Judge gives green light for legal challenge to US warplanes in Ireland

national | miscellaneous | news report Saturday September 14, 2002 23:30 by Eoin Dubsky - Refueling Peace info at refuelingpeace dot org 087-6941060

"The law will never make men free; it is men who have got to make the law free. They are the lovers of law and order, who observe the law when the government breaks it." -- Henry David Thoreau

In the High Court on Friday Mr Justice Finnegan agreed to let me (Eoin Dubsky) apply for a Judicial Review of Ireland's offer of overflight and refueling for US warplanes and military flights relevant to the attacks in Afghanistan. I am seeking an injunction on all such flights, and will next Friday (20 September) be in the High Court again for an interlocutory injunction for the mean time until the trial is over.

The day was a wonderful success, as my lawyers (Richard Humphries council, Paul O'Shea solicitor) and I feared we wouldn't get very far at all with the President of the High Court, Mr Justice Finnegan. He agreed however that I could have a point about the constitutionality of Ireland's participation (which is what I'm saying the refueling/overflights amounts to) in war without the assent of the parliament (which would be unconstitutional).

He wouldn't accept the points I made about International Law (basically that the UN Security Council never authorised any attacks on Afghanistan and what America is doing isn't legal self-defence either), though I still have another case to put the so-called "war on terrorism" on trial (re spray-painting warplane at Shannon Airport last Wednesday). On that matter, I had a chance to speak briefly with Danis Halliday before his talk in Dublin yesterday, and he might speak as an expert witness for me in a few months when I get the chance to continue my witness in court. I regret having to stick only to the US attacks in Afghanistan for this High Court Judicial Review case... but in the Shannon-warplane-painting case I intend to highlight the issue of US intervention (ongoing and planned) in Iraq as well.

"As the world mourned with America a year and two days ago, the UN Security Council passed a Resolution in response to the terrorist attacks on September 11th." I was saying to a journalist at the courthouse. "Those in power have since then distorted our grief and the meaning of that UN Resolution to pursue a war with no end."

In allowing US military flights overfly and refuel in Ireland, I think the State is participating in a war that has killed already thousands of civilians in Afghanistan and looks to continue the same way in Iraq too.

One last thing before I go: While Shannon Airport continues to be a conduit for the so-called "war on terrorism", it is probably the safest place to inspect/disrupt/disarm most of these warplanes. A typical travel route for these aircraft will hop them from one (deadly) US military base to another -- Shannon Airport is probably the weakest link. If you'd like to know more about the airport and what you could possibly do visit the Refueling Peace website (http://refuelingpeace.org/) and drop me a line (phone +353 87 6941060).