensely difficult for the various governments to continue the war effort and to put as huge a drain on their resources as possible in terms of security around airbases and at demos etc.
And sitting down can be a powerful tool- remember Rosa Parks?

by arch - none Thu Apr 03, 2003 11:00 arch20000 at yahoo dot com

It's incredible to think that someone could be so
stupid as to call in the riot police to a peaceful protest.

Is it because they want to get a chance to use their new training techniques or just a reflection on the intelligence of the Irish security forces when they are faced with a dilemma; there are TD's in the Dail and they want to get their ministerial cars out onto the road.Therefore let's forcefully remove people who are trying to stop the murder of innocent civilians in Iraq.

I give up!!

by Gaillimhed Thu Apr 03, 2003 11:19

I wasnt there, (so im only talkin shite really), but those riot cop guys loked pretty 'mature', and not the fittest or fastest the Garda billy-club has to offer. My point is this, last night could have been a lot worse IF they wanted, imagine if they suited up some of those young bloods from the RTS rally last may and handed out those new extendable steel night sticks theyve been trying out. I think we should all be very wary of the 'protectors of the peace', i would urge anyone engaging the forces of disorder to be resolute and determined not to accept ANY of their provocations. If The GArdai and their masters decide to turn things ugly on the streets then thats how it will be and people will be hurt and the peace movement will be discredited. We must be prepared to peacefully resist this. That requires people to be organised and know exactly what to do if the Cops go for it.

In the meantime, this is the kind of thing your friendly Garda may be carrying the next time he helps you beat yourself up (dont know if theyve been fully authorised, but theres definitely 100 on trial in the republic right now, anyone else any more info.)

http://www.stungunsandtasers.com/telescopicbaton.htm

by Elizabeth OShea Thu Apr 03, 2003 11:23 sastacht at hotmail dot com

If you were at the protest last night, write to the Garda Complaints Board about the behaviour of the Gardai and send copies of your letters to your favourite TD.

Garda Complaints Board
Block 1
5th Floor
Irish Life Centre
Dublin 1.

phone: 8728666, 8728131
fax: 8746249

by Terry Thu Apr 03, 2003 11:45

'd', I don't think the government have a right to aid and help in the deployment of a
war-machine that is blowing ordinary Iraqi families to bits. How can you possibly
compare that to a sit-down protest? Yes the protestors were there, not because it was
just something to do on a Wednesday night, but because they were trying to prevent our
government from 'interfereing with others in the most inhuman and despicable way'

What amazes me, how quickly you go to defend 'authority' and not for one second do you
attempt to put the protest in context.

If you were being bombed, would you be so quick to condemn the means of protestors of others
who were trying to defend you. I don't think so.

by d Thu Apr 03, 2003 11:55

yeah fair enough terry... in your opinion the government is acting illegally over shannon... so why don't you bring them to court???... if every protest group adopted the tactics which some anti-war protesters take there would be complete anarchy in the country... wouldn't you agree???

by conor (wsm personal capacity) Thu Apr 03, 2003 13:03

COMPLETE ANARCHY - can't happen soon enough - the most peaceful, organised and democratic form of society achievable
- as for court action its been taken by Ed Horgan - I'm sure we all wish him weel - but don't hold your breath
- maybe in an anarchist society...............

Conor

by Terry Thu Apr 03, 2003 13:34

The government is already breaking the law on multiple counts and people are already
brining them to court. Having said that, the courts are weighted in favour of the wealthy.
The ordinary people do not have the financial resources or time to wage endless debates in
the courts. The courts would drag things out until well after the war is over, and then they
would keep bringing in all sorts of legal technicalities that would attempt to narrow the
scope of the argument, like the way the argument over neutrality has been argued by politicans
to the point of absurdity. Anyway judges are political appointees and they are NOT independent.
They have political beliefs too and their own biases. Look for instance at the recent racist
comments by two separate judges recently.

In this country killing one or two is murder, but helping in the slaughter and I mean slaughter
of hundreds and possibly thousands IS official foregin policy and if you disagree strongly enough,
the riot police will be used against you. Oh yeah and thats what happened last night!

.. and back to the legal system, hey we already had multi-million pound tribunals, with solictors,
barristers and judges -some of the 'best' and yet we haven't got very far.

You also say:
'if every protest group adopted the tactics which some anti-war protesters take there would be complete
anarchy in the country'

Again you show no interest in the context of the protest. I think you should also look up the proper
meaning of anarchy, which you have substituted instead for chaos, because the two are not the same, much
as the spin doctors would want you to believe.

Is war not chaos? Is the ongoing attack on the environmental integrity of this planet, not chaos?
Is the fact that the world is spending $75 billion so far on this war not chaos? But we spend a
ridiculous tiny fraction (globally) on clean water, not chaos? Is it not chaotic, that we set aside
100s of millions for SSIA savers, but we can't afford to repair or build new primary schools not chaos?

No, I don't agree with you.