Over 50,000 on March against IMF cuts and Bailout in Dublin on Sat Nov 27th

national | anti-capitalism | news report

Saturday November 27, 2010 20:56

by Eye witness

Report on the protest against IMF/EU cuts and FF who have helped ruin the economy

There was a huge turnout on the march today to protest against the IMF/EU Cuts FF Government despite the freezing weather.

A huge mass of people had assembled at Wood Quay for 12 noon and it was a sea of flags, banner and placards and it took at least half an hour possibly more for the full procession of people to pass. Many were blowing whistles and a few banging pots and pans in recognition of the IMF Argentina crisis back in 2001. The march stretched all the way back along the North side of the quays to O'Donovan Rossa bridge connecting Winetavern St beside Wood Quay to Ormonde Quay.

Looking back up toward Christ Church at Wood Quay

By the time this author got to O'Connell St circa 1.30pm, the speeches were already underway outside the GPO and the crowd filled the Street all the way back to the bridge. There were groups representing all of the Left political parties and grouping, many unions and numerous other groups and organisation. As is the norm, may individual placards showed they were way ahead of the offical ICTU union stance, with a general theme of make the bondholders pay or clearly identifying the preying nature of the IMF on this country.

There seemed to be complete and utter disgust at Fianna Fail in general and widespread recognition that Biffo and his gang were incompetent and against the interests of the people. A few placards didn't forget the previous muppet in power, Bertie Ahern who presided over much of the crazy years of the boom.

THe ICTU had a number of speakers and when David Begg got up to speak, there were very audible jeers and boos with shouts of ‘Get off’ (the stage). Obviously many in the public were confused by this because they would have seen him as one of the key union ‘leaders’ who organized the march and they would have been unaware of the discussion and debate amongst the Left, where there seems to be a widespread recognition that the unions are not working against the government but with it to manage the protest and resistance to the budget. In other words they have effectively be co-opted by the state so that no real challenge other than token challenges are made to the status quo. After all they were not calling for a general strike, just for fairer cuts spread out more, when it is clear we shouldn’t even be paying for them at all.

A little while later, there were chants for "General Strike" as people can clearly see that nothing will change this governments mind about ripping off Ireland for the bankers and bondholders, more than a general strike would make them sit up and pay attention.

David Begg was then followed by three or four other speakers; one a pensioner describing what the current conditions are like for pensioners, another an apprentice plumber who lost his job before completing his apprenticeship and a few others, including Francis Black who sang a song where the lyrics pointed how what is illegal and what is legal in this country –like its perfectly legal to rip off people.

By 2:30pm the event was largely over and the crowd dispersed. Its hard to know how many felt coming away from this as to whether they had achieved anything.

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Comments (6 of 6)

Protest outside the Dail too.

by Anon

Sat Nov 27, 2010 21:14

A relatively large group of people later on assembled outside the Dail this afternoon where presumably the talks between the FF government and the IMF about the carve up of the country and economy for private capital, continued to take place.

More pictures from the protest today

Sat Nov 27, 2010 21:21

This series of pictures hopefully gives some sense of the crowd present today

More placard commentary

Placard urging people to educate themselves and understand how money works since thats the key to all of this.

Crowd gathered just down from the GPO.

Crowd outside Easons near GPO

Present & Correct .

by Sceptic. - None Whatsoever

Sat Nov 27, 2010 23:26

I ventured out today and can say i took part in this demonstration , great crowd but anger and bewilderment is rife and who
could blame us .

100,000 protesters turn out in Dublin - Voting with their feet

by chidren_of_lir

Sun Nov 28, 2010 02:29

Video link in article -

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-11849568

'Organisers said more than 100,000 people took part in Saturday's protest, while the Irish police (Gardai) estimated that "in the region of 50,000" people marched to Dublin's General Post Office, site of the nationalist uprising against British rule in 1916."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/nov/27/ireland-...otest

"One of the largest demonstrations in the Irish Republic's history brought more than 100,000 people on to Dublin's streets in protest over the international bailout and four years of austerity ahead."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/nov/27/ireland-bai...ublin

I'd be inclined to second that, B

by opus diablos - the regressive hypocrite party

Sun Nov 28, 2010 13:48

and as for W Finnerty's 'why' regarding the sidelining of judiciary and legislature, could it be anything to do with the clientelist nature of our creaking half-way-house demockkracy?

We need to stop the navel-gazing conviction that we are in some unique unprecedented condition that has not been visited on anyone else. Its a global system, and we(nationally) are quite fucking comfortably inside the 'western' tent. Half the trouble with the pricks running us is that they are not even half-decent gamblers, or they would be calling the ECB/IMF bluff and remembering that if you owe the bank a grand you are in trouble, if you owe them a zillion, they are. Thats their 'too-big-to-fail' stick that they are trying to protect their mega bondholders with. All we have to do is reverse the fucking charges and tell them go ahead, make our day and pull down their Euro. Why do you think they are in such a fucking hurry? Get it signed and sealed by monday before the market rates go any higher? Fuck them, we are NOT in the market this monday, or next. Thats their bluff.

They fed the cheap credit deliberately(read Naomi Klein foir the formulaic program)and now its net-haul time. Unfortunately our fucking mis-leaders are so into going with the dictated flow they've forgotten it takes a live fish to go against it.

Those of us who spent the last half century trying to point out the natural trajectory of marrying oursleves to imperial policies(through the height of the fuck-off-we're-booming dismissals) will not be upping our anxiety levels too much over the current shit.We are quite used to the culprits prescribing the remedy for their crimes, and realise Rome(holy Rome)will not be burned in a day. QWe are nlot so much run by clever gangsters as rather thick altar boys.Hence the earlier bailout of Rome over the compensation to abused children, again dropped on the taxpaying low-paid while Father and Mother Superior tucked into the cabbage and bacon.

Yet more photos of Nov 27th march against EU/IMF cuts

by T

Thu Dec 02, 2010 23:50

These photos are courtsey of Anthony C on flickr.

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