The Free Derry Museum is a community based museum telling the story of the people of the Bogside, Creggan and the Brandywell over a four year period ending with the events of Bloody Sunday, where 14 people were killed by the Paratroop regiment of the British army.

John Kelly was standing at the museum entrance, chatting to a woman about the 35th anniversary commemoration of Bloody Sunday. He welcomed us in and told us how his brother Michael was one of those killed on that day. This was a true community museum, in the heart of Free Derry. Unlike most museums, it doesn’t ‘own’ any of the items on display; rather, they are all on loan from the families and individuals involved.

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IMC interview with John Kelly of the Free Derry Museum
IMC interview with John Kelly of the Free Derry Museum 4.15 Mb

Jim Travers claims that the match between the Republic of Ireland and San Marino has given us the space to reflect on our beliefs, that what we thought in the past has now come true. Ireland was terrible by any standards and deserved to walk away with nothing more than a loss.

So Do We Kiddo

An Indymedia contributor stumbles out of their weekend lethargy long enough to dust off a hangover and type up this report on a Tony Benn address entitled "Peace, Faith and Power" delivered over two weeks ago on January 23rd to Trinity's Hist. With the dazzling might of the Internet age at my disposal, contemporaneous reporting has never been so exciting…

First the platitudes, Tony Benn is one of Britain's most graceful statesmen, serving over half a century in the British parliament before famously leaving to “devote more time to politics” and declaring himself "free at last" of the parliamentary shackles delaying real struggle.

So why doesn't Shell have a big banner outside their office announcing that they are making record profits? Why don't they issue a press release saying that they are doing better than ever, and things are improving for their shareholders like never before? Why aren't they celebrating?

Shell Oil made €20,000,000,000 in 2006

Shell's profits don't include the amount of oil and gas reserves they own, or the huge amount of equipment and buildings they are leasing or that they own. This is money that they have after they have paid all the bills (although not the security costs at Bellanaboy- the taxpayer pays that), and everyone's salary. This is pure profit for their shareholders.

This year's figure - €20,000,000,000 - is deceptive because it hides the fact that the dollar is weak at the moment, and energy has to be traded in dollars (Saddam Hussein started to sell oil in euros a few years ago, and look what happened to him). Profits are way up this year.

The company never had it so good.

Related Links: Galway solidarity protest with Rossport   |   Vigil for Shell victims in Belfast   |   Shell to Sea banner display at Patrick's Bridge, Cork

ISN's Finglas branch on the move

The G8 will be visiting Germany next summer, and the “travelling circus” of protesters (as it was dubbed by Tony Blair) are already mobilising for the occasion. But it seems clear that the hey-day of summit protests is long past.

The great Seattle protest of 1999 put “anti-capitalism” on the mainstream agenda. Having been consigned to the dust-bin of history after 1989, the idea of a left-wing alternative to capitalism was again being discussed. It came as a bit of a shock for those, like Blair, who thought “socialism” had died out with New Romanticism and other naff 80s movements.

Related Links: Indymedia anti-capitalist articles | Indymedia Summit Mobilization stories | Irish Socialist Network |