Work restarts in Mayo

national | anti-capitalism | news report Tuesday March 29, 2011 11:46 by Liam

Shell have restarted work in Mayo, starting construction on fencing around the compound, apparently a protest was violently broken up this morning. Maura Harrington is also in court today.

Shell choose their day to start construction carefully, when several campaigners were on their way to support Maura Harrington who has been summonsed for sentencing for charges that are now over a year old. This action is widely seen as blackmail by the State in an effort to end Mrs Harringtons resistance to the pipeline. The timing of Shell's action's today suggests they are being provided details of when court cases are happening, there have already been many arrests that have been timed to remove campaigners from the area at other key phases in the construction, most notably the 2008 and 2009 arrests of Pat O'Donnell while he worked at sea in order to allow the pipe lying ship the Solitaire to lie pipes across his fishing grounds.

From http://www.wsm.ie/c/shell-compound-construction-erris-gardai-injure-protesters

The joint security from the Gardai and the secretive controversial private firm IRM-S is worrying. In 2009 the two individuals who featured heavily in the Film “The pipe” Patrick O Donnell and Willie Corduff were violently attacked. The attack on Mr O'Donnell saw his boat sank at sea by armed and masked men.

From http://www.wsm.ie/c/shell-compound-construction-erris-gardai-injure-protesters