SQUAT EVICTION !!!!!

by Adrian Ryan Fri Apr 01, 2005 00:56

Does`nt the landlord own the house?!?Its he`s property, i`m sure he was surprised to find some people had taken it upon themselves to move into he`s house! - of course i`m open to criticism, i may have the story totally wrong.

by ex Fri Apr 01, 2005 02:30

I did some legal reading on this a couple of months ago. There are many ways the Garda can just walk in (if they can get in), Prohibition of Forceful Entry Act being one of them, Trespass Act another. To evict you they dont need a court order, all the owner has to do is prove he is the legal owner of the premises - which in theory is ownership of the property deeds but in practise all he (or she, sorry) needs to do is go to the Garda and state such, any legalese is usually sorted out later - and then you are in breach of the above laws. Same way that if you break into a house and the owner hears or sees you in there, he calls the Garda and they can come in under these acts, among others. They're there to stop burglars, which are obviously much more common than squatters.

The "squatters rights" property laws which people sometimes refer to here, are similar to those in the UK, with the whole 12 years for private property, 30 years for public, "adverse posession" and so on. The reason for this is because these laws were enacted originally when Ireland was a part of the UK, pre-1922. Seriously. I'll post full details again when I have access to them in work. Since independence our laws have diverged considerably from those of the UK, and the emphasis on private property ownership is much stronger here. Quoting adverse posession of a derelict site means nothing - the laws and protections that refer to this action have long been over-ruled by subsequent legislation.

Bottom line is: there are no squatters rights in Ireland. By occupying a premises, you are leaving yourself open to charges of trespass (at best) (no longer a civil offence either), criminal damage, forceful/illegal entry, breaking and entering, etc etc. So every time you enter a building by that dodgy window panel around the back, or the crowbar'd crack in the door frame, thats what you should be aware of.

That strip of houses near St. Alphonsus Road is currently undergoing a transformation from old-style student rental units to family homes. No. 72 Lower Drumcondra Road, if its the one I am thinking of (three storey terraced redbrick, bay window in the front ground floor room?), is hardly derelict - possibly just temporarily empty. Celia Larkin has her beauty salon "The Blue Door" (with all the crap written on the window - and if I remember rightly it was paint-bombed after the start of the Iraq war :-) just up the road, and Berties gaf is near too - the area is always crawling with Branch. If they ever need Garda reinforcements for an eviction, all they have to do is call in next door to Quinns and haul a load of them out.

If you wanted to stay in the area, there's not much derelict choice up that end of the strip - see the previous paragraph for reasons why. You could go down to the old Golf shop ("The Red Corner") near the Big Tree but its boarded up like Fort Knox with bars on the windows. There's a nice big 4-storey building at 43 Upper Dorset Street, but someone may have beaten you to it, judging by the marker graffitti next to the door ("for entry ring 087 900 2460"). No. 38 is a bit more fucked - it looks like they started to renovate it, and started from the top floor, but didnt quite make it down to ground level. Possibly habitable at higher levels. If you were really cheeky you could occupy the old petrol station site near Joxer Dalys, currently lying idle (bit of a trainspotting habit for me I'm afraid).

What way forward then? If people are serious about derelict property and homelessness, then they need to work with genuine homeless organisations and groups (dont quibble - you know exactly who I mean) and talk to them about why they are occupying empty gafs. The people that come to Focus, Simon, SVdeP, and so on who need shelter are usually at risk individuals who might not be suited to the squatter lifestyle, but many within those organisations would be extremely supportive of such actions, even if they wouldnt be able to do them themselves. People in the upper echelons of these organisations might be wishy washy liberals and not hardcore autonomous black bloc anarchists, but they're decent people and willing to listen.

Breaking out of the stereotype of the middle-class lifestyle dropout (it is a dumb stereotype but there is an element of truth to it) to build grassroots support against property speculation & dereliction will involve more than just doing the vicious circle of squat-evict-disappear-squat-evict-disappear. Even in places with long established autonomous traditions (and I'm guessing that this squat is in this vein if its Shorty posting it up, on Indymedia) like Barcelona, and Vienna, are feeling intense pressure against their occupations. Here's a recent article on the .org site: http://www.indymedia.org/en/2005/03/114003.shtml In Ireland there are no squatter protection laws and no movement. People will need to be hauled in front of the courts, argue their case again and again (get a decent lawyer - they may be scum but if you're going to claim stuff like adverse posession & have court orders against you then you need one to represent you) and who knows, maybe pay fines, or even go to jail for a week before you get some legal acknowledgement of the _reasons_ for occupation.

Grassroots (with a small 's', I hasten to add) campaigns that stretch beyond the usual "activist" circles do have the power to change decisions or laws made at the top, e.g. witness the campaign to have Olunkunle Eluhanle returned. No disrespect whatsoever to people like RAR, but if it had been just them on Burgh Quay or outside the Dáil and not the Palmerstown students, then its unlikely McDowell would have reversed the deportation order. Same with the occupation of derelict buildings. If its done with activist heads alone, then nobody pays attention. Nothing changes year in year out regarding the law. But if you have homeless organisations, neighbourhood groups, community workers there with you, thats where things genuinely start to change - because the net of support and influence stretches further, much further than you think.

Ah... but sure what the fuck would I know.

by bob bobby bo Fri Apr 01, 2005 02:51

in my time there i have been taking account of the events as they unfolded.. going to release them in me zine.. ill let ya know sooner to selling date. ohh and with pictures :)

by Solidarity Fri Apr 01, 2005 08:20

just up the road from the Magpie House on the other side of the road beside Jurys, there are these two huge gaffs set back from the road. the gardens are completely fukked and you can only really see into them if you're on the top of a bus. dunno if people have checked them out before, but i reckon they're worth a look in. they've been empty for ages and the fact that they're on a busy road isn't too much of an issue cos Lesson St was squatted for the best part of 8 months...AND they managed to clear it out and do it up. (also worth noting how much closer it was to the road).

it's shite that this squat has been discovered but sadly in a place like Ireland where squatters have about as much rights as a refugee about to sit his leaving cert....eviction is inevitable. It's important for people to head down there and give all the support they can to the occupants.

by non zine reader Fri Apr 01, 2005 09:09

if you have pictures, why not digitise them & post there here as attachments? you would probably reach much more people than a fanzine would.

by erm.... Fri Apr 01, 2005 09:14

i have some from the dundrum squats that were occupied around May of last year. will try and post some up if i get the chance.

by blah Fri Apr 01, 2005 09:47

I can see tomorrow's headlines in the tabloids:

BLACK BLOC IN BERTIE'S BACKYARD

p.s. unless its some sort of April Fools Joke, I wouldnt draw comparisons between the plight of refugees and the problems of squatters... the two are a million miles apart (and anyone who starts on about them being part of the same "struggle" or whatever needs a good talking to...)

by James R Fri Apr 01, 2005 15:19

Thats a spot on post...

by billy bob bobby whatever my name was last time. Sat Apr 02, 2005 03:13

ill post the review on the net as well as the zine.. thank u please.

by ah jaysus ex Sat Apr 02, 2005 10:33

i think the point that was made earler about the refugee thing was not meant as a comparison, merely a lighthearted dig at the fact that the fucking governement have become such asshoels that a) they have no interest in listening to what squatters have to say and b) that they were dickhead enough to send a poor kid back to nigeria even though hes sittin his leavig or somthing.

the fact that in ireland, your rights are being slowly stripped away from you, whether you're squatting a house or sitting an exam. i think it was a fair point, and i apologise for my bad splling.

by eeekkkk Mon Apr 04, 2005 16:59

interesting tying together of two ideas

by concerned citizen Fri Apr 22, 2005 14:04

The bunch of thugs who have taken over this mans house should be ashamed of themselves. I was talking to the man that day and he had arrived back to his house after being on an extended holiday to find a bunch of yobos from the inner city had taken it over. He had to stand outside his property which he must have worked hard for, for over seven hours. This isn't a protest, you people took over his home. In that case I wont go to work today incase one of you decide my house is empty and decide its your right to move in. You people are makeing the struggle for socialism worse. You believe in socialism but are practising criminal activities. Its just a front!

by passer by Sat Apr 23, 2005 00:38

I passed by it earlier. Its for sale.

by bernadette Mon Jul 18, 2005 11:53 berniegaffney1913 at yahoo dot co dot uk 0862754638

just a question I need some help. I have a brother who is residing in the family home and has made the rest of the family unwelcome. He claims it as his home!! The house is still in my grandfathers name who has passed away so it falls to his two daughters. Has he any rights. The family dont want him to have the house. Any advice would be great.

by Dave Mon Jul 18, 2005 15:13

Go to a solicitor. A proper one (not some guy who does conveyancing).

He will advise you to get your grandfather probated, which will generate a legal entity called "an estate". The estate will have an administrator who'se duty it is to distribute the assets. (This is based on my own experience).

Just get a solicitor. If your brother digs in then whatever few grand you have to pay the brief will be worth it.

If your grandfather had a will make sure you take a copy to the brief. He'll determine if it's open to challenge (a strong possibility).

The law is very clear in this country. Be prepared for a lengthy family-wrenching process.

Get a solicitor. A good one (advice worth repeating).

by Bernadette Mon Jul 18, 2005 16:32

But Dave do you think he has any rights? My family think he will claim squaters rights. But as it belongs to my aunt and my mum what right should he have to the estate? If my mum willed it to someone else would he be removable. Thanks for your advice.

by reader Mon Jul 18, 2005 16:36

Go to your local Free Legal Advice Centre and ask them. It is in the 'green pages' section of the white pages phone book. You will get better answers there than asking on the newswire. And no he cannot claim 'squatters rights' (they dont exist, for all intensive purposes).