Barry O'Donovan, Joe Carolan, Amanda Moloney and Grace Lally from Globalise Resistance at a news conference yesterday.
Posted on 05/08/2002 10:12:07 AM PDT by Happygal
REVEALING new video footage of gardai batoning anti-globalisation protesters off the streets has provoked shock and outrage among politicians.
One shot shows protesters surrounded by gardai, several of whom are wielding batons. Another shows a protester being kicked by one garda and batoned by his colleague. A third frame shows a protester on the ground, his arm raised to in a vain attempt to ward off a blow from a baton.
Justice Minister John O'Donoghue called for a report into the Garda handling of the protest in Dublin on Monday night and said he would ensure there was "full transparency and accountability".
"If people are guilty of assault going beyond the norm of reasonable force then of course they can be charged," he said.
Labour's Justice spokesman Brendan Howlin described the TV scenes as "very worrying", adding: "If we saw such scenes on the streets of Northern Ireland, there would be statements in the Dail and questions would be asked on all sides."
And Green Party TD John Gormley said the "shocking" footage confirmed that some gardai "acted excessively".
"We cannot allow thugs of any description, whether they be people on the streets or members of the Garda Siochana, to act with impunity," he said.
"We must have equity - all members of society must act within the law."
But Mr Gormley also urged those participating in anti-globalisation protests to behave responsibly and peacefully and not to allow a minority intent on causing trouble to hijack their protests.
Labour and the Greens claimed the scenes captured on video emphasised the need for an independent Garda Authority and Ombudsman.
The film was shot by Indymedia, a media group sympathetic to the protest, and was shown on new bulletins by RTE and TV3.
Mr Howlin said that, while the footage did not provide a comprehensive picture and he did not want to come to any conclusion, it was clear that an independent review of the Garda response was needed.
He said Mr O'Donoghue was simply calling for a Garda report into the incidents and this was "the same merry-go-round" as always happened in such cases.
The incidents, he said, highlighted the need for the independent structures to investigate any allegations of wrongdoing or excessive use of force in incidents such as this.
Mr O'Donoghue said he had no evidence that police had removed identification numbers prior to drawing their batons. But he said: "I would regard that as highly irregular and in those circumstances there would be a situation where a complaint could be made."
Mr Gormley said the Greens had "the highest respect" for the Garda and believed there should be more resources and personnel for the force - "but, that being the case, we believe the force must be totally scrupulous in dealing with the public."
Another demonstration is to take place in the city tomorrow evening outside Pearse Street Garda station "against police brutality."
Remember Irish Gardai are unarmed. All they have for protection are their batons and whistles believe it or not.
My opinion these protestors aren't blameless in this.
(BTW...the following quote is from another article in the Irish Independent about the protest:-"One senior garda officer said last night there were a number of individual incidents that warranted close investigation, but he pointed out there had been a lot of provocation of gardai earlier in the evening. Several members of the force had been struck with missiles, including beer cans, and they had been spat on by a small section of the crowd who had earlier been drinking alcohol and smoking cannabis.)
Barry O'Donovan, Joe Carolan, Amanda Moloney and Grace Lally from Globalise Resistance at a news conference yesterday.
LOL! Good one!
When in the heat of 'battle', what's excessive? If I was 'keeping the peace' and violence either broke out or was about to break out, and all I had was a baton and whistle, I just might do the same. Crowd control is the worst duty because you're damned if you do and you're damned if you don't. Put the media in uniforms and let's see what THEY do!
Isn't that a cover photo from one of the Cranberries' first CDs?
Or The Corrs
They are communists and anarchists.
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