Will Gardai be allowed to shoot protesters?

dublin | summit mobilisations | press release

Thursday April 22, 2004 11:58

by Dublin Grassroots Network

Protesters seek clarification on Mayday powers for police and army

Mayday protest organisers have called for
clarification on police and army powers for the Mayday
weekend.

Huge disruption is to be caused to Dublin by the EU
ministers' Dublin Castle photocall, which entails the
closing of Dame Street; and the Farmleigh banquet, for
which Europe's largest city park is to be sealed off
by seven miles of razor-wire, water-cannons, soldiers
and armed gardai.

“Yet on what grounds and on whose orders are these
extreme measures being considered?” asked Liz Curry of
the Dublin Grassroots Network.

Newspaper reports suggest that other city centre
streets may be closed to prevent large gatherings of
protestors.

Curry asked: “Do we not have the democratic right to
protest and register dissent with an EU that is
becoming increasingly militarised and undemocratic?
This lack of democracy is becoming evident in the
run-up to Mayday as event organisers are harassed and
the city is being turned into a police state with
armed gardai on the streets next week. This inevitably
creates a climate of intimidation and tension, for the
public and gardai alike.

“There's been concern expressed in the media about a
‘padded bloc’, protestors who wear padding to prevent
injury and to protect other protestors from possible
minority police violence, yet there has been no
definite information on what offensive weapons the
Gardai may use, or under what circumstances.”

Why the secrecy?

“Surely in a democratic society the public has a right
to know what measures are being taken to protect their
leaders, who are meeting behind razor-wire out of fear
of their own citizens.”

The Dublin Grassroots Network asks:
- What are the rules of engagement for gardai and the
army?
- What special powers will the gardai or army receive
and on whose orders?
- What is the legal basis for bringing the army onto
the streets and arming the gardai?
- What power of arrests do the soldiers have?
- For what acts of protest can members of the public
be arrested/batoned/shot?
- Has force been authorised to remove peaceful
protestors from the streets?
- Are ad-hoc detention centres planned and if so on
what legal basis?
- How will the rights of those detained be protected?
Will there be legal observers, legal aid etc?
- What precautions are being put in place to avoid a
re-enactment of
garda violence at the May 2002 street party?
- What streets or bridges are to be closed on May 1st?

The Mayday events are not aimed at the gardai but at
the EU ministers themselves and their push for
militarisation, racist immigration policy,
privatisation and the trade "liberalisation" that
results in the devastation of developing world
economies and increasing social exclusion in the
developed world.

Only shareholders can benefit from these neoliberal
policies which do not represent the wishes of the
majority of people in Ireland, in the EU and
worldwide. We are "bringing the noise" to Farmleigh
because it is the only way our representatives will
hear us. We are doing this peacefully and all are
welcome to join us. How far away from our
representatives will we be kept? Why are the gardai
being asked to "protect" EU leaders against their own
citizens?

We appeal to the public and to Amnesty International
and the Irish Council for Civil Liberties to support
the democratic right to protest in this country.

All of the protests and Mayday events planned are
peaceful.

The schedule of events is public, see:
http://struggle.ws/eufortress

... unlike the plans of the Minister for Justice and
the Gardai who have stated that they will not release
any information to the public until next week.

See you on Mayday weekend.

For more information, including Mayday event plans,
see:
www.struggle.ws/eufortress

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Comments (13 of 13)

Don't worry nothing violent will happen.

by Jim

Thu Apr 22, 2004 14:22

Ive no doubt the vast majority of protestors will be peaceful and will wave their posters and banners and chant and yell and make a lot of noise giving the police a headache for the day.
That's what they want. Make themselves heard and get in the newspapers and get on TV and make their case for "global justice" and a "better way" and all that nonsense.
Fair play to them.
That's what the democracy is all about.

But if a miniscule minority of extremists arrived in Dublin and lets say used firearms in attacks against Gardai or threw home made bombs or set fire to property or started killing unarmed innocent bystanders for some reason or other, then of course they could expect a violent reaction from the police or the army.

But that will not happen on MayDay.

I predict a sunny day and good weather and peaceful exchange of ideas between the Anticapitalists and proEuropeans.

No need to worry

Sure

by jeff

Thu Apr 22, 2004 14:29

They all gonna be good Gards, Jim, bravely clubbing people have their size, male and female.

It will be a great day- this time, the Gards will make sure, loike, dat dere is no telly people round.

And numbers will be hidden as usual.

It will be a great day alright, Jim...

Just like May 2002

Hey, Primetime must be biased. I love my police force. Great lads who bait up women and get to keep their jobs.

Perhaps, Jim, what you need is for a Guard to have YOU as a case of "mistaken identity". Then that will be a great day, you'll learn all about the great work the Gards do...

We are all Europeans (well most of us)

by Joe

Thu Apr 22, 2004 14:32

Not sure what a 'pro-European' is Jim as we are part of Europe and so are most of those coming. Maybe you've woken up from some deep sleep you fell into in the 1970's? Anyway things have moved on and we are protesting the racist and corpoarate agenda that is driving the EU rather than its existance.

That clarification aside you seem to have missed the point here. You have some assumptions about under what conditions the guards will be allowed to shoot people. You might be right, you might not. The worrying thing is that they are refusing to reveal this information.

If they can shoot us...

by Bill O'Neill

Thu Apr 22, 2004 15:26

why can't we shoot them, they have batons...how come we don't have any batons...what can you do, what can you do.

getting the point across.

by Travis Bickle

Thu Apr 22, 2004 19:41

Remember, don't talk about the 'behaviour of the Gardai' in May 2002, talk about the 'actions of Garda Rioters in May 2002'

And if they start slobbering on that 'padded up folk' are OBVIOUSLY looking for trouble, point out that padding is not a weapon, and that the Gardai will ALL be armed with batons or guns or both.

Clearly, some people will want to pad up because they've seen what the Gardai did 2 years ago. repeat that point as often as it needs to be made.

police and army

by john

Sat Apr 24, 2004 01:10

I am surprised to see all this talk about will the army or police be allowed shoot, what is the legal basis to put the army on the streets, what is the legal basis to arm the police.

Well why does this grassroots network not open their eyes. The army are on the streets everyday of the week. Cash escorts, prisoner escorts, explosive escorts, its called aid to the civil power and its been in use since the 1970's. The leagl basis is that the army operate in support of the police. shooting rules of engement are stict and even though soldiers are on the streets not one person has been shot since the 1980's when I think it was an IRA shoot out. Also arming the guards and the legal basis for this, come on they are the police, they are all trained in the use or arms, there are armed guards on the streets every day of the week. The legal basis for arming the police lies in the fact that they are the police,

so please come on and focus on the issues and not trying to scare people.

"IRA shoot out"

by Info nugget

Sat Apr 24, 2004 20:48

What "shoot out" in the eighties are you refering to? Do you mean the time when the Gardai ambushed a getaway car in a sidestreet at Fairview, on the north side of Dublin, killing all three occupants? I dont think they were "IRA", I thought they were "ODCs" ("ordinary decent criminals")

for info nugget

Sun Apr 25, 2004 17:21

firslty I was referring to the use of force by the army, the army last used force in the 1980's in an IRA shhot out after a kidnapping.

Secondly there is no such thing as an odc, a criminal is a criminal and the guards did not ambush them they did their jobs, all this cop bashing is a diversion from the truth.

people like info nugget need to realise that siding with criminals and terrorists like the ira is acting like bush, blair, shaorn, arafat etc etc etc

john

by info nugget

Mon Apr 26, 2004 01:19

I was not "siding with the criminals". If you look closely enough you will see that I put the "ODC" in quotes, but of course it does not suit your argument to acknowledge that.
And yes, they did ambush them. They could have stopped that car in other ways.
And there are other incidents which the authorities would like forgotten, but I will tell yiz about them at other times,
i.e. when it suits me to tell yiz.

No borders, no wars, no police

by Jezabel

Mon Apr 26, 2004 02:58

If we encounter resistence from Irish police we will retaliate in kind.
We say to the Irish police "Bring it on!""

No journalists, no lies, no threats

by R. Isible

Mon Apr 26, 2004 03:12

Hey "Jezabel", no matter who you are, your anonymous comment on an open newswire is bull. Take your trolling somewhere else.

Get Lost Yis Free State Fucks

by Go on Home British Soldiers & the Free State Coppers!! - My Island .com

Mon Apr 26, 2004 16:23

Ah Bless the cops, yeh they really do a great job! LIES...couldnt catch a cold , oh sorry only on Blue Flu day wat!

Im sick of hearin about decent Irish hardworking people being taunted by these culchie bullies who probably joined the cops to get revenge for there schoolyard days!

As i was strolling through temple bar last Saturday night I came accross a number of male guards who were chatting up Hens on a Hen nite, I had to laugh , Im so glad my taxes are being put to good use!

& as for the Ira being terrorist maybe you people shoud go read a history book, ye make me laugh ..the only terrorists were the RUC & there collusion with Loyalist death squads .Just because the Yanks are in bed with Mr Tony the T Blair ..our culture has been thrown out the window for this Euro crap

Tiocfaidh Ar La

Saoirse Go deo! & Grassroots FAIRPLAY TO Yis!

Think again

by tomred

Tue Apr 27, 2004 10:18

The Republican movement took on the cops in 1981, they were 3000-4000 strong, cohesive and well-prepared.

They were routed!

Combat 18 took on the cops a few years ago in Landsdown Road.

They received a televised beating!

Moral of the story?

Forget the macho posturing, stick to peaceful protest and make your point that way!

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Will Gardai be allowed to shoot protesters?

Comments (13 of 13)