A little over 300 people took part in a lively and colourful demonstration  in Ballyfermot  today, 1^st July, to protest  against ward closures in Cherry Orchard Hospital.
 

Families and carers were joined by community activists, local political representatives and the wider community in a show of solidarity with patients suffering from althzeimers and dementia. The Laurel Unit in Cherry Orchard hospital which provides 18 beds for such patients is due to be closed down.
 People marched through Ballyfermot to the hospital  where family members whose loved ones are affected by the proposed cuts handed in a local petition to hospital management.
 

HEARTLESS COUNCIL REFUSE TO RELENT ON MOORE FAMILY EVICTION DESPITE JUDGES’ APPEAL AND OFFER OF ALMOST €7000 PAYMENT OFF ARREARS

MEANWHILE COUNCIL SPENDS THOUSANDS TO STATION PRIVATE SECURITY IN EMPTY MOORE HOUSE BUT REFUSES TO TELL ELECTED REP COSTS

In a statement, the People Before Profit Alliance has condemned Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown Co Council’s rejection of an offer of nearly €7000 euro by the Moore family from Loughlinstown, against the rent arrears on the Council home from which they were recently evicted. The Council refused the offer, despite an appeal for “common sense” from a district court Judge, hearing a civil application by the Moore’s to have the eviction set-aside in Dun Laoghaire district court last Friday.

Friends and supporters of the Moore family raised the money over recent weeks in effort to defray the rent arrears of €13,000 that had built up on the tenancy and that led the Council to evict the family in May.The offer from the Moore family was made public during the hearing in Dun Laoghaire district court last Thursday and Friday.

The District court Judge, presiding, had appealed to the Council to come to some sort of arrangement with the family, given the offer of such a lump sum payment and the efforts by the family to pay the arrears in instalment over the last eight months. However, the Council rejected the offer and the judges’ appeals, leaving the judge no option legally but to rule that the eviction was lawful.

Press Release – June 24th PEOPLE BEFORE PROFIT TO HOLD PROTEST AT SECRET FIANNA FAIL ARD FHEIS IN DUBLIN TONIGHT.

The People Before Profit Alliance has called at short notice a protest at 7.00pm tonight (June 24th) at the Raddissson Hotel, Golden lane, off Aungier St, in Dublin’s city centre, where they understand Fianna Fail are due to hold a regional Ard Fheis. PBPA understand that, Taoiseach Brian Cowen, will be attending the Ard Fheis.

PBPA also understand that it was fear of protests that led Fianna Fail to hold regional Ard Fheiseanna, that are not publicly advertised, instead its usual national Ard Fheis. While PBPA have only gained knowledge of the Fianna Fail event in the last hour they are now making strenuous efforts to mobilise protests at short notice.

The PBPA demonstration will protest against the government’s economic policies of bailing out banks and protecting the super-wealthy in Irish society, while inflicting savage social cuts on ordinary people and failing to address the unemployment crisis.

VICTORY AT BORD PLEANLA IN BATTLE AGAINST TEK MOBILE PHONE MAST

In a statement, Cllr Richard Boyd Barrett of the People Before Profit Alliance has welcomed the decision of An Bord Pleanala to refuse the appeal of mobile phone company Meteor for retention planning permission for a mobile phone mast it erected in the grounds of TEK FC in Stradbrook.

The decision was confirmed in letters from Bord Pleanala, received today, by Cllr Boyd Barrett and other local residents, who had objected.

Bord Pleanala rejected the appeal of Meteor on the grounds that the mast was visually obtrusive and damaging to the residential amenity of the area, particularly to St Fintan’s Park, Villas and Deansgrange Rd , which backed onto the site where the mast was erected.

Cllr Boyd Barrett was involved in organising a local campaign of residents in nearby areas to have the mast taken down and was the only elected local representative to formally lodge an objection to both the Council and An Bord Pleanala.

Cllr Boyd Barrett welcomed the decision, saying:“This decision is a real victory for local residents and people power against the arrogance of Meteor.

Meteor deliberately and cynically put up the 18 metre mast in the middle of a residential area without planning permission or public consultation, in a flagrant abuse of the planning system.

They and other mobile phone companies are doing this all the time and their attitude seems to be to lash as many of these things up as possible in the hope that a few get through unnoticed. It’s a disgrace.

It is only because local residents were alert and that together we organised an active campaign of protests and objections that Meteor’s cynical plans were scuppered.

PBPA CALLS FOR PUBLIC BOYCOTT OF CONNOLLY SHOES IN BRAY AND ELSEWHERE

In a statement, Cllr Richard Boyd Barrett of the People Before Profit Alliance (PBPA) has condemned the decision of Connolly Shoes to close their Dun Laoghaire stores in the midst of a long running dispute, which has seen four of their longest serving employees on strike for more than eleven weeks.

A demonstration will take place at 1pm today (Mon 17th) outside Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown Co Council in protest against the eviction of Anne and Christopher Moore and their three children from their Loughlinstown Council home on Friday.

The Moore family were evited by Gardai and Council officials for rent arrears, even though the family had offered an installment arrangment to pay-off the arrears last October and had kept to the arrangment solidly for eight months.

Anne Moore resisted her eviction on Friday by climbing to the top of a ladder leant against the front of the house. Her brave protest resulted in a seven hour stand-off with Gardai. During the protest, huge numbers of neighbours and Loughlinstown residents came out onto the street and pleaded with the Gardai and Council officials not to proceed with the evicvtion.

In a sinister move the Gardai requested a black-out of any live media coverage of the eviction protest, even though large numbers of media correspondents were present. A large number of riot polce were also brought to the scene of the eviction and gardai imposed a crime scene cordon around the entire estate, restricting access of neighbours and members of the public to the eviction scene.

Although evicted the Council have provided no alternative accomodation for the Moore family, who are now scattered staying with different friends and family members.

Over a 1,000 people took to the streets yesterday (Tuesday, May 11th) for the Right To Work Campaign protest at Dail Eireann.

The recently established Right to Work Campaign, which is a broad coalition of community, civil society, trade unions, political groups and individuals called the demonstration to oppose the escalating bailout of Irish Banks and calling instead for the government’s priority to be focused on bailing out jobs, incomes and public services for ordinary workers and citizens. The protest was also officially sponsored by the trade union UNITE and was addressed by Fintan O’ Toole (Journalist), John Bisset (Canal Communities), John Kidd (SIPTU Firefighters), Siobhan Mc Guire (Community Workers Co-Op) & others.

Draft legislation published by the First Minister and Deputy First Minister on the 20th April 2010 ostensibly to deal with the issue of contentious parades, will outlaw all public demonstrations, protests etc that have not given the police 37 days notice. So, trade unions, women’s groups, anti-racist groups, community organisations, political activists – any campaigners – can forget about calling emergency protests if this law goes through.
The notes attached to the Bill give as an example that “if a group wanted to protest against the closure of a local sports facility….the group’s activity would fall under the definition of a public meeting and would therefore be subject to the notification procedures for a public assembly”.
If the Bill becomes law, ALL gatherings involving 50 or more people, and which take place in any “public space” will be required to give 37 days prior notice. “Public space” is defined as “any road or footway or any other place, apart from a building to which the public or a section of the public has access”. This definition would include the grounds or entrances to workplaces, schools, hospitals, government and council offices etc.

It is no accident that this law is proposed now – major cuts in public spending are already underway. This will mean the loss of thousands of jobs, the closure of schools, hospital wards and day centres, cuts to the community and voluntary sector and to all kinds of services and the introduction of water charges. There will be a vital need to resist the cuts.

“WE NEED A PEOPLE’S REBELLION”

At a press conference this morning organised by the Right to Work Campaign, the People Before Profit Alliance (PBPA) committed itself to mobilising across the country for a national demonstration that will take place at Dail Eireann on Tuesday May 11th at 7.30pm.

The press conference was attended by: Cllr Richard Boyd Barrett (People Before Profit Alliance), Aengus O Snodaigh TD (Sinn Fein), Joe Higgins TD (Socialist Party).

The recently established Right to Work Campaign, which is a broad coalition of community, civil society, trade unions, political groups and individuals has called the demonstration to oppose the escalating bailout of Irish Banks and calling instead for the government’s priority to be focused on bailing out jobs, incomes and public services for ordinary workers and citizens. The May 11th protest is also officially sponsored by the trade union UNITE. The May 11th protest will be addressed by Fintan O’ Toole (Journalist), John Bisset (Canal Communities), Walter Cullen (UNITE), John Kidd (SIPTU Firefighters), Siobhan Mc Guire (Community Workers Co-Op) & others.

In it’s statement the PBPA, called for a “people’s rebellion” against the current government and it’s policies, which it said were leading to a decimation of jobs, incomes and public services, while protecting the institutions and wealthy elites that were responsible for the crisis in the first place.