The friendly arm of the law

A recent independent report by a delegation of international human rights and environmental activists has slammed the actions of the Gardai in Mayo for suppressing peaceful protest and creating civil unrest.

The report, issued by the Global Community Monitor (GCM), was compiled from evidence gathered at a public hearing as well as through interviews, emails and video footage. It does not, however, take a position in relation to the construction of Shell’s pipeline.

Related Links: GCM Report | Reclaiming the Streets: Garda Review on the Ballinaboy Protests | Indymedia Rossport Archive | Shell to Sea | Rossport Solidarity Camp |

In his address to the Irish Congress of Trade Unions conference the Taoiseach asked why people who are fed up with the current economic climate don’t just hang themselves. Maybe he hasn’t checked the statistics recently but it would seem like they are.

Suicide is the primary cause of death for males between the ages of 18 – 34 in Ireland. We also have the 5th highest suicide rate in Europe. There are a myriad of reasons why people kill themselves and I won’t assume to speak on behalf of anyone but Bertie’s comments not only showed his contempt for Irish people but also go part of the way to explaining the problem with the current Irish society.

A Pro-choice Activist Addresses The Rally

On Saturday 30th of June, 2007, Choice Ireland held a rally at the Central Bank Plaza at 2pm. The theme of the rally was "Fight for a Woman's Right to Choose". In attendance were Senator David Norris as well as Ivana Bacik and a representative from Doctors for Choice, who spoke on their different experiences of the issue of reproductive rights, as well as the status of the campaign in the light of a recent M-R-B-I poll that presented that a majority of people now support legislating for abortion rights in the Republic of Ireland.

It was a busy Saturday noon, and Dublin's hive-like activity carried on as usual. While tourists, emo/goth teens and shoppers walked around, some people were handing out fliers in order to try and get some last-minutes attendants to the rally which was about to begin. Choice Ireland had been slowly gaining notoriety due to their work during the recent D case, in which a young woman was denied the right to travel for an abortion since she was in the care of the Health Service Executive. Moreover, recent polls commissioned by the Irish Family Planning association show a great change in attitudes to abortion in Ireland. Capturing the mood of those polls, Choice Ireland held a brief leafleting event in front of Dail Eireann on June 27th, with a suitcase or backpack for each Irish woman that, statistically, travels daily for an abortion either to the UK or elsewhere in the European Union.

Related Links: Images and Audio From Previous Rally | Alliance for Choice Calls "D" Case A Tragedy | Teenager Seeking Abortion Challenges HSE | Report of Rally In Support of Miss D | Doctors For Choice Advocate Choice | Founding Documents of Choice Ireland | Revolutionary Anarcha-Feminsit Group Hold Meeting On Choice and Class | A UCD Student Reports On Her Experience with Rogue Clinics | European Court Of Human Rights Turns To Restrictive Irish Abortion Law | Report From Rally At Rogue Information Clinic | Choice Ireland