Emigrant from Planet of the Irps
19th August 2005, 01:42
From the Free Dessie O'Hare Campaign
http://www.irsm.org/irsp/free_dessie/
On Tuesday afternoon, eleven activists of the Free Dessie O'Hare
Campaign occupied the top security Department of Justice on St.
Stephen's Green. The government building, which is rigged with high
tech surveillance equipment, is manned by a 24 hour Garda presence
inside and outside the main entrance. Activists had been watching the
building for a number of weeks and noting Garda shift routines. It was
noticed that one particular female officer always parked her car
opposite the government building and five to ten minutes before her
shift was finished would make her way across the busy road and sit in
her car until her replacement took his position guarding the main
entrance of the government building.
It was decided that Tuesday afternoon at 2pm would be the best time
opportunity to gain access to the building. At 11am an activist of the
Free Dessie O'Hare Campaign confirmed that the same Garda was on duty,
so we all arranged to meet in St. Stephen's Green at 1:45. All
activists made there way over to the park entrance facing the
government building. At 1:55 the female Garda keeping to her routine
left her post and made her way over to her car so as to sit and wait
for her replacement to come on duty. Activists bolted out of the park
armed with banners and posters and made their way across the road and
entered through the revolving doors of the government building to the
shock and dismay of the two receptionists. It was immediately made
known to them that it was a peaceful protest organized to draw
attention to the continued refusal of the Irish government to release
Dessie O'Hare.
At this time the extremely agitated female Garda came barging into the
reception and roared with a number of expletives that we must have
been waiting for her to get into her car. She demanded that we leave
at once, that it was a government building, and that we were breaking
the law. I interceded to calm her down and told her to take a chill
pill, that we were not going to be lectured on law breaking
particularly when the Irish government has by its actions totally
ignored a high court ruling which recognized Dessie O'Hare as a
qualifying prisoner under the terms of the GFA. This seemed to make
her worse, she started roaring and screaming at us to get out. I
refused her request and told her that we were engaging in a peaceful
protest. She stormed out of the building to get reinforcements. One of
the activists took a number of photos with a digital camera and then
left the building to put the camera off site.
A few minutes later a number of Garda reinforcements arrived and we
took a collective decision to leave the building and continue our
protest outside. Six Special Branch men who proceeded to take names
and addresses of all Free Dessie O'Hare activists soon joined us.
After an hour we called a halt to the protest and decided to split up
in pairs so as to distract the attentions of the Special Branch. Not
long after I received a phone call from wheelchair-bound Eddie
McGarrigle, co-coordinator of the Free Dessie O'Hare Campaign, who
explained that he and a female activist were stopped and forcibly
searched by the Special Branch who demanded that they hand over the
digital camera. Eddie told them that he or his companion didn't have a
camera on his possession. They then physically lifted him up to see
was he sitting on the camera and removed the back cushion of his
wheelchair to search for any hidden objects. When they couldn't find
anything they soon left to harass other activists.
For the attention of the Special Branch, photographs of yesterday's
event are below.
http://www.morrigan.net/irsm/dessieohare001.jpg
http://www.morrigan.net/irsm/dessieohare002.jpg
http://www.morrigan.net/irsm/dessieohare003.jpg
http://www.morrigan.net/irsm/dessieohare004.jpg
http://www.morrigan.net/irsm/dessieohare005.jpg
http://www.morrigan.net/irsm/dessieohare006.jpg
http://www.irsm.org/irsp/free_dessie/
On Tuesday afternoon, eleven activists of the Free Dessie O'Hare
Campaign occupied the top security Department of Justice on St.
Stephen's Green. The government building, which is rigged with high
tech surveillance equipment, is manned by a 24 hour Garda presence
inside and outside the main entrance. Activists had been watching the
building for a number of weeks and noting Garda shift routines. It was
noticed that one particular female officer always parked her car
opposite the government building and five to ten minutes before her
shift was finished would make her way across the busy road and sit in
her car until her replacement took his position guarding the main
entrance of the government building.
It was decided that Tuesday afternoon at 2pm would be the best time
opportunity to gain access to the building. At 11am an activist of the
Free Dessie O'Hare Campaign confirmed that the same Garda was on duty,
so we all arranged to meet in St. Stephen's Green at 1:45. All
activists made there way over to the park entrance facing the
government building. At 1:55 the female Garda keeping to her routine
left her post and made her way over to her car so as to sit and wait
for her replacement to come on duty. Activists bolted out of the park
armed with banners and posters and made their way across the road and
entered through the revolving doors of the government building to the
shock and dismay of the two receptionists. It was immediately made
known to them that it was a peaceful protest organized to draw
attention to the continued refusal of the Irish government to release
Dessie O'Hare.
At this time the extremely agitated female Garda came barging into the
reception and roared with a number of expletives that we must have
been waiting for her to get into her car. She demanded that we leave
at once, that it was a government building, and that we were breaking
the law. I interceded to calm her down and told her to take a chill
pill, that we were not going to be lectured on law breaking
particularly when the Irish government has by its actions totally
ignored a high court ruling which recognized Dessie O'Hare as a
qualifying prisoner under the terms of the GFA. This seemed to make
her worse, she started roaring and screaming at us to get out. I
refused her request and told her that we were engaging in a peaceful
protest. She stormed out of the building to get reinforcements. One of
the activists took a number of photos with a digital camera and then
left the building to put the camera off site.
A few minutes later a number of Garda reinforcements arrived and we
took a collective decision to leave the building and continue our
protest outside. Six Special Branch men who proceeded to take names
and addresses of all Free Dessie O'Hare activists soon joined us.
After an hour we called a halt to the protest and decided to split up
in pairs so as to distract the attentions of the Special Branch. Not
long after I received a phone call from wheelchair-bound Eddie
McGarrigle, co-coordinator of the Free Dessie O'Hare Campaign, who
explained that he and a female activist were stopped and forcibly
searched by the Special Branch who demanded that they hand over the
digital camera. Eddie told them that he or his companion didn't have a
camera on his possession. They then physically lifted him up to see
was he sitting on the camera and removed the back cushion of his
wheelchair to search for any hidden objects. When they couldn't find
anything they soon left to harass other activists.
For the attention of the Special Branch, photographs of yesterday's
event are below.
http://www.morrigan.net/irsm/dessieohare001.jpg
http://www.morrigan.net/irsm/dessieohare002.jpg
http://www.morrigan.net/irsm/dessieohare003.jpg
http://www.morrigan.net/irsm/dessieohare004.jpg
http://www.morrigan.net/irsm/dessieohare005.jpg
http://www.morrigan.net/irsm/dessieohare006.jpg