Corrib Gas Pipeline Jailings: Joe Higgins Statement
mayo |
environment |
news report
Wednesday June 29, 2005 20:18
by Joe Higgins T.D. - Socialist Party
(moved from comment to newswire article and retitled - Ed.)
.
The Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources Mr. Noel Dempsey must intervene immediately to resolve the impasse that has arisen in relation to the Corrib Gas pipeline with the jailing of five small landholders and local residents.
The High Court today stood logic on its head when it imprisoned the five residents at the behest of Shell. Incredibly, the consent form to allow Shell to carry on its pipe-laying in north Mayo has not been signed by Minister Dempsey. In fact, the qualified risk assessment, which examines the health and safety risks of the pipeline, has only been received by the Minister. According to his Department today that must now be put into the public domain and the question of signing will arise at a later stage.
Furthermore, the High Court has decided that a substantial hearing of the issues between the residents and Shell will be heard in the autumn. But in the meantime, the High Court is allowing Shell to carry out the major disruption of laying the pipes, even if the Court itself later decided that they could not be used for the supply of the raw gas. However, five residents are in prison for simply asking that everything be put on hold until the substantial issues are resolved in October and until the discussion happens on the risk assessment.
Minister Dempsey should now intervene to require Shell to withdraw from attempting to conduct any work on the disputed pipeline until all the crucial issues are resolved. This is the logical course of action. It is intolerable that decent, law- abiding people from Co. Mayo should be the victims of bullying by a major multinational for whom it appears the political and judicial establishment cannot do enough.
This issue raises again the incredible situation whereby the fabulous gas wealth off the coast of Co. Mayo has been given by the Government to Shell for not a penny in royalties to the Irish people and with huge tax write offs against the cost of exploiting it. The alternative is that the gas would be treated and purified in a completely different way to the present proposals by Shell. The fact is that the intense pressure of raw gas mixed with condensate oil and water, which is proposed to be brought through the disputed pipeline, is unprecedented by world standards and gives rise to potential unprecedented risks for the local community. To have residents exposed to this kind of pressure to facilitate a multinational corporation is intolerable.
printable version
Digg this
del.icio.us
Furl
Reddit
Technorati
Facebook
Gab
Twitter
View Comments Titles Only
save preference
Comments (4 of 4)
Jump To Comment: 4 3 2 1nothing about "on their land" nothing about CPO being used for private companies...
solidarity.
the price is fixed. the company & the company it keeps is rotten.
the gas doesn't need to get to Rossport.
@ this time.
one planet one gas they are speculating on the future not just of Ireland's profits or of Shell's share price but on the economies of the poorest states on earth where gas is found, stored or moved. Shell were sued out of Bolivia for illegal practise.
so if i was there, i would get arrested nailing that road into unpassable.
or eventually threatening the lot of them with a sliothar,
and looking seriously ridiculous. Sort of glad I'm not there. Bet their wives would like to see them home.
Bet loads of wives would say that in Bolivia, and Nigeria.
"when is he coming home?"
"is he purged yet?"
new paragraph:
Four of the five men had been obstructing pipeline construction work on some of their own lands.
Called them twice to complain and was told that there was no question of any manipulation or distortion in telling of story. Manipulation by omission is still manipulation. Can anuyone spot what I'm talking about or am I oversensitive? If you think this is fucked up you can reach their newsroom through the switch at rte at 01 2083111
Five imprisoned over pipeline obstruction
29 June 2005 16:21
Five men from Co Mayo have been sent to prison after the High Court found them to be in breach of court orders preventing them obstructing the building of a gas pipeline owned by Shell.
Sending the men to prison, Mr Justice McMenamin said the men could not take the law into their own hands.
The judge said the men had indicated that they had obstructed the construction and would continue to obstruct it. He said he had no alternative but to commit them to prison until they purged their contempt.
Advertisement
Council on behalf of Shell, Mr Pat Hanratty, said it was with great regret that the company had taken this step.
Shell, which wants to build the pipeline from the offshore Corrib gas field, had sought committal of the men to prison for their refusal to obey two injunctions preventing them from obstructing work.
Following today's High Court decision, the five men, Philip McGrath, Willie Corduff, Vincent McGrath, James Brendan Philbin and Michael O'Seighin, were taken to the Bridewell Garda Station.
Caitlin O'Seighin, Mr O'Seighin's wife, said she was very proud of her husband for standing up for what was right.
Willie Corduff said he was devastated. He said the men were being put in jail for trying to protect the health of their families.
The Mayo Independent TD, Dr Jerry Cowley, who was in court, said it was a scandal that the five were going to prison.
He said the community near Rossport, Co Mayo, was living in mortal fear because of safety concerns over the pipeline.
This morning, Mr Justice Finnegan gave them some time to consider but all five refused to give assurances that they would not obstruct construction work in the future.