Direct action training, Saturday 14th April

mayo | miscellaneous | event notice Tuesday March 27, 2012 16:50 by annie - Rossport Solidarity Camp rossportsolidaritycamp at gmail dot com

Direct action training in Co. Mayo - all welcome, no experience necessary.

Come to Mayo for a weekend of direct action training, meet the community and see this incredible place.

You are warmly invited to visit Rossport Solidarity Camp for a direct action training day on Saturday the 14th of April 2012. The training is also a chance to stay for the weekend, see the area and learn about the community campaign that has been challenging the Corrib gas project for over a decade. It's open to complete beginners to try out different ways of protesting, learning your legal rights and planning a safe and effective campaign against Shell.

Interested in direct action and supporting the campaign against Shell in Co. Mayo?
The purpose of the training is to give you a chance to;

- discuss and learn about direct action and the legal situation for campaigners
- meet local campaigners and learn about their campaign and life in the affected area
- discuss effective ways to support the community’s campaign, whether by visiting the area or from home.

What is Rossport Solidarity Camp?
Since 2005 Rossport Solidarity Camp has been a collective of people living in Kilcommon, Co. Mayo who are committed to supporting the campaign by the local people against the proposed Corrib gas project. Together we aim to:
- to support the community in its struggle against Shell’s Corrib gas project
- to provide a base for people to visit, learn and support the struggle through a number of ways including non-violent direct action
- to work as part of the national Shell to Sea campaign
- to link with other communities under threat from the fossil fuel industry and international campaigns against Shell & other oil companies
- to try and become a model of sustainability

Workshop programme
(Programme may change before the event, please contact us if you need additional details or have any specific requirements to enable you to participate; access, diet etc)

Friday
7pm Dinner
8pm-9pm Welcome meeting - introductions and how camp functions
9pm Film

Saturday
9am Breakfast, Site tour and intro to camp infrastructure
10am-12 Campaign update and walking tour of the area
12-1pm Direct Action - what is it? how it has been used in this campaign?
1.30pm Lunch
2pm-4pm Direct Action - planning an action, practical skills
4.15-4.30 tea break
4.30-6.30 Legal workshop for campaigners
7pm Dinner
8pm - 10pm Meet local campaigners
10pm - music in the cabin, or people can head to the local pub

Sunday
9am breakfast
10-12 How can we effectively support the campaign in the future? Facilitated discussion with space for people to discuss different ways to be involved and support the campaign either by visiting again or from elsewhere in Ireland and beyond.
12 noon Wrap up of weekend and feedback
1pm Lunch

What to bring
Wellies, warm and waterproof clothing, sleeping bag and mat if you can (normally we have spares) and a torch. A camera can be very useful. This is a free event. Accommodation and food provided, donations welcome. Suggested donation of 5 euro per day to cover your meals. For more info see www.rossportsolidaritycamp.org

How to get here
Please try to arrive by the evening of Friday 13th if possible. For detailed directions and public transport info see www.rossportsolidaritycamp.org If travelling by public transport, aim to arrive in Ballina by train or bus before 5pm, then catch McGrath’s bus. McGrath’s bus service from Ballina (or Castlebar) can drop you at the camp at 6-6.30pm in time for the start of the weekend. To get away on Sunday, a Buseireann bus departs 4pm from Bangor Erris. This bus runs to Dublin via Ballina, Longford where you can change for other destinations.

Can’t make it on the 14th?
If you can’t make it up for this, we run direct action trainings here and around the country so please email rossportsolidaritycamp@gmail.com if you would like one to happen in your area. We hold introductory workshop weekends at the camp a couple of times per year. If you can't come on the 14th but would like to attend at another time, please contact us to arrange a visit when you are free to come. Visitors are welcome to the camp at anytime.

Some thoughts on direct action...

‘Power cedes nothing without a demand’

"If there is no struggle there is no progress. Those who profess to favor freedom and yet depreciate agitation…want crops without plowing up the ground, they want rain without thunder and lightening. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its many waters…. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will." - Frederick Douglass,1857

Direct action has been an important tactic used in movements for social change throughout Ireland’s history. In our recent history direct action was used during the anti-war campaign at Shannon airport, in the civil rights marches, during the anti-nuclear campaign at Cansore Point and also to kick out dirty industries such as Raytheon, Merrell Dow and Raybestos Manhattan. In Co. Mayo direct action continues to be used in parallel with other campaigning tools such as engaging in the planning and complaints processes, lobbying, public meetings and taking legal challenges against Shell.

The Shell to Sea campaign has used direct action in different ways as part of an 11 year effort to frustrate, delay and try to stop Shell's Corrib Gas project. We take direct action because the government has failed to investigate the corruption at the heart of the Corrib project and the authorities that are supposed to protect communities and the environment have refused to regulate Shell’s activities. Whether by stopping Shell illegally drilling in a Special Area of Conservation or blocking the trucks carrying building materials for this experimental and dangerous project, using direct action has seriously challenged Shell’s and State’s attempts to steamroll through a community and place unquestionned. Shell's Corrib gas project is already almost a decade late and 3 times over budget – impressive for a rural community fighting one of the biggest multinationals in the world!

For further information don’t hesitate to contact us at rossportsolidaritycamp@gmail.com or by calling 0851141170. Feel free to download the poster (file downloadable below) and put them up. Thanks!

Direct action training 14th April 2012 1.81 Mb