Previous feature from 2004

On Wednesday 9th August Anti War protesters in Derry stormed into the local plant of US missile manufacturer Raytheon. They were protesting against the use of Raytheon technology by the Israelis and used by them in their attacks in Lebanon.

After eight hours in occupation of the plant nine protesters were arrested by the PSNI and were charged with "Unlawful Assembly" and "Aggravated Burglary" when they appeared in court this morning (Thursday Aug 10th).

IMC Blogger: Both the IAWM and AWI issued quick statements of support as part of the ongoing rapprochement that is within the anti war movements on Indy these days. It should be remembered that Derry is the birth place of the black shamrock, whose powerful images owe much to the campaign against Raytheon. If this spreads south, maybe war will be an election issue as PANA say, or maybe the spirit of direct action will move to Shannon, where apparently that type of stuff could have a legal defence. Either way, can the fine media makers of Derry make sure to keep us all informed. Raytheon Coverage on Indy

Throughout the world, public services have been under attack for the past twenty years. Forming a central plank of the capitalist globalisation agenda, ‘privatisation’ and ‘competition’ are the seemingly unchallenged dogma of modern capitalism. The levels of privatisation which have taken place worldwide are absolutely mindblowing. During the 1990s alone over $900billion worth of public assets were transferred into private hands. Globally this agenda is pushed by the World Bank and the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The basic theory by which these bodies operate is that all decisions should be made on the basis of profitability alone.

More on privatisation: Community Alliance-Sligo: Privatisation is being undertaken by stealth | IEF Challenges Threat of Privatisation | Housing activists meet to discuss redevelopment & privatisation of their homes |FFF vs PPP: Fight For the Flats or Public Private Partnerships? | All Eyes On Upcoming PPP Conference | Europe At A Crossroads? Heath and Education as Business Opportunites | A local community rejects Public Private Partnerships | People Before Profit Public Meeting expresses concerns on land value from Fatima | Living with state dereliction in St Michael's: local community rejects privatisation of their homes.

The beach at Maria La Gorda

Some thoughts on Cuba.

So it seems as if Cuba could be in for a rough ride over the next few months, if some of the speculation about Fidel Castro being already dead is to be believed. Even if the surprisingly robust leader is genuinely only in hospital for minor surgery - if any surgery for someone at the age of 80 can be described as 'minor' - the world has got a glimpse of what is going to happen (most notably in Miami) when nature eventually takes its course and Castro passes on.

Review of a documentary on the struggle of the Turkish GAMA workers in 2005 which premiered to a packed house in Wynn's Hotel on Middle Abbey Street on Thursday 27th July.

Clr Mick Murphy With Original GAMA Leaflett.

Admittedly I've always been sceptical/suspicious of political parties and their motives, regardless of their place on the political spectrum, from one extreme to another. Its always in the back of my mind that any statement or action is being done simply for the goal of obtaining more seats at the next local/general/european election. Far left parties arent excluded from this either. The vista of a Leninist party sweeping into power isnt particularly attractive to me; having visited Castro's socialist "paradise" there were many aspects of that society which were deeply troubling and repulsive, most notably the censorship of all opposition as "counter-revolutionary", and the suppression of ideas and literature that didnt slot into the mono-view of one party Marxism. The bookshops were permitted to stock tomes praising Chavez, but you'd never realise that the Zapatista insurrection had taken place across the water. But that's another day's article...

Nonetheless I tried to approach last night's film screening of "The GAMA strike: A victory for all workers" with an open mind. This film is a co-production between the Socialist Party and Frameworks Films, and documents the GAMA strike of 2005. For those primitivists living in a cave for the past two years (of course if you're a real primitivist you wont be reading this on the internet...), GAMA is a Turkish building company that was awarded contracts by the Irish State for large infrastructure projects, including public housing, roads, and power stations. They won numerous tenders on their ability to finish these projects at half the cost of native Irish companies, and in some cases in half the time usually expected. This of course raised eyebrows in the construction industry, as well as in some political circles. Allegations and rumours began to spread about worker exploitation, but this was dismissed by Fianna Fáil lackeys, and nothing could be proven.

More Indy coverage: Downturn in Irish Construction Industry | Top Dublin Hotels displacing Irish staff | Aer Lingus privatisation exposes folly of partnership | GAMA: Company Forced To Pay ALL Workers Proper Union Rates | National Day of Protest Against Irish Ferries | Joe Higgins' Challenge to Irish Trade Unions: Protect Migrant Workers | Exploitation of Workers | Picket outside Dunnes in support of Joanne Delaney | Gama Workers' Strike Wins Back Stolen Cash

IPSC Protest on Tuesday

The Israeli Embassy in Dublin was confronted on Tuesday with the death and destruction that it has wrought in Gaza and Lebanon in recent weeks.

During its all-day vigil at the Israeli embassy, the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC) held a symbolic “die-in”, in which Irish, Lebanese and Palestinian volunteers donned “blood”-stained clothes and lay down on the street in front of the embassy. All Irish local and national media were present and gave the protest prominent coverage across the day and in Wednesday’s newspapers. The demonstration was a prelude to a major march taking place in Dublin this coming Saturday 29th.

The conflict has entered its third week, and the scale of Israel's attacks has meant that almost 10 Lebanese have died for every Israeli, as at this stage over 400 Lebanese and 42 Israelis have been killed. Many of the dead on both sides are civilians, and under international law, any targeting of civilians is a war crime. On the day of the protest, four UN observers were killed by an Israeli bomb in south Lebanon.

Other indymedia.ie coverage of the conflict: Irish activist Caoimhe Butterly travels to Lebanon | Did Hezbollah really breach the border? | Lebanese media targeted | Israel uses White Phosphorus and cluster bombs against civilians | Lebanon and Shannon airport | Belfast protest | Other coverage: Global IMC Feature | Robert Fisk in Beirut via Demoracy Now | Chomsky on current conflict | Audio: 1 2 3