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Roestown:- Parliamentary Question

category national | anti-capitalism | news report author Tuesday March 27, 2007 20:17author by C Murray

..............................................

Chun an Aire Comhshaoil, Oidreachta agus Rialtais Aitiuil:

(to the Minister for Environment, Heritage and Local Government:-

To ask the minister for Environment, Heritage and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to the destruction and dismantling in recent weeks of sites of major archaeological significance in The Roestown area of County Meath, ahead of a full assessment being carried out as to whether they meet the criteria to be designated as national monuments as laid out in the National Monuments Act.

Reply:-

" Archaeological works at Roestown, Co Meath have been carried out in accordance with the
directions I issued on 11th May 2005 , under section 14a of the NMA (2004-as amended)

No new national monuments were discovered at Roestown in the course of these
archaeological works.An inspector from my dept inspected the site prior to the removal
of a souterrain.The archaeological works were being carried out to the required
standard. There have been a number of cases with such sites, which are relatively
common in Ireland, as in this incidence, and are preserved by record.

Excavations at Roestown, including making of 3d laser images are substantially complete
when final reports have been submittd to and considered by my department, I will ensure
they are made publically available in the interests of extending the range and depth of
our archaeological knowledge.'
(ends)

Two things:-

1. In 2003 (Feburary) the Statutory body charged with the implementation of the NMA
was abolished by Martin Cullen TD. There are no legislative protections
for the archaeological complex in Tara. Duchas was divided into the D.O.E
and the Commissioners for public works in Ireland.I used work for Duchas
and info is currently inaccessible due to a two year back-log in filing.

2. The State have abdicated duty in protection of heritage to the
PPP and the corporate lobby have influenced the drafting of the SIB,
there was no cross-examination of the government chief archaeologist during the
Tara case. This means that the private company proceeds in an unregulated
manner to decide what is worth protecting. The Planning and construction
guidelines published by the NRA clearly and legally state that a road route
will not be changed after EIS- this subverts the already tenous legislation and
plays into the SIB fast-track planning.

I retain hard copy of those guidelines, if anyone wants them.

Minister Roche stated to me that there is no separate legislation envisaged
for the protection of Irish Heritage. This destruction will continue and will
support the people who are buying the re-zoned lands in Tara. This is part
of the FF legacy to Ireland (along with the other corruptions)

Question 605:- Tabled by Aengus O Snodaigh.
** Baronstown 1 and Collierstown are National Monuments.

Comments (8 of 8)

Jump To Comment: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
author by Lismullinpublication date Wed Mar 28, 2007 10:30author address author phone

The only monument declared recently was 16 Moore Street and they got the wrong house.
No one, no company etc is going to declare any site on the M3 a national monument as it would stop the route.
What about what's going on at Lismullin? Those finds sound like another great site.
Has anyone looked? any photos?
Don't believe Roche, hundreds if not thousands of reports are missing ... will the reports on these sites ever see the light of day?

author by C Murraypublication date Wed Mar 28, 2007 10:52author address author phone

Hysteria does not help a campaign.
The issues always have been the abolition of Duchas. The Construction guidelines of the NRA,
the refusal to cross-examine the government chief archaeologist. The abolition of Duchas.
The lack of statutory body to implement the NMA. The transposition of elements of Aarhus
into the SIB.

These issues are allover the newswire and have been dealt with by amongst others:-
Joe Fenwick, Muireann ni Bhrolochain, The vigilers, Tarawatch, Frank Mac Donald (irish
Times) and the SF/Green party- particularly Aenghus O Snodaigh and Ciaran Cuffe.

What is important now is collating a visual record and emphasising the abdication of duty
to Heritage both natural and built- Tara comprises part of the whole issue of globalisation
and corruption in Ireland and therefore the scattering and isolation of that campaign has
done it a deep disservice.It is not a singular environmental issue- Rossport, Pallaskenry
and upcoming infrastructural projects are part of the problem.

These are subject to the adaption of the courts and the fast-track planning of the SIB.
there are reports written on it , under Chris murray on the newswire and the indyteam
from feburary 2006- june 2006 (launch and vote)

I do not have the time to collate them- use the search engine top right of page.

author by C Murraypublication date Wed Mar 28, 2007 11:03author address author phone

http://www.indymedia.ie/article/75183
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/76680
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/76678
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/76553
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/74361

author by huh?publication date Wed Mar 28, 2007 13:47author address author phone

Roads are exempt from the SIB. What are you on about Chris?

author by C Murraypublication date Wed Mar 28, 2007 19:42author address author phone



The SIB is a fast-track planning system which envisages a re-structuring ogf the Irish courts
to mainline planning issues. it envisages transposing elements of Aarhus into the Irish
legal system, therby reducing the right of the citizen to protest at the corrupt planning system
which anyone can see if they read the legislation (introduced 16th Feburary 06, went
through the Dail 16th June 06).

An environmental group which wants to appeal a planning authority decision must
be in a group which is incepted for twelve months and must have environmental
protection listed in it's aims and methods.

Got that?
This is used to demonstrate the power of the corporate lobby whose lawyers
helped draft the legislation. This is indicative of crony corruption.

The tri-partite process known as the PPP is a process wherin the lobby
facilitated by SIB can apply to have a road/rail/infrastructure project application
approved by ABP, with the help of the county council/state- hence the re-zoning application
around places like Tara come under the PPP/ABP.

SIB does not directly refer to Tara (per se) but the NRA, who published
the planning and construction guidelines which quite clearly state that
a road will not be changed after EIS are defined as 'corporate lobby'.

Now Tara is not directly affected by SIB, but it is most definitely symptomatic
of both the failure of the State in relation to the NRA subversion of existent
legislation and the failure of the State to provide adequate protections in the
form of A statutory body- such as Duchas to implement the NMA and to protect
our natural and built heritage.

In a nutshell- Tara is symptomatic of corporatism and globalisation unchecked
by regulation and protection in the Irish State.

Which is the point of the links in the comments above.

It is a unique archaelogical complex comprising 38 sites which are about to be
destroyed to faciltate the re-zoners/ the corporate lobby (NRA/Toll) and
demonstrate how the State has failed and been fined thru the EU.

Would you like a diagram- plain english is better, Tara is part of our problem
with corruption- it is the same in many ways as other communities that have
seen massive destruction in the name of profit.

read the links, read the legislation- and ask why no-one protested the
aboiltion of duchas in 2003.

author by C Murraypublication date Wed Mar 28, 2007 20:19author address author phone



PPP= Public Private Partnership.
SIB=Strategic Infrastructure Bill.
ABP= An Bord Pleanala. (to be re-structured by SIB/ as Opposed to CIB- a Cullen initiative
rejected by Mc D as it included Poolbeg incinerator)
EIS= Environmental Impact Statement (the NRA collect them by going in cars and helicopters
and refusing to change them after route is chosen)
NRA=National Roads Authority (noel Dempsey appointed his cousin to the NRA
before being bumped to Rossport- sorry, Marine)
NMA= National Monuments Act (amended 2004, to allow the minister to demolish,
deface and bury monuments that got in Noel Dempsey's cousin's way)
EU= the European Union currently not fining FF/PD over Tara but they will, this will
be a problem for a future government and be hidden by mainstream media)

author by C Murraypublication date Tue May 22, 2007 20:06author address author phone

Look at the cultures that the US dollar has attacked and divided and the weak minds that
they have seduced.

Look at the museums they have destroyed.
To vandalise culture with the willing connivance of the party in power is to debase a people.
To instigate a two-party system based on the US system of democracy is to debase the
electoral culture of a people.
To debase women and keep them out of the system by attacking the integrity of
their opinion is a by product of globalised cultural debasement.

The above question was addressed to Minister Roche, he who brought Nice 2 to
Ireland and he who has been unavailable to media throughout this election campaign.

Now Bertie may think its very clever to hang his hat on the almighty and very weak dollar
and to debase his people to avoid the issue of globalised debasement in this country
but it is fooling no-one.

His government has gone against the wishes of Pearse whom he adores, there
is no equality in buckling the health service and creating a PPP to criminalise
a citizenship.

There is no equality in the SIB, but a facilitation of the greedy people who are tying the poor to twenty
year mortgages because the state makes more cash out of affordable housing than social
housing.
his state has brought the violence of war to a neutral country and separated a people from
their heritage.

The first act of the Taoiseach was to drop the heritage portfolio.
The second act of the Taoiseach was to have Duchas abolished.
The third act of the Taoiseach was to impoverish a generation.

The fourth act of the Taoiseach was to ignore the sense of the people who care about the heritage.
He has failed and subordinated a people to greed and destruction.

That is a legacy that cannot be bought by creating a fetish out of 1916.
its called betrayal.

author by W. Finnerty.publication date Tue May 22, 2007 23:35author address author phone

As far as I know, the "Strategic Infrastructure Bill" (SIB) has now very worryingly become the "Planning and Development (Strategic Infrastructure) Act 2006".

Hardly surprisingly, allowing for all the PPP (Plunder, Plunder, Plunder) style corruption involved, nothing is being said about this by the politicians BEFORE the general election on Thursday?

For further information on the SIBs progress, please see at the bottom of http://www.oireachtas.ie/viewdoc.asp?DocID=4946 page.

Related Link: http://www.europeancourtofhumanrightswilliamfinnerty.com/PresidentMaryMcAleese17June2006/Email.htm

http://www.indymedia.ie/article/81679

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