Report from Galway Weekly Picket Against War,Occupation and Deportation

national | miscellaneous | news report Sunday June 08, 2003 13:22 by Global Women's Strike 087 7838688

Women from the Strike along with other women and men held a fantastic picket this week outside Mill St Garda station in Galway. The support for continued action on the streets against occupation was very visible and vocal. Passers by of all ages and walks of life stopped to listen to our speak-out from a megaphone, which we used to bring everyone anti-war, anti-occupation and anti-globalisation news from the city, from Ireland, from Evian and from Iraq itself...

Women from the Strike along with other women and men held a fantastic picket this week outside Mill St Garda station in Galway. The support for continued action on the streets against occupation was very visible and vocal. Passers by of all ages and walks of life stopped to listen to our speak-out from a megaphone, which we used to bring everyone anti-war, anti-occupation and anti-globalisation news from the city, from Ireland, from Evian and from Iraq itself. News we don't hear from the media. People were eager to take leaflets explaining why we are picketing and the leaflet of Payday, the men's network working with the Strike, on 'Refusing to Kill'.

Several women, in particular, stopped to speak with us, voice their support or tell us some news. One woman who spoke with us went down to the offices of the city radio station to tell them to come out and interview us. Women from Africa who went on Strike with us on International Women's Day stopped by to offer support, pleased especially that our picket is highlighting the fact that these wars and occupations force people to flee for their lives, but they find that 'Ireland of the cead mile faite [hundred thousand welcomes]' has joined the rest of Fortress Europe and harasses and deports them from places like this Garda Station in the heart of Galway.

People also brought news to the picket which we publicised over the megaphone.
We heard that Gardai in Galway had threatened a Muslim group with a fine of over 100 euros per poster because they had put posters up round the city advertising a stall and jumble sale to raise money for a medical aid convoy to Iraq. If they did not get the posters down within one hour they would be forced to pay. We also learned of harassment and restriction of movement at the peace camp at Fairford air base in England. Visitors are not allowed through a police checkpoint to the camp and police have a list of residents of the camp who are the only ones allowed in and out. Visitors who try to go there are searched, their bags searched and the whole event videoed. One woman was told that UK police had the power to do all of this under the Terrorism Act.

At one point, we received a visit from a policewoman who came out of the station to complain to us that we were disturbing her work because we were too loud but women passing by asked us to turn up the volume on our megaphone, they couldn't hear us down the street. And we did! Several people stopped to listen and a particularly big cheer went up for the Strike demand 'Invest in Caring Not Killing'.

Picket takes place every Wednesday at 1pm outside Mill St Garda station. All welcome.