Statement from Kevin Higgins re: Intimidation and Galway Alliance Against War

galway | anti-war / imperialism | press release Sunday July 26, 2009 00:45 by Kevin Higgins kphiggins at hotmail dot com

Statement from Kevin Higgins re: Intimidation and Galway Alliance Against War

I am happy that the Galway Alliance Against War statement of November 22nd containing the abusive reference to me has now been removed from the Irish Anti-War Movement website by the administrators. See my original statement on the related issues below. This clearly illustrates that the Irish Anti-War Movement agree with me that there was a serious problem with the Galway Alliance Against War statement of November 22nd in the given context.

However, I am aware of no action to date having been taken by Galway Alliance Against War itself. To fully resolve this issue in a proper, democratic way, it is essential that Galway Alliance Against War now

(1) move to take appropriate disciplinary action against the offending member; it is the least any democratic organisation should do.

and

(2) clearly disassociate itself from the following remarks by one of its own members on the Irish Anti-War Movement Website at http://irishantiwar.org/node/545:

"I would call on writers living in the region of the Shannon to join in the protests against the US presence there or to write letters to local newspapers and national ones proclaiming their opposition to the United States military occupation of this part of Irish soil. If any writer feels unwilling to do this, let him or her not ever grumble about free speech - while the US bombs and rockets ordinary civilians in Afghanistan in the name of a 'free world.'"

Disassociating itself from such a statement is, similarly, the least that any democratic organisation should do.

END OF STATEMENT

ORIGINAL STATEMENT ISSUED ON THURSDAY, JULY 23rd

Statement Calling on Galway Alliance Against War to Condemn Intimidation

I am calling on the Galway Alliance Against War group (GAAW) to condemn attempts by elements within the group to intimidate me following the publication of my satirical poem ‘The Annual Air Show Protest’ in my most recent poetry collection, Time Gentlemen, Please (Salmon, 2008).

On Friday, May 9th 2008 I was walking up Seamus Quirke Road, when a car pulled up and a prominent member of Galway Alliance Against War jumped out and assaulted me. I immediately contacted my doctor who documented the fact that I had bruising on my left arm and also made a complaint to Galway Gardaí at Mill Street Station, who told me that they would caution the individual in question. I also met with another member of Galway Alliance Against War who assured me that the individual in question had been spoken to.

Despite this assurance, last Summer there were a number of highly abusive postings about me on the internet, some of which were posted in the name of a prominent member of Galway Alliance Against War. All of the posts were quickly removed by the editors, following complaints from me, as they breached the site’s editorial guidelines. I retain copies of these posts.

Then on Thursday, November 20th I was subjected to verbal abuse on Shop Street by the same individual who had previously assaulted me. I informed Galway Gardaí at Mill Street Station, as it was relevant to my previous complaint to them. I believed that would be the end of the matter.

However, I have recently discovered that there is an official statement on behalf of the Galway Alliance Against War group posted on the Irish Anti-War Movement website http://irishantiwar.org/node/300 in which I am mentioned and which uses some of the same abusive language which originally appeared in the other now deleted internet postings. This statement was posted on November 22nd last year, but was only drawn to my attention recently.

This is an official statement on behalf of the Galway Alliance Against War group, and remains posted on the internet; it is now clear that the words other members of Galway Alliance Against War had with the individual who assaulted me were not enough. This statement amounts to an endorsement by the whole group of these illegal and abusive tactics.

I am now calling on the Galway Alliance Against War group to publicly condemn these attempts by elements within their own ranks to intimidate me and restrict my right to free speech as a poet. Artistic freedom is essential to an open, democratic society. Galway Alliance Against War have an absolute right to criticise what I write. But no-one has the right to jump out of a car and shove someone up against railings because they disagree with the content of a poem.

ENDS